Mike Palmer

Mike Palmer started woodturning over twenty years ago. Having always had a fascination for the look and feel of wood, turning became a wonderful creative outlet for Mike, allowing him to put this amazing material to good use. Using hardwoods native to the UK, Mike sources and converts all his own wood. He is particularly drawn to turning bowls with a natural edge, which can look oval, although they are, of course, round. Lately, he has been exploring hollow forms and using colour to enhance his pieces.

He came to woodturning after a 20-year career as a Weapons Engineer Officer in the Royal Navy, after which he spent 25 years delivering project leadership courses for many global companies around the world. Now retired, Mike has the time to devote himself to this wonderful pastime. One of his main pleasures is to figure out how to select and cut the wood so that he can make the best use of the grain, figure, and bark. Pondering his work, Mike says -

“The wonderful thing about woodturning is that you have to develop your ability by practicing, and then overcoming the mistakes you inevitably make. No craft skill can be developed unless you have a few disasters, and I have had - and continue to have - many!

I find the most thrilling stage of any project is when I come to coat the piece with wax-oil at the very end - this reveals the colour and figure of the wood in all its glory, but it also emphasizes any mistakes I have made with the shaping, refining, and sanding!”

If you wish to commission a piece by Mike, do not hesitate to get in touch with us.

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