Dick Scheu, Louisville, KY

Kentucky Snow

Wooden Snowflake Ornaments

Dick Scheu learned the basics of woodworking and furniture making from his father, who bought a Mark V ShopSmith when Dick was 13. He helped his father assemble the tool and together they learned how to use it. Dick still has the very same ShopSmith today, and thinks of his father every time he uses it.

Dick has always been woodworking. Even in the Navy he worked in a wood shop, repairing antiques and making furnishings and boat parts for admirals. At Ohio State Universith, wherre he earned a degree in mathematics, he customized his MGA sports car with a beautifully finished mahogany dashboard, door panels and shift knob. He began sailing because he loved beautiful wooden boats and spend more time working on his boat than racing. Dick now uses his math aptitude, his woodworking skills, and his artistic talents to produce one-of-a-kind handmade snowflake ornaments. Separate pieces of wood are sculpted and carefully glued together to create the snowflake. Dick takes great care to orient the wood grain so it radiates from the center like a faceted jewel. A high degree of precision is required because any imperfection is magnified by the number of pieces in the snowflake. Dick designs and creates a new snowflake each year. He enjoys the design process and engineering challenges, and even the sanding and finishing. .

Dick is a member of the Kentucky Crafted program, the Kentucky Guild of Artists and Craftsmen, Louisville Artisan Guild and The Ohio Designer Craftsmen. He is also a past vice-president of the KYANA Woodcrafters Club and edited their newsletter for many years.

Dick’s work can be found at True Kentucky, Glendale, KY; the Kentucky Museum of Art and Craft, Louisville, KY; and at the Kentucky Artisan Center, Berea Berea, KY.