Cherry had an Ash tree felled and she asked the tree surgeon to leave the trunk.

The trunk had a fork about 5 feet high.

Twin leaders, or forks, lend themselves very well to the creation of a spread-winged bird.

Both Cherry and I decided that a spread-winged Osprey would work well,

highlighting the lighter colour of the plumage with the pale Ash wood,

while adding darker tones with fire and pyrography pen for a more natural look.

The pictures show the fork before I started carving.

I always draft a design concept for the client for approval,

or I create something on Procreate on my iPad,

using photos of the existing trunk.

Small scaffold sections were used to work on the trunk,

as the total height of the sculpture was over 8 feet (2.4m) tall.

Once carving was complete, the sculpture was left for 6 weeks to air and dry out,

before the application of Osmo 420 Oil for durability.

The Osprey has become a bit of a local landmark in Monmouth.

Cherry is over the moon. I had a great time staying at her house while working on this piece,

and I was blessed with incredible weather!

The shape of the trunk worked perfectly for this pose,

with the wood grain flowing in the right direction for the fine,

detailed carving of the wing feathers.

Birds of Prey are definitely one of my specialties.