Woodturning is a relatively new hobby for me as I only started it in 2004 by turning up a few pens on my Myford ML7R metal lathe.  I then moved on to more 'free form' objects but soon felt extremely limited by the small size of the objects I could make on this lathe.  A metal lathe is simply not designed to turn wood on and so the next step was to buy a proper woodturning lathe and fit it into my already 'busy' workshop (actually a small well insulated shed in the garden!).

In 2005 I joined the Ely Guild of Woodturners who meet at Little Thetford just South of Ely in Cambridgeshire where I have learnt a lot from the varied professional demonstrators they have at their monthly meetings.

In the first year, much of the work that I produced was for my two children and their partners who were just beginning to set up their homes after leaving their respective universities.  In 2006 however there was a slight change of direction for me in that, like toasters, you can have too many pepper mills or salad bowls and so I tried to find a new outlet for my turning by entering several pieces of work into the Ely Guild of Woodturners and Ely Art Society Summer Exhibition.  This was held over a period of two weeks in August and consisted of work submitted by several members of the Ely Guild, all of which was for sale.  I sold 13 out of the 14 pieces and from that point on started to 'take myself more seriously' as an amateur woodturner.  In 2007, I moved on to yet another level by entering two pieces of work into a national exhibition and competition - Woodex 07- and much to my disbelief won both 1st Prize and Highly Commended in the Novice Class.  Please take a look at some of my early and most recent work on the following pages by clicking on the links at the top of the page.