In order for the art of scroll sawing to remain vibrant and expanding, I’m convinced that those who design projects for scrollers need to keep “pushing the envelope” of their own creativity in a myriad of ways. One way to do this is to design projects that present tried-and-true themes and images in a totally new way. This issue’s Lonesome Scout project by Whitetail Designs does just that. We’ve all seen scroll saw projects depicting a buck in the woods, but by placing this type of art on the blade of a home-made, all wooden hand saw, the guys at Whitetail Designs have made this time-worn subject come to life in a new and refreshing way. Along the same lines, Dirk Boelman’s Woodsman’s Treasure Box and Clock are two matching projects that combine tasteful inlay work with bold, clean design elements to create unique, eye-catching projects that many will want to make.

In our last issue (April, 2005), Orchid Davis created a woodburned bobcat based upon Wes Demarest’s photograph of an actual bobcat in the wild. In this issue, we again used this amazing photo as a springboard to further creativity by asking our Illustrator, George Ahlers, to render a scroll saw pattern based upon this image. The resulting project uses two layers of wood to create a marvelous 3-D effect, which in turn enhances the bobcat’s secretiveness and realistic appearance. Here again, our designers are pushing out the creative envelope to keep things interesting, fun and exciting.

There’s so much more I could write about regarding this issue, but space is limited, so I’ll sign off and wish you all health and happiness.

Sincerely,
Robert Becker, editor