Wooden souvenirs and gifts

Souvenirs as a gift industry are not losing ground even in the most economically difficult times. Yes, perhaps, the majority will choose something more personal to a loved one as a present, but there is still a wide range of people who also need to be given something from time to time: business partners, colleagues, boss, teachers and trainers of children, in the end. And here very often it is souvenir products that come to the rescue.

Wooden souvenirs are a niche in which great skill and high artistic taste are required for the business of making them to "go". The market is oversaturated with cheap wooden crafts, but, oddly enough, the buyer often wants to pay a higher price, but also get a quality product from a good wood species.

Wood is a relatively inexpensive raw material (some species are very off-budget, however, for example, relative to the cost of mammoth tusk - quite), especially since it is not necessary to start working immediately with red species or bog oak. Birch, spruce, aspen, pine, cedar - in central Russia there is a lot of this material for a good price.

Wood is so popular among our fellow citizens, because it is a natural raw material, warm, and if a master craftsman, then the product from under his hands comes out alive, colorful, bright. Of course, such a present cannot but please.

If this is not the case, you will have to start from scratch, studying theory, and only then practice for a long time. And at the same time, there are no guarantees that your products will “shoot”.

If working with wood is not new to you, you like it, and you are good at it, you can start your own business. Registration of an individual entrepreneur is a simple matter. However, there are many little things to consider.

What wood product is better to choose as a gift? Simple wooden souvenirs can look very sophisticated and delicate if they are tastefully crafted. Decorative Christmas tree decorations will delight both children and adults. They can be either already painted or issued in the form of blanks, and then you can paint them yourself.

Table fittings look interesting - an organizer, a stand for pens and pencils, made in the form of a carriage, a vegetable, a camera and much more, for which there is enough imagination.

Wooden jewelry - badges, brooches, earrings or necklaces - should be gifted when you are confident that it will be worn. Such jewelry looks very catchy, so not every woman will dare to wear it, but those who dare will not lose - wood jewelry will always make its owner stand out from the crowd.

For housewarming, a decorative carved horseshoe, which should be hung over the front door, will be a good gift.... All sorts of charms can be given to a couple who does not reject such things and does not consider them anachronism or superstition.

Board games made of wood can also be a great gift. Chess, checkers, backgammon - find out what the donee is fond of. Carved chess pieces do not have to be standard.

Corporate gifts made of wood always look more expensive than jewelry made of metal and plastic. Wood is a natural material, in the light of the fashion for everything natural, it is currently in great demand. Eco-sticks in the form of wine corks, leaves, clubs or hammers, anti-stress puzzles, eco-cubes, mahogany perpetual calendars - all this can be presented to the employees of the team on the occasion of the New Year or the anniversary of the organization.

They may not necessarily be expensive gifts. Pencils and notebooks in a wooden cover with a printed logo of the company, fridge magnets, branded badges are excellent promotional presents. The main thing is high-quality workmanship and good material for manufacturing.... For employees who have children, you can make logo Christmas tree decorations in the shape of horses, balls, Christmas trees, snowmen.

If you need to make a truly exclusive, rare gift, opt for a product made from precious wood species. It can be a handmade watch made of solid wood or saw cut, mahogany paperweight or carved backgammon. If you are not limited by the budget of a gift, hand over an original safe, metal inside, good wood outside. A wine cabinet is an equally practical present that few people will not appreciate. Every family has a couple of bottles of good wine, and if you are dealing with a real connoisseur of this drink, a wine cabinet is undoubtedly a very necessary thing for him.

Carved boxes or authentic figurines (maybe even antique ones) can be a good gift if a person is fond of such a culture. For example, a fan of ethnic, African culture will love the mask or figurine of an aboriginal.

You can create wooden products yourself if you have an idea of ​​how to do it. You can make a cutting board, a panel, something from kitchen utensils (ladle, spoons, rolling pin), decorate it with a pattern or text.You can stop at the creation of key holders, flower pots, wooden or wicker furniture, photo frames or mirrors. You can also decorate these products in different ways: someone likes decoupage, and someone hand-painted. There are a huge number of options.

Starting small, you can always advance either in breadth, covering an increasing number of products (it is better to do this when your technique is initially high, you have the skills of woodcutting, turning and others), or, so to speak, in depth - improving your skills, doing a small number of products, but at the same time all the better quality.

Consider the techniques in which you can work. For example, you can start with branches. They make excellent frames for photographs, paintings or mirrors, packaging for bottles of alcohol. You need to prepare good, strong branches, give them the length necessary for your product. Slices are made both angular and perpendicular. In the first case, it is oval, in the second it has the shape of a circle. Next, the workpieces are connected in accordance with the scheme using a glue gun, twine or wire. All of these can be purchased at a home improvement store.

If you are attracted to decoupage, you can also work with wood in this technique. Either do it yourself or buy a blank of what you are going to process. The surface before work must be clean and sanded. Next, a primer is applied - this is a special composition or white acrylic (you can even take paint). You need to work with a brush or sponge. The workpiece should dry, after which you should check how smooth its surface is. If there is no perfect evenness, the procedure for applying the primer is repeated. As soon as there are no streaks and stains on the surface, you need to take what you will be doing decoupage with. This can be a special card, rice paper, or even a regular napkin. The image is either cut out or plucked out with your fingers. Glue is applied to the surface, after which the attached paper is smoothed out. When all the images are glued, the missing is completed with a brush. Then the product is varnished and dried.

In the technique of burning, a drawing or an inscription is applied to a workpiece made of wood using a special device. Using a burner is akin to shading with a pencil. It requires great precision and accuracy from the master - unlike a pencil, you can't go anywhere with a bad stroke.

In the technique of wood carving, you can create real masterpieces from this material. Novice carvers should know that it is much easier to work on a flat surface than on a round one - a cup holder or a vase. Carving is carried out using special tools - knives and chisels. The pattern is cut out in relief along a previously drawn contour. Nowadays it is possible to work both "the old fashioned way" and using modern laser cutting.

If you have an idea of ​​painting with a brush and paints, then you may well try yourself in the technique of painting on wood. This way you can create unique painted products, none of which will be repeated.... You can work according to templates and drawings, or you can create your own patterns - it all depends on how developed your imagination is.

We offer options for wooden souvenirs for inspiration:

• branded corporate products look very expensive and of high quality;

• a wooden calendar looks much more interesting and original than a paper one;

• an organizer made of expensive wood looks truly exclusive;

• original wall clocks will decorate both living quarters and office;

• an organizer of an unusual shape will make your office desk truly stylish.

For information on how you can decorate simple wooden objects using the burning technique, see the next video.