Descending Ashtray

In 2004, our friends Dan and Emily asked Sarah and I to be godparents to their son Will, who was born in September 2004. As part of our duties, we would be joining them in his baptism at Christmas in Minneapolis, at the same church where Sarah and I were married. To commemorate the occasion, and Will’s first Christmas, I decided to make him a rocking horse. Per usual, I didn’t finish it in time, and it has languished ever since in a perpetual state of near completion.

With his third birthday drawing near, and Will growing ever taller, I decided I’d better make a push to finish the horse before he got too large.

3 years in the making. Ouch. The horse is poplar with woodburned linework and built-up acrylic paint. It’s based on a plan I found in Wood Magazine. I still have a few touch-ups to do on the paint job, and then plan to give it a few coats of spray-on clearcoat to protect the paint. Any ideas on a good finish?