Bill Bolstad
Artist Statement
Bill Bolstad, Bolstad Boxes Limited, has been making wooden items since 1969. He is dedicated to making quality handcrafted wooden boxes, chests, and tables. The wood for each piece is hand selected, signed and often numbered by the artist. The natural character marks of the wood, such as mineral streaks, knots, and figure, bring uniqueness to each item he makes.
Each wooden box or table is functionally designed and beautiful to behold with tight joinery, smooth from fine surface sanding and hand rubbed to a polished finish ready for sale. Crafted to become a family heirloom with continuous use his pieces reflect the passing of time. The craftsman at Bolstad Boxes Limited want their creations to enhance the everyday lives of customers with the hallmark of highly figured wood grains and burl wood carefully chosen to feature the natural characteristics.
Bolstad Boxes uses dense and highly figured wood such as Spalted Maple Burl with swirling color variations and lines throughout the grain. Working with technicians at a company called Specialty Polymers, the wood is infused with WoodSure™, a polymer processes in a large stabilization chamber all of their finely crafted wood furniture.
Spalting is a color variation in wood caused by fungus attacks which cause decay by attacking the chemicals within the tree. The white rot fungus creates thin black lines called "zone lines" sending colonies of the fungus to move throughout the wood. The decaying process is stopped by drying the wood. Spalted wood is usually too soft to work with or provide durability, but when spalted wood is infused with WoodSure™ polymer now infused inside the wood, it fills the voids and hardens the wood, making it stable and very usable for boxes and tables. Although it looks like a stain it is actually the infusion of colorful dyes added to the polymer in black, red, blue, teal, copper, or purple. The wood floats the color yet reveals the natural beauty of spalted maple burl’s unique grain, color and depth. This gives the pieces the look of fine marble or granite. Bases are made of ebonized or natural African Teak and have rubbed polyurethane finish to protect the wood.
Each wooden box or table is functionally designed and beautiful to behold with tight joinery, smooth from fine surface sanding and hand rubbed to a polished finish ready for sale. Crafted to become a family heirloom with continuous use his pieces reflect the passing of time. The craftsman at Bolstad Boxes Limited want their creations to enhance the everyday lives of customers with the hallmark of highly figured wood grains and burl wood carefully chosen to feature the natural characteristics.
Bolstad Boxes uses dense and highly figured wood such as Spalted Maple Burl with swirling color variations and lines throughout the grain. Working with technicians at a company called Specialty Polymers, the wood is infused with WoodSure™, a polymer processes in a large stabilization chamber all of their finely crafted wood furniture.
Spalting is a color variation in wood caused by fungus attacks which cause decay by attacking the chemicals within the tree. The white rot fungus creates thin black lines called "zone lines" sending colonies of the fungus to move throughout the wood. The decaying process is stopped by drying the wood. Spalted wood is usually too soft to work with or provide durability, but when spalted wood is infused with WoodSure™ polymer now infused inside the wood, it fills the voids and hardens the wood, making it stable and very usable for boxes and tables. Although it looks like a stain it is actually the infusion of colorful dyes added to the polymer in black, red, blue, teal, copper, or purple. The wood floats the color yet reveals the natural beauty of spalted maple burl’s unique grain, color and depth. This gives the pieces the look of fine marble or granite. Bases are made of ebonized or natural African Teak and have rubbed polyurethane finish to protect the wood.
