DIY Network

Log Slice Art Create charming rustic art with help from Michele Beschen. From "B. Original" episode DBOR-153

Any way you slice it, these logs make great art.

Michele Beschen is cutting up again—this time with logs and tree branches.

The B. Original host slices logs and branches to let the wood’s inner beauty really show through. Then, she uses the slices to create charming rustic art that can decorate walls, furniture or just about anything else in your home. You can even treat the final piece as freestanding art to hang on the wall.

So get busy, prune those trees and start slicing.

advertisement

Materials:

tree branches or small logs, 1 ½" – 4" in diameter
chop saw or hand saw
eye protection
wood glue
small nails
hammer
spray polyurethane

	Figure A
	Figure B

• Choose logs and/or branches that are nice and solid on the inside. If you pick wood that has knots or lumps, you’ll end up with different shapes to work with.

• Measure and mark your log if you want all your slices to be the same width.

• Slice the logs into discs ¼" to ½" thick (figure A). When the log gets fairly short, switch to a fresh log—this will help keep your hands away from the saw blade.

  Safety Alert: Always wear eye protection when using a power saw.

• Once all the log slices are cut, you’re ready to build your design. Michele Beschen created a flower design on a closet door (figure B).

• Lay the item you want to embellish down flat. Dry-fit your design, laying out your log slices and rearranging as necessary. Michele Beschen added a stick to represent a stem for her flower.

• Attach the log slices in the pattern. You can nail or glue to attach; Michele Beschen used glue, but also drove a nail through each slice to hold it in place while the glue dried.

• Once you’re happy with the design, seal the work with some polyurethane or add paint.