An Exercise in Geometry

Quite awhile ago I started with an interesting little project that has been on the back-burner for many months. I started working on it yesterday again and decided to show it to you. It is a pole screen that needs to be in a Tudor style, nothing like this was really made in Tudor times (well I haven't found any reference in any case) so after a lot of research I decided to make a flat tripod base with a nice fat turned vase like they used on Tudor dining tables and a brass pole and brass hanging rod, here are some examples of pole screens that I used for inspiration.

Victorian brass and rosewood pole screen
Victorian fire screen
Victorian pole screen

And here is a photo of my mock-up to get an idea of what I am aiming for.

The carving isn't finished, I just wanted to see if the whole idea would work.

A close-up of the turning and the base, in the next photos I am going to show you how to draw the base for anybody who might like to try something similar. There are enough ready made turnings out there to use as a pedestal with a dowel or brass rod for the upright pole and the cross pole that the embroidery will hang from. For the feet you can use turnings or beads. I have used brass tubing with brass door knobs glued into the ends before to make rods for my dining room to hang pictures from, you can see them here.

To draw a pattern for the base I drew a triangle with all three sides the same length. I started with the line in the bottom, then added the one in the middle at a right angle and then the two sides.

Next I marked the center of the two side lines and drew a line to the opposite corner.

I then decided how big I wanted the three ends to be and drew in that line in each corner.

Lastly I looked for a tin lid that was more or less the size that would give me the curve that I needed, I redid this drawing today since it is a few months since I made the original and I didn't take any photos back then. Your center point is where the lines cross in the middle and you can use your pattern to mark this point to position the turning exactly in the center of the base.

I used my scroll saw to cut out mine, I think you will be able to use a knife on soft wood if you don't have a saw. Make sure that your grain runs with one of the long sides to give the piece maximum strength, you can see in which direction the grain runs on my piece of wood.

If you don't want to draw your own base you are more than welcome to use mine and reduce or increase the size according to your needs.

Elga