Carousel-Part 21- Next Step on the Flooring and Some Folk Art Photos

Flooring before.

After excess flooring is cut off.

Despite rainy weather that has prevented me from working outside, I have made some progress on the carousel.  I'll have to show you a before and after picture for you to notice though.  I used a Dremel tool with a cutting blade and cut back the flooring so that it is flush with the top of the base.  Once I finished it, I noticed a lot of gouges created by the cutting blade and thought, "Maybe I should have used a router".  Perhaps I should have, but it was too rainy to take it outside and set up.  Also, I wasn't totally sure that a router might not rip the fragile craft sticks to pieces.  Anyway, done is done, and I've come up with a solution to the situation.  If the solution doesn't work, then I have an interesting "design opportunity."

I filled in the gouges with wood glue that is sandable and paintable.  Once the piece is sanded and painted, they will not be noticeable.  I would have used some wood filler, but I could not find any in the workshop and it was quicker than heading out to the hardware store.  At the moment, the piece needs a good sanding and some work on the rim, but it will look better once it gets a few steps further along.  At times like these I just have to keep reminding myself that it is not finished yet and it will look better in a while.

I know that the slow pace of the work can be annoying and frustrating for readers, so I thought I'd add a couple of photos from my last trip.  The pictures were taken up at the cabin.  There is an interesting piece of
an old weathered root that sits on top of a shed.  If you use your imagination, it looks like a dragon's head.  The other photo is a section of a painted folk art walking stick made by folk artist Ray Mabe.