Reach, a lamp by Roger Baker

At 42 inches tall, this lamp presented a unique challenge.  Whereas Smoke and Waves were made of hard twisting wood difficult to drill, this lamp was rotten on the inside and brittle on the outside.  To keep the delicate exterior from constantly flaking off, I brushed it with several coats of diluted wood glue, transparent when dry.  A Provincial stain covered it nicely.  To reinforce the interior, I poured into the cavity a mixture of plaster-of-paris and wood glue, inserting a length of old curtain rod to preserve a conduit for the lamp wire.  Despite the challenges, I was quite happy with how this lamp turned out.  I called it Reach for its tall, elegant, vertical lines.

Though we believe Reach would have sold in excess of $600, I gave it to my good friend Justin M. in trade for his much-appreciated time as a journeyman electrician in wiring my outbuildings, including my chicken coop, work shop, and future writing studio, the interior walls of which I am finishing with antique brick acquired from a retired farmer.