Make a Vase

Do you know that feeling: you have one beautiful flower from you garden that you want to bring in? Or you only want to buy a special flower instead of the whole bouquet? Or you want to cut one little branch of your tree and only one because you don’t want to damage your tree to much? And then you come to the conclusion that all the vases at home are way too big.

This instructables is about simple vases for example to surprise your mother on mother’s day, a friend for his birthday or a neighbor because they simply are there for you when you need them. This instructables is also about to change a piece of wood into a vase or a candle stick to brighten up your house. There are only a few materials needed: a test tube, a bit wood and a bit of brass or (copper) pipe.

Materials:

- Beech (or other wood) 95 mm width and for the highest vase 170 mm in length

- Copper or brass pipe. I used 25 mm width outside (inside 22,5) and 105 mm long

- Test tube. I used 16 mm width and 15,3 mm long

Tools:

- Pipe cutter or saw

- Sanding paper

- Band saw

- Pillar drill /foster bit drill 1 mm bigger than the width of your test-tube

- Mallet (chisel)

- A lathe and turning tools (I used roughing gouge, spindle gouge, parting tool)

- Calipers

- Sanding paper (400-600 grid)

- Bee wax, fabric

- For the template: cardboard, pencil, scissors, dividers

I often make a sketch/drawing before I start, and in this project I followed my drawings precisely.

Materials:
- Beech (or other wood) 95 mm width and for the highest vase 170 mm in length - Copper or brass pipe. I used 25 mm width outside (inside 22,5) and 105 mm long - Test tube. I used 16 mm width and 15,3 mm long Tools: - Pipe cutter or saw - Sanding paper - Band saw - Pillar drill /foster bit drill 1 mm bigger than the width of your test-tube - Mallet (chisel) - A lathe and turning tools (I used roughing gouge, spindle gouge, parting tool) - Calipers - Sanding paper (400-600 grid) - Bee wax, fabric - For the template: cardboard, pencil, scissors, dividers

Put the blank in between centers, the dents on the drive spur and rough out the wooden blank with a roughing gauge. Start turning at slow speed (600 rpm) until your log is round.

When the blank had reached the desired diameter (for the vases in the first picture 90mm) I marked the end of the vase, the neck and the shoulder (where the messing tube will rest) with a pencil. Now you can turn up the speed to 1600 rpm and make indentations on the marks with a parting tool. When the shoulder and the bottom were finished I marked the thickest part of the vase. Measure the shoulder a few times with you calipers so the tube will fit precisely.

After that I changed my tool and use a spindle gouge. I turned the vase on both ends to the desired ellipse form. You can mark the middle of ellipse and turn it round with the spindle gouge on both sides of the mark.

When you’re pleased with its shape, you can sanding the vase. If you are a good turner you maybe skip this moment, but I had to sand using 240, 400 and 800 grid paper. Apply bee wax. If you want a shiny surface let it dry in 2 hours before buffing. Take the vase of the lathe and cut the bottom clean with a knife. Put the test tube in the vase and put the pipe over the test tube and you’re done. The first vase is finished.

Start with the same procedure as the first vase. I took help of a template
to be sure to get a round vase.

Cut the tube to 10,5 cm long with a pipe cutters and sand the edges with
sanding paper.

Polish the tube with brass polish. Be careful as when buffing the tube the
brass will get hot. By mounting the tube on a stick you do not have to hold the tube.

Enjoy, cut some flowers from your garden or buy one or two flowers in a shop and you have a beautiful arrangement for your home or a beautiful gift.

Thank you for taking your time to read this instructables. If you have suggestions to improve this instructables please feel free to leave a comment below.

Have a nice day/Annemarie