Winter Berries Cards Arrive

I received my pack of Winter Berries Cards from Heather at Wiggly Wigglers today and I was mighty impressed .

The quality of the cards and the packaging was just right and would make either a smashing gift for someone or great to have at hand for those unexpected occasions that need a special, original card.

There is a range of other Wiggly cards that would suit every occasion, you can see them by clicking here

Don't forget if you would like to order these cards or anything else from the Wiggly catalogue please consider clicking onto the pink button



as every purchase you make via this button will help support our Community group in Lawley ,Telford.

Making A Oak Shingle Roof (part two)

Following on from yesterdays Making a oak shingle roof today I will show you how I made the finished shingle.

I used the same tools, a froe and a copper mallet, as you are just continuing to split the oak to make the shingles. I aimed to make the thickness of each shingle to be between 10mm - 15mm thick.

Once the froe has bitten into the oak keep hitting the top and wiggling it down the length of the oak.

As you can see, by moving the handle of the froe from side to side, it acts like a wedge and splits the shingle away and if the grain of the oak is straight the shingle will split away easily.

Once it has split away keep working with the remainder of the oak in the same way . I found that I could get between 4-5 shingles from each piece of oak. As you work through the oak you will find that each shingle gets smaller in width, which is not a problem.

Once I had enough shingles I then tidied the edges up with an axe and made sure that they were straight. This is because you have to lay the shingles close together to ensure the roof is weather proof.

I then placed the shingle onto my shave horse, the plans of which I got from Permaculture magazine issue 61 , then I used a drawknife to tidy the surface of the shingle front and back,

and hey presto a finished shingle.

I then set about making the roof. I did this by nailing the shingles to roofing battens using stainless steel nails. If you use ordinary nails the tannin in the oak will eventually rot the nails and leave black marks upon your roof.

It took me around a month to make enough shingles and finish the roof off but I hope you can see that I now have a covered workshop space. Which not only gave me a great sense of satisfaction but plenty of cuts and bruises. I will show you what I have been using my new work space for over the coming weeks.

You can watch a video on how to make shingles by clicking here . I found this to be very helpful. There are also plenty of other videos here that you might find interesting with regards to woodland crafts.

Making A Oak Shingle Roof (part one)

I wanted somewhere where I could continue with my wood working regardless of the weather and the easiest solution I could come up with was to put some sort of roof covering onto a structure I already had in my back garden.
To carry on with the theme of learning new green wood working skills I decided to make Oak Shingles. I had access to a suitable supply of oak and I then set about cutting the oak to size with a chain saw.

I cut the oak into drums measuring at least 30 cm in diameter and 40 cm in height, it was also important to make sure the drum contained no knots or places where branches had grown from.
Then using a Froe, a copper mallet and a metal wedge ( if needed) I set about splitting the oak drum. I did this by placing the froe on the edge of the drum with the front end slightly raised and facing the center, then I hit the top of the froe with the copper mallet. Once the froe has dug in I then gradually levelled it up, this would caused the oak to split across the center. I found that on occasiones I had to use a metal wedge to finish off the splitting.

Once the drum is split in half you get to see how good the grain is within the wood and if there is any hidden knots that will cause difficulties when making the shingles.


Each half is then split into 4 using the same technique.

Once you have split the drum into 8 pieces you then set about removing the sap wood from the heart wood. The sap wood is the lighter coloured wood. You do this because a oak shingle made from heart wood will last around 70-80 years, you do not need to treat it as the oak contains lots of tannin which preserves the wood, the sap wood is softer and will rot after a short time. You can see the tannin reacting with the metal froe as it turns black.

When I had removed the sap wood I brought the wedges of heart wood home and set about making 350 shingles. I used 7 drums of oak to produce this number and I will show you how I made the finished shingle in my next post.

New Wiggly Catalogue

My new Wiggly Wigglers catalogue popped through the post this morning and it was good to see that Heather had chosen one of my pictures to appear of the front cover.

It always gives me a thrill to see one of my pictures appear in print and to such a wide audience.

Here is the original picture of Guelder Rose berries. Don't forget if you would like to order this plant or anything else from the Wiggly catalogue please consider clicking onto the pink button



as every purchase you make will help support our Community group in Lawley ,Telford.

Picture Of The Month October 09

Here is the eleventh 'Picture Of The Month' , which you can view together with the previous months pictures at my photographic web site. All of the pictures showcased in the 'Picture of the month' gallery and are available at a special price, mounted (400mm x 500 mm) and signed by myself, posting and packaging is also free to anywhere in the world. You can order them from my web site by using PayPal or just contact me at dragonsanddamsels@fsmail.net

This picture is called

"Crab Apple"

I have been looking around for a while to find a Autumn picture that has all of the usual colours in but is also a little different. I think I have found that with this picture.

Damson Gin

It has been a great year for damsons so I decided rather than just eating them I would have a go at making Damson Gin.

As it turned out it is not a very difficult thing to do as the recipe is:-

1 lb/454 gms of washed wild damsons

6 oz/168 gms of white granulated sugar

75 cl bottle of medium quality gin

After collecting the damsons you wash them and discard any bad or damaged ones and then prick each damson with a fork

Add the damsons to a Kilner type jar together with the sugar

Finally add the gin and seal the jar.

You then shake the jar each day until all of the sugar has dissolved, once this has happened place the jar in a cool dark place for around 3 months minimum. You can drink it after this point but you can also leave it for up to a year (if you can resist) when you must then remove the damsons as they might spoil the gin.

I shall be doing the same sort of thing with some sloes once they are ready

Picture Of The Month September 09

Here is the tenth 'Picture Of The Month' , which you can view together with the previous months pictures at my photographic web site. All of the pictures showcased in the 'Picture of the month' gallery and are available at a special price, mounted (400mm x 500 mm) and signed by myself, posting and packaging is also free to anywhere in the world. You can order them from my web site by using PayPal or just contact me at dragonsanddamsels@fsmail.net

This picture is called

"Swallowtail Caterpillar"

One of the reasons for visiting Norfolk this year was to try and see the Norfolk Hawker dragonfly. Unfortunately I didn't manage to see one but as compensation I did see this monster of a caterpillar.

I had spent a very windy day at Hickling Broad (a Norfolk Wildlife Trust reserve) looking for the dragonfly and as I was making my way back I came across the caterpillar of the Swallowtail butterfly . It is enormous and one I hadn't seen before, so it certainly made up for not seeing the Norfolk Hawker. The caterpillar solely feeds on Milk Parsley and like the dragonfly is only found on the Norfolk Broads.

Hazel Crayons

You know how it is when you get your packet of seeds at the beginning of the year and you give them some TLC and wait to see how they will look.

Well this year I have had great successes with these hazel crayons (hazelus crayolacrayonus). When I first got the seeds it said on the packet that they could be difficult to germinate, however as you can see I have all 24 seeds take and they have produced a wonderful display of colour.

With them being a hazel crop I have coppiced them and with a bit of look they should keep producing these colourful hazel crayons for years to come.

Green Wood Working Continues

Following on from the green oak mushroom I made the other day I have just finished making this green oak stool. To make this I had to use quite a few new techniques and use tool I have never used before. A good friend of mine, Granville Reeves, (makes the besoms for Wiggly Wigglers) has been showing me how to cleave the green oak, use a side axe to shape the legs and then tidy them up using a draw knife whilst holding the legs in a shave horse. The great thing about these tools is that they require no power, so this could be done anywhere.

I am really chuffed with the finished stool as it is the first piece of furniture I have ever made. I have been bitten by the green wood furniture bug and it is something I want to learn more about. One book that has been recommended is the Living Wood by Mike Abbott . Mike also runs courses and I hope to get onto one come next year.

In the meantime I shall learn as much as I can through the book and getting advise from Granville and I will have a go at making something else, so watch this space.

Picture Of The Month August 09

Here is the ninth 'Picture Of The Month' , which you can view together with the previous months pictures at my photographic web site. All of the pictures showcased in the 'Picture of the month' gallery and are available at a special price, mounted (400mm x 500 mm) and signed by myself, posting and packaging is also free to anywhere in the world. You can order them from my web site by using PayPal or just contact me at dragonsanddamsels@fsmail.net

This picture is called

Lady And The Thistle

This year has been a fabulous year for the painted lady butterfly, with them being seen in large numbers. Whilst on holiday in Norfolk we were camped next to a patch of thistles, which proved to be a very popular place not only for painted ladies but for many other insects. I shall post about them soon showing you what you can attract by letting a little of your garden go wild.

I hope you enjoy this picture of the lady with the sun behind shinning through it's wings.

No Stopping Me

I have always fancied the idea of making things out of wood.

Wooden mushrooms have always fascinated me so having the opportunity to use a chainsaw and make one was something I jumped at. I am quite pleased with my first effort into the magic art of mushroom making, as the oak looks great with its growth rings and texture. I plan to use a gouger to create the gills underneath just to finish it off.

Now being bitten by the "making it yourself bug" I have also made a mallet from hornbeam to use when I gouge the gills into the bottom of the mushroom.

I can also see other uses for it, such as a smaller mushroom, tea light holder and with a larger handle a BBQ candle holder that you stick into the ground.

It feels so good just to make these simple objects there is no stopping me know....

Help Support Lawley Green Space Group By....

Purchasing all of your gardening, wildlife and Eco friendly products from

You can do this because Heather from Wiggly Wigglers has chosen Lawley Green Space Group to become an affiliate member. This works to both our advantages, as we are introducing new customers to Wigglies and any purchase made through the link means that our group receives a percentage of any sales. For us to receive this you just have to log in and shop using the button below.




This button is also on the right hand side bar for future use. Wiggly Wigglers has been a big supporter of the Green Space from the very beginning, without their help we would have not achieved as much as we have and so by doing this it is a win win for both of us.