Coppicing, Woodcraft, Pyrography
Run by Kiri, Wood Rays is a creative business built on the ancient trade of coppicing, where woodland is managed in a sustainable way to create a healthy habitat for wildlife to thrive and useful material to work with. Kiri uses the wood she cuts to create both traditional greenwood products and exquisite pyrography design.
Coppicing
I am based at Westonbirt Arboretum as part of the coppice restoration project. Coppicing is a type of woodland management that encourages biodiversity. For thousands of years it was a way of life, producing essential material for building and making things, but most coppice fell derelict after WW2 and the dawn of plastic consumerism. However, coppice restoration is now on the rise and many people are making a living from this truly sustainable way of managing woodland.
Woodcraft
I work mainly with hazel, cutting and harvesting it on a 7 year rotation to encourage new growth. As part of the process of coppicing, larger trees known as standards are also felled each year to open up the canopy and allow light in. With wood from both the standards and the hazel, I use traditional tools for green wood working to make various items.
Pyrography
This is the art of burning designs onto wood using a pen with a heated metal nib. I use wood harvested from the coppice, often cleaving or milling it into boards, for all of my pyrography creations. This is a long process as the wood needs to be seasoned first to allow the moisture to leave it. I then burn my designs by hand into these items.
Get in contact
If you are interested in any of my work, please fill in the form below or email me – kiri@woodrays.co.uk