Today I will be turning a nostepinnes. This is a tool that has been used for thousands of years by weavers and knitters. It is used to store and wind ball of yarn on after the weaver spins fibre to create yarn. After the yarn is wound onto the nostepinnes the knitter can slide the ball of yarn off to store for later use. This nostepinnes that I am creating today will be made from some beautiful cherry that I have inlaid rosewood through to create a neat effect when the final product is done. This piece is being custom made to the specs of the hand of my friend Dunrie. Enjoy the show. Begins at 12:30 PM EST.

Free live streaming by Ustream

Popularity: 99% [?]

Well, I know you all like to drink wine on the holidays. Some of you even like to give a bottle of wine as gifts. Well, whether you like to consume, gift or both I have the perfect items for you. These are handmade wine stoppers made with Mahogany and Paddauk. I currently have these sets to offer, but will be turning more of these as the week rolls on.

$21.00

Set 1 SOLD to Donna! Thank you

These Stoppers are all hand made on my lathe. They are finished with a non-toxic blend of Oil, Shellac, and Beeswax.

$21.00
Thank you to Michael for the purchase of set #2!

The Different color sections are achieved by cutting strips of different hardwoods. They are glued back together and clamped. The different woods create the different colors. No stains are used.

$21.00
Wow! All sets SOLD, Need to make some more! Thank you Wayne MacPhail for the purchase!!!

Also, Need to thank Allan, who came in just under the gun for set #3, and ordered another set of wine stoppers! Thanks so much!

All of the stoppers shown here are available by pressing the Buy Now Button. I am offering free shipping throughout the holdays and 10% of all sales will be donated to the Erie County SPCA. Payments are processed via Paypal and does not require you to have a Paypal account.

$7.00

Thank you so much Joe C. - You have SOLD ME OUT on this run!

More stoppers coming right away!
Keith Burtis

Popularity: 100% [?]

Tonight I spent the evening on the phone with my friend Deb from the Debworks Blog and @Debworks on twitter. We had a great chat on social media, the web, emerging technology, passion and it’s relation to business and community. As an artist and woodturner I have immersed myself in the online space studying everything from the ways people connect to the nuances around the way things work.

When I got off the phone, my good friend John Meadows sent me this link that was very in-tune with the discussion I had with Deb. (John will be podcasting about it this weekend) It seems that community is going from a word that meant ‘Dealing with your not-so-friendly neighbors‘ to ‘connecting with like minded people for the greater good of the world‘.

The video below is my interpretation of the web we live in and maybe even a little lens into the future.
Watch the video, then read my special offer to anyone who wants to learn.

So my question to you is…What else does community mean? What does it mean to you? How does it impact your life on and offline? This is a short video, made to make you think about what it really means to be part of a community.

My Offer

As I said, tonight I spent the night helping a community member create her online presence. I enjoyed that and it’s something I would like to add to my week. Once a week I will give one person a phone call to ask me anything they would like to ask. Are you new to the online space? Are you interested in using web tools for business? Do you want to set up a blog? Are you a veteran, a newbie, or somewhere in-between. Lets talk! By doing this we not only enrich our lives but the knowledge gets passed on to those in your community making the experience that much more enjoyable. You get out of life, what you put in. I am offering up myself to you. Call me and lets connect.

Leave a note in the comments about what community means to you and I will comment back via email. We can set up chats via email. keith (at) magicwoodworks (dot) com

Music by: Sarah Vonderhaar (Using community to spread the word about her music and photography)

Popularity: 17% [?]

OK, OK, I am getting new items up! The lathe has been moved, the shop is set up and I started working on some new pieces. Christmas is coming and I hope that you will find some of the woodturned items unique gifts to give to family and friends. Also… remember, 10% of all purchases between now and January 1st are going to the SPCA. All of these items can be purchased through my Etsy storefront where you will find many other items as well. Thank you for your Patronage, and don’t forget to tell your friends about Magic Woodworks.

Here comes the flow of items!

These small dried flower pots are unique ad make great fall and Christmas Decorations

These Dried Flower Pots are $20 Each HERE.

These handmade Wine Bottle Stoppers are made from combinations of different woods that are glued together to create amazing color differentials.

Wine Stoppers are $8.00 Each or 3 for $21.00 HERE - Great with a bottle of wine

I am adding many new items for sewers and knitters including these custom handled Seam Rippers, Drop Spindles, and custom made Nostepinde.

The Seam Rippers are $12.00 Each HERE - Very Comfortable in your hand.

More Items will be produced every day this week, so please subscribe to the feed and you will be updated as soon as new items are posted. If you are interested in a custom order for yourself or for someone special please feel free to contact me.

Keith@Magicwoodworks.com or 716-464-8938

Thank You
Keith Burtis

Popularity: 15% [?]

Select Flickr Photos by Color

Do you blog a lot? Do you ever look to try and match the photos or images in your blog based on a color theme? Do you often scour through flickr to try and find images that use creative commons licencing? Well, I have found a new tool that I think is amazing called Flickr Color Selectr.

The site is nothing pretty, but it works great!

Select a Color from the color Box

Slide the color bar on the right up and down to get a frequency of colors. Then Pick a section in the color box to generate related photo options

Results

You can see I have selected a portion in the green and an example of the results.
I found this to be a pretty cool tool. A bit rough around the edges, but the results are great.
It also gives you an option to choose more results if the first page of results does not deliver what you were looking for.

Creative Commons

All of the results that this page generates are photos or images that have some type of creative commons licensing. Be sure to follow the correct attributions and give credit where credit is due.

Popularity: 15% [?]

Today I was talking to some friends in my Twitter network and I asked; If there is something that you would want me to write about, what would it be? I received one answer from Suze Muse. Suze wanted me to write about what inspires me to create. I decided instead of a long winded inspirational post from me that I would put together a short video in hopes that this will get you thinking about how you become inspired to create. However, I don’t want to skirt the question that was posed to me, so I answer it this way~

“I am inspired to create by life, by being aware of the beauty that is always surrounding me, and by acting on those inspirations that are delivered to my subconscious.”

A HUGE thank you to John Piercy and John Meadows for their amazing Beautiful World Photography!

Here are some answers that I received after flipping the question back to my friends.

What inspires YOU to create?

Drew Beatty - @KeithBurtis My kids were my inspiration. Saccharine but true. I started writing again after a long hiatus while waiting for my 1st son.

Chris Cavs - @KeithBurtis usually i get inspired when my mind can wander: shower, driving, hiking, mtn biking

Dunrie - @keithburtis I find that “retreat” or quieting myself down helps me see things from a new perspective

E.C. Stewart - @KeithBurtis I accumulate ideas, sketch ‘em down, and later compile for when consumer demand and inspiration meet.

Natasha Wescoat - @KeithBurtis I actually find it’s an compulsion more than inspiration. I HAVE to create or I could combust. like in a sci-fi way!

CCSeed - @KeithBurtis I listen to what the contents of my dreams are telling me for inspiration…

Krista Colvin - @KeithBurtis coffee shops do it for me… a good cup of joe in a “for here” mug, pen + paper in hand and there is no stoppin’ me

Creative Wisdom - @KeithBurtis How I get inspired - I get outdoors and revitalize my thoughts and clear my head. I usually find colors or shapes I like!

TheWoodShepherd 1. I see a need, and want to fill it, 2. I hear or read something that just “clicks,” 3. I think back to how I felt during an event.

Please share with us….
What inspires YOU???

Popularity: 13% [?]