Here's the finished harp that I have been working on. Okay, well, actually it's still got to be strung. The recipient went into cardiac arrest when she saw it.

The wood is cherry. My grandfather always used cherry in his furniture and I think it's a beautiful wood, especially after it gets patina.

I want to sing praises for Epifane's rubbed effect varnish, satin finish. I thinned it out 60% for the first coat, 50% for the second, 40% for the third, and 25% for the fourth. I brushed it on with an oxhair brush. The finish dried in just hours even in this humidity, and it looks like a sprayed finish. Each coat was sanded with 400 grit, and I was going to wet sand the final coat, but it looked so good I left it alone. The varnish has a warm tone to it that goes great on cherry wood. No stain was used, just the varnish.

The only thing better... um... equal to paddling a kayak that you built is hearing something you built make music. It's like having the wood sing to you. I think I'm going to quit my job and become a luthier!

Cheers and Merry Christmas!

Malcolm