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Serial #0129

Last Rose Jewelry Cabinet

The oddest chunk of wood to turn up at my studio had to be the rosebush stump delivered by a second cousin from Albuquerque. She thought of me when she dug up the dead bush and she just knew I could do something with the fierce-looking remains.

Once the stump--thorns, limbs, and all--was mounted on the lathe, I had trouble sharing my cousin’s confidence in my abilities. But after some nerve-shattering, bark-shingling time on the lathe, a rare and extremely hard wood emerged. The rosebush wood is now showcased on the Last Rose Jewelry Cabinet, along with linoleum scraps from the 30’s and barn tin with “frosty” galvanized patterns. The drawer front and side panels are some of the last salvage parts from the homestead of the peddler and rounder, one-legged Peg Robertson.