So what do you do with all the stuff you turn, espcially pens?

[jcjrsmith]

I have given away most of the pens/pencils I have turned a presents for co-workers and family and friends. But, I can't stop turning. So, what do you do with the stuff you turn?

[Uncle Cracker]

I give mine away to clients, friends, family... I have done commissions, but don't really enjoy it as much as I do the pieces I give away. If you want a place to sell your work, try Ebay or local craft shows, or consider donations to nursing homes or hospitals.

[dbhost]

Try turning different stuff...

Okay seriously, that is a problem I wish I had... I am soaking up as much turning knowledge as I can since I can't get my hands on it yet (the chisels shipped today and are due Friday, this weekend is gonna be FUN...)

I would think turning stuff like cups / vases would make great office gifts. You know for pen holders to hold all those pens you have turned...

[BigguyZ]

I can't afford to spend money on pen kits and just give them away, so I sell them. Mostly to co-workers for themselves or as presents. I have given many away, but after a few times of doing so and having the recipient never use/ appreciate the pen, I couldn't stand it. So I don't do it anymore. At least if people are buying my pens, I know they'll appreciate it more.

[Whaler]

I give a lot of them away but I do have rollerballs and fountain pens on consignment at a local jewelry store and ballpoints at a local gift shop. I also do a craft show at our club house a couple times a year. I hope to get bottle stoppers into the local winery as soon as the tourist season starts.
I turn for the enjoyment of it not as a business so sales are just a plus.

[Ed62]

I've never tried turning partly because of the cost in tools, and wondering what I would do with 10,000 pens. The original post was a good question.

Ed

[herb fellows]

Give them away to all your bestest friends on, oh, I don't know, woodworking websites maybe :-)0?!

At least you know other woodworkers will appreciate them.

[pecker]

There seems to an increasing interest in turning pens...the WW catalogs are full of supplies for this hobby/business. I always wondered who's buying the pens that get turned. I can't imagine the X and Y generation having any interest in them. I don't, and I'm in my 50's.

I can barely handwrite anymore, having done mostly typing on keyboards for the past decade.
A pretty pen would be useless in my life.

[RayintheUK]

I started pen turning because I acquired a large number of pen blanks and pen kits, which were thrown in with a clearing-out deal a while back. As I had all these kits, complete with velvet-covered display boxes, it would have been rude not to make them up - so I did!

Having made a few and given them to close friends, I realized that either I was OK for presents for a number of years, or I could sell them on. I gave one to my mail man, who - of course - used it to get his customers to sign for their packages. His word of mouth got sales for practically all of the remainder, with the last few "guesting" on a friend's craft show table.

Bowls are a different matter, as some are so experimental that they fall outside "normal" design (known by some as "quirky" and by others as "mental"). Others are great gifts for Christmas, some I'm so pleased with that they adorn (I hope) my home. Now, I tend towards turning large bowls and platters in aromatic woods, such as Cedar of Lebanon, for commission work.

Ray.

[don_hart]

I sell mine on the web and at craft fairs and art shows. This way I can afford to keep buying the kits and blanks.

If you don't want to sell them you could donate them to the freedom pens project.

[Russianwolf]

Sell some on the net, give some to family and friends, donate some each year to the Freedom project, Building an inventory to go to a Celtic festival. Sky's the limit.

I've had people buy them ranging from 24-mid 50's, My best customers have been in their 30's. Most buy them as gifts for someone else.

[Russianwolf]

Hey Don,
Why do you have an ad in the Martinsburg WV Craigslist? (I won't mention which section it's in )

[don_hart]

Well I have them everywhere I have way too much time on my hands at work.

[dkerfoot]

I have given away most of the pens/pencils I have turned a presents for co-workers and family and friends. But, I can't stop turning. So, what do you do with the stuff you turn?

That is a great question and it turned me off (pun intended) for quite a while. So far I have avoided pens because the size and function seem to limit creativity and I just don't need a bunch of fancy pens.

I mostly turn small bowls now. I don't get nearly the shop time I would like, but even so, after the first half-dozen, you start to run out of places to put them. In a strange confluence of hobbies, I am currently using exotic wooden bowls to hold electronic components...

[leehljp]

I will turn 3 to 5 pens in a week and then be so busy that I can't do 1 within a couple of months. I usually give them away. I made some for my daughters to sell, and they do sell a few once in a while.

I just turned my first bowl - about 3 inches in diameter and 2 inches tall. I was very impressed and surprised with the outcome. I will say that I had beginners luck on the design and ability to make it so thin. When I get back to Japan, I will take a picture and post it. While not as nice as professional turners, I was surprised how well my pen turning skills played in making it.

I have ideas about making a little money when I retire, but for now, turning pens and bowls are my stress relief. Turning for "money, work and commission" is stress to me as "perfectionism" takes over and I become overly critical of the work.