Solo Becoming One with the Wood

[Seirei Dawnwhisper]

A delicate bloom

Timestamp: 33rd Day of Fall, 514 AV

After finishing one project, it was often difficult for Seirei to choose which one she wanted to work on next. And this was the situation she found herself in now. She considered her options. She had a nice willow branch that she had found during one of her trips to the river to gather willow wood. It was a good sized branch, thicker than the ones she had used to make spoons with earlier in the season. With some work, Seirei knew that she could make a decent bowl out of it.

Making a bowl was a project that had a lot of advantages to it. It would allow her to practice some of her design work, for one thing. Once the bowl was made, Seirei would then be able to carve a design of some kind into the sides. Such detail work was one of the things she needed to experiment with, and master if she ever hoped to attain master level in her chosen craft.

She even had a buyer set up already if she chose to work on the bowl now. One of the foreign traders currently visiting the city had expressed an interest in her woodwork after seeing the spoons she had made during her experiment earlier in the season. In trader talk, he had all but promised to buy something from her if she made something he thought he could sell at the next stop in his trade route. And Seirei knew for a fact that he had a specific buyer lined up who was looking to buy wooden bowls. He had said as much when he had expressed an interest in her work. It had been a safe enough "suggestion" for the trader to make since he knew that Seirei herself would not be able to leave Endrykas in search of said buyer to set up a deal with them directly. Rumor traveled quickly in a place like Endrykas, and a rumor of a pregnant captive who worked with wood was of potential interest to traders.

Seirei paused for a tick when she realized that she had though of the trader she had spoken to as a "foreign" trader. Foreign trader. She didn't know whether she should be upset or amused by the fact that she thought of the traders as being "foreign." She herself was a foreigner in the eyes of the Drykas, and always would be. And in her own eyes as well, for that matter.

Seirei shook her head, trying to dismiss that unsettling thought from her mind. If she didn't want to work on the bowl just yet, she knew that she could always make more beads. Seirei enjoyed making beads. She had made them so often that she found them easy to make, now. Beads could be used in many different ways, both in her own private projects, and to sell. They could be painted, or carved for variety, or used as is. Different woods could be used for additional variety as the different types of wood offered different colors even without painting them.

Traders who dealt with wooden goods liked beads. They were easy to carry, and they could be sold in a variety of ways. They could be used to make necklaces, bracelets, hair ties, straps for pouches, and any number of other things. Some traders bought loose beads, and made things with them, or allowed their kids to do so to keep them amused while they were working. And if the kids made something that could be sold, so much the better. But beads could also be sold loose so that the person who bought them could make whatever they wanted to with them.

There were even a few people here in Endrykas that were interested in her bead. As a captive, she had no status in the city. She was good for one thing, and one thing only; bearing children. Lian had made that fact painfully clear, and many of the people she met when she went out into the city shared that sentiment. But the Drykas were a practical people. If they could get more than one use of a thing, they would. So a few people were willing to buy from her once in a while. They weren't willing to pay her as much as they would if they were buying from one of their own, but it was a source of income. Seirei tended to rely on it more during the seasons when there weren't any traders she could sell to. When the Drykas did deign to buy from her, they preferred to buy beads. Especially ones that had been dyed their Clan colors.

Seirei debated between the two projects for a few chimes. Then she decided to try working on the bowl first. That was the better sale if she was successful in making the bowl. But it all depended on the wood. If she couldn't see the bowl she wanted to make in the branch she had, it was better to set the project aside, and try again later. If need be, she could go out and look for another suitable branch. But forcing herself to work on a project that she simply couldn't feel was a bad idea. She had learned through experience that it would only result in failure. On the other hand, there was some pressure to make the bowl. The Drykas who were willing to buy from her would always be there. The trader who would buy the bowl would not.

[Seirei Dawnwhisper]

A delicate bloom

Decision made, it was time to get to work. Seirei started by getting the branch she planned to work with, and gathering all of the tools she would need for her project. Then she moved outside. The light was better outside the tent, and by working outside, she wouldn't have to clean up any wood shavings that resulted from her work. Seirei sat in an out of the way corner where she wasn't likely to be seen or disturbed. The last thing she needed to deal with while working on her project was the disapproving looks of passing Drykas.

Once Seirei had made herself comfortable, she stared at the branch in her hands. She rubbed her hands over the bark, getting a feel for the wood. As she did so, she closed her eyes, shutting out everything else but the wood. It was very important to see what the wood wanted to become. There was no use in trying to make a bird figurine out of a branch that held a spoon within its depths, after all. Wood was a living thing. And like all other living things, it had wants and needs. A true carver was aware of this, and did not act against those needs and desires. The best masterpieces were created when one simply revealed what was already in the wood they were working with rather than forcing it to become something it was not. So if Seirei couldn't see a bowl in this particular branch, she would have to go out and find another.

Fortunately for Seirei, she could see a bowl within the depths of her branch. She started by setting the branch on the ground. Using her axe, she cut off a foot long segment from the base of the branch where it had been attached to its tree. That part of the branch was the thickest, and the thickness of a branch was important when it came to making a bowl.

When she was done with that, she set the rest of the branch aside to be used for other things. She stood the log she was going to work with on one end.Knowing that she would need more control than she could get from an axe, Seirei selected three of her chisels. With her mallet, she carefully drove each one into the flat surface of the log, until it was two inches deep. The first one was driven into the center, and each of the others were roughly three inches apart from the first one, on either side. With that done, Seirei tapped each chisel sharply with her mallet, until the log split in half.

Seirei took a couple of chimes to pick which half of the log she wanted to use. Once she had done that, she set the remaining half aside with the unused pieces of the branch. Then she began carefully stripping the bark off of the wood. As she worked, she made a pile of the pieces of bark. They would be saved because they would be good for starting a fire when it came time to make dinner.

When she was done stripping the bark off of her log, Seirei gathered up the bits of bark. She brought them back into the tent to be used another time. After she'd done that, she brought the pieces of wood she wasn't using back inside as well. By cleaning up as she went, there would be less work to do when she was finished. If she was lucky, she might even have enough time to make some beads once she was finished with the bowl if everything went well.

[Seirei Dawnwhisper]

A delicate bloom

Seirei lay the log on the ground, with the flat side up. Using one of her charcoal sticks, she drew an oval shape on the surface of the log. After staring at the sketch for a few chimes to judge the distance, she drew a second oval shape within the boundary of the first one she had drawn. The second oval shape was roughly one inch away from the outer edge. It would become the inner edge of the bowl.

After Seirei was satisfied that her lines were straight, and positioned correctly, she flipped the log over so that the rounded side was facing up. Then she drew an oval in the center of the curve in the wood. This oval was smaller than the other two she had just drawn; roughly two thirds the size of the oval she had drawn to form the bowl's inner edge. It was harder for her to draw on a curved surface than it was to draw on a straight one, so her lines weren't completely straight. They would serve their purpose, though, and that was what mattered.

She turned the log so the flat side was face up once more, and braced it as best she could with her feet. It was a task made very difficult by the unborn child growing within her. Her belly was so big now, that it was difficult for her to lean over and reach the wood she was trying to work with. It was also a very uncomfortable position for Seirei, and she soon realized that she would have to stop for breaks frequently or it would become too uncomfortable for her to continue. But it was important to keep the wood still as she worked. If it slipped, she could get injured, the wood could be damaged, or both.

With the wood braced as best as she could manage it, Seirei leaned forward, and lined her chisel up with the inner edge of her bowl, and positioned it at an angle. Then using her mallet to tap the chisel, Seirei began the tedious work of carving out the inside of her bowl. It was important to carve out thin strips so that the wood wouldn't be too damaged. Cutting at too deep an angle risked cracking the wood, and rendering it useless. Ideally, no more than one eighth of an inch would be shaved away at a time. But it was hard for Seirei to position the chisel correctly because her swollen belly kept getting in the way. Still, she did the best that she could.

The entire process took Seirei several bells to accomplish. Every half a bell or so, she would be forced to stop and rest for a few chimes, stretching to ease her discomfort. Her progress was further by the difficulty she had with positioning her chisel at the right angle. Several times, she made mistakes. Sometimes cutting too shallow, which caused no actual harm, but made the task take longer than it really had to. And at other times, she cut too deeply. Fortunately, even with her difficulties, she didn't cut deeply enough to crack the wood. When she was done carving out the inside of the bowl, Seirei paused to examine her work carefully.

[Seirei Dawnwhisper]

A delicate bloom

Satisfied that she had done a good job on hollowing out the inside of her bowl, Seirei flipped the bowl over in preparation to begin work on the outside. But a painfully sharp kick left Seirei gasping with its intensity. The baby had made its feelings known, and was vigorously protesting the way she had been sitting. Seirei really wanted to get the bowl finished so she could bring it to the trader the next day. So she carefully braced the bowl with her feet once more, and leaned over to resume her work. This was a mistake, and another sharp kick promised further pain if she continued.

Sighing, Seirei set the bowl aside. There was plenty of good light left. With luck, she would be able to work on the bowl again after she took a short break. Seirei stood, and stretched carefully, easing muscles that had started to cramp while she was working. Then she took a nice long drink from her waterskin. It was nearing midday, but she wasn't hungry. In fact, even the thought of food made her feel slightly ill. So instead of stopping for a meal as she knew she should, Seirei cleaned up the wood shavings that had piled up as she carved out the inside of her bowl.

She entered the tent, and added the wood shavings to the bark she had saved earlier. Then she gathered up some of the willow branches she had gathered while gathering wood for her experiment earlier in the season, and walked back outside. Seirei sat once more, making herself comfortable. With knife in hand, she began carefully stripping the bark from the willow branches. It was better to leave the bark on the wood until you were going to use it, because it would dry out faster once the bark had been removed. But Seirei was making good progress on her bowl, and she was confident that she would have time to make some beads later.

Not certain how much time she would have left, Seirei had only selected five branches to work with. If she had more time later, she could use more. One by one, Seirei removed the bark. She sang absently as she worked. Since she was focused on her work, and not what she was singing, Seirei found herself running out of breath in the middle of a word many times. After a while, she gave up, and simply hummed as she worked. It was a bright, happy song she had learned as a child.

When she had finished stripping the bark off of her branches, she set them aside. Break time was over. It was time to go back to her bowl. Seirei carefully braced the bowl with her feet so it wouldn't move as she worked. She started at the edge of the oval on the bottom of the bowl. Using her chisel, she carefully cut away thin layers of wood. She worked from the top down, chiseling away from herself so that she wouldn't stab herself accidentally with the chisel if her hand slipped.

Seirei took her time, refusing to rush herself. She wanted time to make some beads when she was done, but she wasn't going to risk sacrificing the quality of her work by rushing. It took several bells, but she made slow and steady progress. When the lip of the bowl was only an inch thick, she was done. Once again, Seirei examined her work critically.

[Seirei Dawnwhisper]

A delicate bloom

Most of the work was done now. Seirei stood slowly, and stretched. She'd never had to stretch as much as she did now in the past. But she found that if she sat too long, or even stood too long without stretching, her muscles stiffened up, and sometimes even cramped. It had to have something to do with her pregnancy. One of any number of reasons Seirei would be grateful when it was over and done with.

Seirei gathered up the wood shavings left behind from her work, as well as the bark she'd stripped from her willow branches. It all went back inside with the rest. When Seirei had done that, she put away the tools she wouldn't need anymore. Then she sat once more, and pulled out her smoothing cloth. She rubbed it over the outside of the bowl. She worked steadily, starting at the top, and working her way over the entire surface using small, circular motions. Gradually, the outer surface of the bowl became smooth. Seirei ran her fingers over the surface lightly, and couldn't find any rough areas that might cause splinters to form if left untreated. The wood had taken on a nice shine as she smoothed out all of the rough areas.

When she had finished with the outside of the bowl, Seirei turned her attention to the inside. Starting on the lip of the bowl, she worked her way downward. Using small, circular motions, she rubbed the smoothing cloth all over the inside of the bowl. Smoothing out the rough areas on the inside of the bowl was even more important than making sure the outside was smooth. A splinter in one's finger was painful, but relatively harmless. But if someone swallowed a splinter that had gotten mixed up in their food, it could cause considerable damage. At least, it made sense to Seirei that such would be the case.

As before, when Seirei thought she was finished, she rubbed her fingers over the inside of the bowl to see if she had missed any rough places. She found none. Satisfied that she had done a good job, she set the cloth aside, and studied the bowl. Did she like it the way it was? Or did she want to try and carve a design on the outside of the bowl? Her design work could definitely use some practice.

The idea was a tempting one. Adding a design would increase the worth of the bowl. If she managed to do a good job, that is. But a poor quality design could ruin the bowl, making it fit only for personal use. Since she already had a buyer for the bowl, she wasn't sure it was worth the risk. She didn't know how much longer the trader would remain in Endrykas. Ruining her efforts now might mean that he would leave before she had the chance to make another bowl. Besides, if she decided to create a design on the bowl, she probably wouldn't have any time to make beads by the time she was done.

[Seirei Dawnwhisper]

A delicate bloom

Decision made, Seirei set the bowl aside. It was fine as it was, and she would bring it to the trader tomorrow to sell it. That left plenty of time to make some beads before the light grew too weak to work in. Seirei gathered up the willow branches she had peeled earlier. She examined each one closely. When making beads, one usually used twigs because thicker wood was unsuitable for making something as small as a bead. Even a large bead had to be small enough that you could wear it. But willow branches were often quite thin. And Seirei had selected the thinnest she had for this project. Most of the branches she had chosen would work well for making beads. A couple were too thick near the base where they had been attached to the tree, but Seirei had an idea for that, as well.

Seirei cut the first branch into pieces. Each piece was a little bit larger than the size she wanted her beads to be. That would give her a little room for error if she made mistakes. When she was finished with the first, she moved onto the second. Then the third. She left the two that needed additional work for the last. As before, she cut the branches into pieces. But when all that remained was the parts that were slightly too thick for making beads, Seirei used her knife to cut those segments in half. Then she treated each half like she would a twig, cutting it into pieces that could be turned into beads. Those beads would be an odd shape when she was done with them, but that could work to her advantage. Different size and shape beads offered variety in a necklace, after all.

Seirei dug through her kit until she found the smallest bow drill that she had. She picked up one of the pieces of wood. When she was ready, she positioned the drill carefully, then proceeded to drill out the pulpy center. She repeated the process with each piece of wood. As she worked, she felt the wood give way beneath the pressure of the bow drill. It was a useful aid, and she used that feeling of touch as she worked. Although she was very careful, she still broke some of the pieces. That was only to be expected, though. Even a master made mistakes. And that wasn't a bad thing. Making mistakes often taught a carver more than producing a perfect work of art did.

Seirei was so intent on her work that she lost all sense of time. By the time she was finished, the sun's light was the pale light of late afternoon. It didn't matter. The beads wouldn't be finished until she shaped them, but she wouldn't be able to do that until the wood dried. That would take a few days at best, and possibly as long as a week depending on how much moisture was in the wood. Still, Seirei had gotten a lot done. And she had a lot to show for her bells of work. All in all, Seirei was quite satisfied. She found herself looking forward to visiting the trader in the morning to haggle over a price for her bowl.

[Tribal]

G R A D E S

Seirei

Experience

• Logic: 3
• Planning: 1
• Organisation: 1
• Carving: 5
• Drawing: 1
• Endurance: 2
• Observation: 3
• Bodybuilding: 1

Lore

• Seirei: A foreigner in her own skin
• Carving: Beads are easy to sell in Endrykas
• Wooden Beads can be used for a great number of crafting projects
• Carving: Seeing the creation in the wood
• Carving: Stripping the bark
• Seirei: Working while pregnant requires lots of breaks
• Carving: Hollowing out a bowl
• Seirei: Learning your limits
• Carving: Using twigs to make beads

Rewards

1 x Wooden Willow Bowl [Good condition]
100 Beads [assorted sizes]

Notes

Great job thread; you did really well to maximise points in carving with this one. Enjoy the rewards.