Tag: handcrafted bowls

Sometimes the most beautiful pieces are born from nature’s most dramatic moments.

Back in 2021, I thought I had a friend in New York who shared my beliefs about wood having spirit — how it connects not just to the people who will eventually own a piece, but also to the woodworker who brings it to life. Rex has always worked with this understanding too, respecting the energy that lives within each piece of timber.

When lightning strikes a tree, it leaves something behind. Not just the obvious scars and splits, but energy — both in the physical sense and in ways that speak to those of us who understand the deeper connections between nature and craft. So when this woman told me her cherry tree had been struck by lightning, I knew we had to work with that wood.

The Journey from Lightning Strike to Art

I asked if we could have some of the wood, offering to pay shipping and create anything she wanted from one of the pieces. The wood had already been cut by the time we got involved, so we couldn’t control the way it was sectioned or prevent some cracking — but we still ended up with three large, beautiful pieces that held stories in every grain line.

True to our word, we crafted a bowl for her from a half log. Rex used electrical tools to rough out the shape, but finished it entirely by hand — because that’s how you honor wood like this. We shipped it to her in 2023, and I kept one log while Rex claimed the other.

I chose the piece with the largest split, knowing Dawn’s resin artistry could transform those lightning channels into something magical. We cut it into rounds ranging from 1 to 5 inches thick, and earlier this year, Dawn worked her magic with resin pours on three of the thickest rounds.

Where Lightning Traveled: The Sacred “T”

Here’s something remarkable about lightning-struck wood that most people don’t know — sometimes you can see exactly where the lightning traveled through the tree. In many of our pieces, you’ll notice a distinctive “T” shape in the wood grain or resin channels. That’s the lightning’s path, preserved forever in the timber like nature’s own signature.

These “T” marks aren’t flaws — they’re proof of the wood’s journey, evidence of the moment when sky met earth and left something extraordinary behind.

The Pieces That Emerged

What we’ve created from this lightning-struck cherry tells the story of transformation:

The Lavender Dream — A bowl where soft purple resin flows through the lightning’s path like captured twilight. The resin doesn’t hide the wood’s trauma; it celebrates it, turning scars into something beautiful.

Moss Green Mortar & Pestle — Functional art that brings the energy of that lightning strike into kitchen rituals. The green resin reminds you of forest floors and growing things, even as you’re grinding spices or mixing herbs.

Rainbow Revelations — Two bowls where Dawn’s resin work captures entire spectrums of color within the wood’s natural splits. Each one is a meditation on how broken things can become more beautiful than they were before.

Every piece is small but mighty — because sometimes the most powerful energy comes in compact packages.

The Deeper Connection

As someone who follows the Wiccan path, I believe in the spirit of wood being connected to everyone who touches it — from the tree’s original home to the hands that will eventually use these pieces daily. Lightning-struck wood carries extra significance because it’s been touched by one of nature’s most powerful forces.

Rex and I both approach our craft with this reverence. When we work with lightning-struck wood, we’re not just creating functional art — we’re preserving a moment when the universe showed its power and left us a gift to share.

What’s Still to Come

We still have several rounds waiting for inspiration, and Rex hasn’t even started on his log yet. The beauty of working with wood like this is that each piece tells you what it wants to become. You can’t force it, can’t rush it — you have to listen.

Whether someone wants a custom piece for their altar, their kitchen, or simply to bring more natural beauty into their home, we’re here to help that wood find its purpose. Each piece we create becomes part of a larger story — the tree’s story, the lightning’s story, our story as craftspeople, and ultimately, your story as the person who welcomes it into their life.

The Blessing Forward

May the god of your choosing bless you, and may everything you put into the world come back to you threefold. That’s not just a traditional blessing — it’s how we approach every piece we create. The energy we put into our work, the respect we show the materials, the care we take in every detail — all of that travels forward with each piece.

When you use one of our lightning-struck cherry pieces, you’re not just using a bowl or serving tray. You’re connecting with a moment of natural power, honoring the tree that gave its wood, and becoming part of a story that started with a flash of light in a New York sky.

Browse our current collection of lightning-struck cherry pieces with the links above or contact us about commissioning a custom piece that speaks to your spirit.