This blog post is dedicated to my skillful husband. He has always supported me as an artist. The support he has given to me hasn’t only been mental but practical as well. He has made countless of wooden items that I have needed for my art, using hand tools mostly. These projects often begin so that I carelessly draw something on paper and ask him to follow the drawing. My sketches inspire him to ask more questions, create prototypes, and when I see the final piece, it’s much more detailed and beautiful than I ever could imagine.
Paint Brush Holders
One of my favorite wooden treasures is the paint brush holder that can hold most of my brushes. It is designed so that I can put it on the shelf and then take it out when needed. I love seeing the brushes in one glance and storing them so that the bristles won’t pend. My original idea was just a simple wooden block with holes but my husband designed and finished the holder so that it’s like a valuable antique piece!
Because the vertical position ruins wet brushes, I always dry the brushes first. That gave me the idea of having a separate holder for wet brushes. “Something simple,” I said again. But my husband came with a better version. This beautiful paint brush holder can hold a lot of brushes in different sizes, and I love how practical the decorative holes are as well. The other side of the holder is slightly taller so that the brushes point downwards. It makes sure that the water won’t travel to the handle.
The Best Easel
We had an extra upright support of a shelving unit, and I wanted a new easel that would fit with the rest of the furniture in my studio. By adding one more leg and a holder for a painting, my husband turned the support into an adjustable easel!
Light-Weighted Storage Box
My husband has made many storage boxes for the art supplies, and this is the newest one. It’s made from paulownia tree that comes from Asia, and it’s very light-weighted. I wanted this box look heavy but feel light, and my husband found the solution!
Perfectionist’s Wastepaper Basket
Much heavier but one of my ultimate favorites is the wastepaper basket made from oak. I think it’s luxurious and it makes me smile every time I see it. There’s some humor in living an imperfect life, creating imperfect art in the imperfect world – and having a perfect wastepaper basket!
My Husband’s Journey as a Woodworker
When we were living in our previous home, there was no room for woodworking. About five years ago, we moved to our current house that has more space. That enabled my husband to start the hobby he had dreamed for a long time. Namely, for years he had watched woodworking videos from Youtube. While I was dreaming about the life as an artist, my husband sat on his computer and watched skillful woodworkers drill and plane. Based on the sounds of our small living room, it was like some serious wood projects were going on all the time.
Then, finally when he got his space, he was able to join the gang – get a collection of hand tools and make something beautiful that he can be proud. He thought that his skills would grow in a very short time – that he had learned the most of the necessary lessons by watching the videos. But as you may guess, it wasn’t that easy. He got disappointed. He drew a hole in a wrong place, he chose wood that wasn’t perfect for the project, he made errors when calculating the proportions, and he was surprised by the visual skills that the woodworking required. It was not only that his technical skills were lacking. His ability to balance his designs and to generate ideas for unique pieces were lacking too.
But I encouraged him to continue, and he did. Every project grew his skills. After a couple of years, he made a small table that shows how far he has come. It’s inspired by Japan and the early 20th century. It’s made from oak and finished with shellac.
At the beginning of the hobby, my husband wanted to learn to carve. So the very first project of his was a wooden leaf. He started the carving, but it felt too difficult, so he gave up. After finishing the table, he remembered the unfinished project and completed it without struggles.
Even if this post was not directly about painting and drawing, I think that we all can relate to my husband’s journey. Creating art is never as easy in practice than in our dreams. But the happiness that it can bring is priceless. You just need to start and keep on creating!
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I am glad to see the Mr. is an artist too! I also have woodworking tools and am only beginning to develop the skills to take it from “hack-slash” to more refined work…like my paintings! I can hardly wait until my shop is repaired so I can get back in there and make things. I hope your husband would not be offended if I used the basic idea of the horizontal brush holder to make one for myself. I like that one very much. The small table is exquisite. Please tell him. Being precise with wood is a real skill. As a person who has worked as a machinist and also with wood in factories I know how much skill that table takes! Bravo!
Onpa ihania esineitä, kauniita ja rakkaudella tehtyjä. Kaikki ovat upeita, mutta pöytä on superupea. Ihanaa, että hän tekee noin hienoja tarve-esineitä myös sinulle, Päivi. Tästä blogitekstistä välittyy rakkaus.
You are one lucky woman. A husband with those talents is very valuable. And your painting talent is amazing. You two make a fantastic pair
Oh Paivi, please tell your husband he does beautiful work. The table is fantastic,
Love all the wood work.
It was wonderful of you to share your husband’s journey in his artistic endeavors! Thanks. I hope that, someday, my husband is able to explore something that makes him happy… if I can ever get him to retire. 😉
So beautiful and clever!!! Wonderful work!
What beautiful work. He is very talented, just as are you. All very good lessons to learn and it is so often a journey where we become discouraged. Your wonderful thoughts just help me so much to keep going.
Paivi, I love the table your husband made. It is so refined.
I bet you two have fascinating discussions about art in sculpture and enjoy many museum adventures together. How wonderful to both enjoy the creative side of life together. Yes his journey is so very similar to most anyone wanting to begin a new journey but with both of you supporting each other I can see why he and you are so accomplished in your passions. The Japanese inspired table is very beautiful and I’m sure a joy to have in your home. I’ve enjoyed your post today and please tell him I so admire his work!
The table is beautiful! And how wonderful that the two of you can share art in different ways. I also like how you shared that he started carving the leaf and was struggling with it, then finished the complicated table, and went back to the leaf…..no problem!
His work is stunning! Absolutely love that leaf and table! My husband is a carpenter and I showed him your photos and he was impressed. Thanks for sharing.
What an artistic family Paivi!! How nice that you and your husband can inspire each other!! He does incredibly beautiful work!! Very fine!! Love it all!! The brush holder higher at one end is amazing!! All of his work is so beautiful and practical at the same time!! ~xox
So fun to hear about your husband’s art. I appreciate the functional art he makes for you and your house. I used to carve small bass wood people, and I won a few pumpkin carving contests.
Oh Paivi, such a glorious ode to your loving, perceptive husband and the creations he fashions for you. My husband makes me fabulous oatmeal cookies when I’m absorbed in my painting, and then he goes down to his shop and welds junk into sculptures. How I appreciate your post with this glimpse into the world you share with this caring partner.
gorgeous work!
Wow! All his work is so lovely and useful!
Please thank your husband for letting you share his story, Paivi. The pieces you show are all beautiful. I’m drawn to anything made of wood, so really appreciate them.
May I borrow your husband please? I shall start making a list 😉
Wonderful work!
x
gorgeous table… so clever… such an inspiration to keep moving on and following your passion
Paivi,
I love your husband’s woodworking skills! He is so skilled and must be such a joy to have him making beautiful wooden projects for your art and your home! Please tell your husband that he is a very special husband! You are very lucky indeed, to have such a wonderful husband!
Paivi, you are very lucky to have such a creative and talented husband, He is very lucky to have you to encourage him and inspire his creativity. Together you make a team that is greater than the sum of its parts!
The table is exquisite and your brush holders are practical and beautiful! I have always looked for the perfect wastepaper basket – now I’ve seen it!
Thank you for sharing your story and for recognizing the creativity involved in woodworking – art is in so many things, and we don’t always see it or acknowledge it.
What beautiful pieces to store your brushes and all the other beautiful wood pieces too. Your husband is very good with wood. Thanks for sharing. I am always looking for a better way to keep my brushes. The hardest is when I am traveling with them. I just keep nice containers where my brushes can stand on end in my studio but the ones I carry do not have a safe way yet that does not smush them up in any way but still easy to transport.
Great story Paivi! I’m so glad you and your husband can pursue your creative lives together. ?
My husband and I both loved this post, as I write he’s in his workshop making a new work bench, a good solid one that will surely be used in making all kinds of useful and beautiful things…maybe he got the hint about a brush holder!
Wow!All his work is so lovely and useful!
You both are EXTREMELY talented artists! Thank you for your husbands “success” story. 🙂
Thank you so much, everybody, for your comments! Both I and my husband are amazed by the feedback that we have got and it’s been uplifting for both of us! Thank you!