While it took a fair amount of time, patience, and a steady hand to make this staff I enjoyed working on it and am pleased with the final result. Red and orange flowers are joined by a leafy vine wrapped around the body of the staff. It’s a 60″ piece of maple wood with a faux ladybug attached near the top. The images were wood burned onto the staff and the colors come from paint pens which give better control than a typical brush. I then used a spray on acrylic sealer to keep the paint from smearing and wearing off as well protecting the wood from weathering. I also used boiled linseed oil for an extra layer of protection which had the added benefit of giving the piece a subtle shine.
Tag: hiking staff
Zodiac Star Constellation Hiking Staff
This staff stands at 62.5” and is made from an unidentified hardwood. The original branch must have been about 15’ long and had to be carried home intact because it simply would not break. Our production partner helped with the procurement and refinement (sanding, cutting) of the piece. The best section was cut away and paint pens were used to illustrate the 12 constellations of the Zodiac. The signs are all in order although Pisces which is normally last fit better at the top. Spray acrylic sealer keeps the constellation images safe from smudging and the elements. Boiled linseed oil was also applied afterward producing an added luster to the wood.
Painted Viking Serpent Diamond Willow Staff
I’m tempted to say this staff is cursed. From the beginning nothing went the way I intended it and the final product turned out completely different from what I’d originally envisioned. Something would go wrong and I’d be forced to redo something else, or change the direction to compensate. Overall it still came out looking alright, just not its original intended look. And although I’m happy with the final outcome I’m more relieved that it’s finally done. It took a lot of hours to complete and even more to fine tune it and fix mistakes.
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Runic White Mage Crystal Wizard Staff
This is the first piece made with direct help from our new and first shop member other than myself. He debarked the wood, did most of the sanding and gave input into the overall design of the piece as well as assisting on other projects. It measures 65” or 5’5” from the base to the top of the glass crystal. Several pieces of amethyst were added along the underside of glass crystal for stability and aesthetic reasons, but really only the central stone remained visible of wrapping it with leather rawhide. The spiral running along the length of the staff was hand carved with a steel file and then highlighted with a silver paint pen and touches of copper too. Small blemishes and imperfections that didn’t come out with intense sanding were filled in with the copper paint to add a little more overall texture and nuance to the piece. Along the top of the spiral, I then used a wood burning tool to create the Elder Futhark rune set and the three larger runes symbolizing (from left to right) good luck, protection, and strength. There’s also a five pointed star and three sided knot on opposite sides of the top. I finished it by rubbing some boiled linseed oil along the length of the staff. And since I liked the accidental darkening effect of the oil on a previous staff (and because I already got some on the rawhide anyway) I applied some to the rawhide wrapping as well – which as I mentioned in another piece may not be the best idea, but shouldn’t be a problem for what the leather is being used for.
Artist: J.R. Goslant
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Bird Feathers Hiking Stick
Measuring only 49” or 4’1” this piece falls more into the cane or walking sticking category. The wood I’ve had for a while and can’t recall its origin, but it’s sturdy and is probably a local hardwood. It’s smooth to the touch and has been adorned with various bird feather patterns and a series of small bird tracks made with various paint pens. Near the top are a few strips of tan rawhide where several small eagle charms are affixed along with a blue jay feather weighted down with a dark turquoise bead. I sprayed with an acrylic sealer to keep the paint from running and for overall preservation and protection from weathering. Because the acrylic seal is so thin I tried an experiment and polished it off with some boiled linseed oil as an extra measure and it came out surprisingly well. However, in the interest of full disclosure, during the process, as sometimes happens with these projects, some linseed oil got onto the rawhide leather strips. It darkened them nicely, but is generally not supposed to be applied to leather as it can cause problems like stiffening down the road. However, stiffening, shouldn’t be a problem since the leather serves no functional operation and furthermore most of what I read said a single application shouldn’t be too problematic anyway, it’s with repeated applications that issues tend to arise.
Artist: J.R. Goslant
https://www.etsy.com/shop/AstrolabeArts
Chi Rho Templar Staff
The idea behind this piece is if a Templar Knight retired and tended to a farm this would be the staff he used. The top has a subtle natural spiral that I wanted to leave intact and to possibly serve as the hand grip (depending on your height and preference). Below the spiral I wood burned the “chi rho” and ichthys symbols, on the reverse I wood burned a Templar cross. Below those are “alpha” and “omega” followed by “INRI” and “IHS” and a runic script which reads “Milites Christi” on the respective sides. There’s also a strand of leather rawhide with a rune charm I found and thought would be fitting: “Nyd,” meaning “endurance, survival, and destiny. I then used a spray acrylic sealer and boiled linseed oil to preserve and protect the wood. Some of the oil also got onto the rawhide and darkened it slightly, but came out looking better. Boiled linseed oil isn’t typically supposed to be used on rawhide, but shouldn’t cause any problems for a static piece on a staff. It has a slight bend to it and measures 58″ tall.
Artist: J.R. Goslant
Pyrite Petroglyph Staff
A more modest petroglyph staff with symbols found in rock carvings from around the world: some symbols like the spiral are fairly universal, but a good number of these are found in the Southwestern areas of the US. The meaning of many petroglyphs remain obscure to this day, some claim they depict shamanic rituals while others say they show evidence of ancient astronauts. The symbols here were created with various paint pens. A piece of pyrite bordered by black rawhide crowns the top of the staff and then the entire 4’8“ piece was given a few coatings of acrylic sealer to protect the paint from running and from overall weathering.
Artist: J.R. Goslant
Dinosaur Fossil Hiking Stick 2
This is the second dinosaur fossil hiking stick that I’ve made, it’s one of my favorite styles. On this staff, going from top to bottom, are the fossil skeletons of a tyrannosaurus rex, a plesiosaur, and dilophosaurus created with a wood-burner. It stands at about 57” and has several coats of polyurethane to preserve and protect the wood.
Artist: Justin Goslant
Artist: Justin Goslant
Artist: Justin Goslant
Artist: Justin Goslant
Artist: Justin Goslant
Artist: Justin Goslant
Artist: J.R. Goslant
“Wanderer” Hiking Stick
This is one of a series of projects I did with a more minimalist aesthetic. I tried some ideas I hadn’t tried before like leaving some of the bark on the wood to create a different look. The polyurethane coats enhanced the different shades on the bark making it look like chocolate and vanilla marble cake.
There’s only limited wood-burning on this staff: the diagonal lines bordering the bark hand-grip; a compass star; and the words “Not All Who Wander Are Lost.” On the opposite side is a leaf preserved and attached with polyurethane. It stars at about 61” tall and has a good weight that makes it sturdy, but still light enough to use while hiking.
Artist: Justin Goslant SOLD
Artist: Justin Goslant SOLD
Artist: Justin Goslant SOLD
Artist: Justin Goslant SOLD
Artist: J.R. Goslant
Small Ægishjálmur and Elder Futhark Hiking Stick
This staff is about 53” tall and made from a piece of river wood, more specifically a “beaver chew,” or “beaver stick.” Beavers removed the bark from the wood by chewing it off and although the light sanding and polyurethane coats have obscured many of the toothmarks, some still remain visible.
I wood-burned the Nordic rune “Ægishjálmur” twice at the top and was meant to protect the wearer in battle. Originally I wanted to do a Nordic compass, it looks similar, but it’s a little more detailed and would have been much more difficult to do given the size of my wood-burner. Going down the staff on each side is the Elder Futhark rune set with each one representing a letter, a number, and would be used in divination.
Artist: Justin Goslant SOLD
Artist: Justin Goslant SOLD
Artist: Justin Goslant SOLD
Artist: Justin Goslant SOLD
Artist: J.R. Goslant
Astrolabe Arts 