In this entry of the gallery we spend time with Larry Books. Larry is a furniture maker who specializes in one of a kind and unique contemporary designs. His work features many curves and he likes to incorporate laminations in his work. Having taught woodworking and CAD drafting at the high school level for thirty years, he is adept at all levels of the technology used in woodworking, from hand tools to CNC technology and carving to woodturning. Whatever skills it takes to make the elegant, flowing, contemporary lines that characterize his work.

From jewelry boxes and small turnings to tables and hutches, Larry�s furniture is noted for it�s clean lines and curves. Believing that all too often, �less is more� he likes to keep the designs as simple, sleek and elegant. An old woodworker and his mentor taught him that anyone can make a piece of work look complicated by building a simple box shape and adding numerous moldings and trim, but to make a piece look simple and elegant requires real skill. Larry works to achieve that in all his work, be it a simple box or an elegant hall table.

Larry has sold his work at such galleries as The Real Mother Goose in Portland, Oregon and The Gallery of Fine Woodworking in Seattle, Wasington. Now retired from teaching, he divides his time between building contemporary furniture and working with his wife, Janet, in their floral shop and gallery, Gallery Florist, in Vancouver Washington. Larry�s work is currently exhibited at Gallery Florist and at The Real Mother Goose.

What follows are some examples of Larry's outstanding craftsmanship.

	Erika�s Cradle is a cradle Larry has made a number of times, both in Walnut and Bolivian Rosewood. Originally designed for his next to youngest granddaughter, Erika, both she and her younger sister Emily have done extensive testing of its structural integrity. It was featured in the Expressions in Wood show of exquisitely handcrafted fine art furnishings at the World Forestry Center that ran from April to July in 2001 and in the August 2000 edition of Fine Woodworking Magazine.
	This fernery is a design Larry has produced in both Walnut and Hawaiian Koa a number of times over the years and it is always a showstopper. The box is made of one piece of wood and he tries to find a board each time, which has sapwood on the lower edge, which really enhances the design. It has a Plexiglas liner, which allow it to hold either silk artificial plants or living plants. It can be a showpiece when it is filled with blooming plants, like Poinsettias at Christmas time!
	This is one of three music stands Larry made in this style. They were all made of Cocobolo Rosewood and brass, and were made between 1988 and 2001. His first music stand was for his daughter Krista, when she was taking lessons to play the flute in Jr. High School. It was well received, so he made four more like it of walnut and ebony. He had some beautiful Cocobolo Rosewood planks, so he then decided to design the stealth music stand. The stealth technology in aircraft was just becoming public at the time, so he envisioned a music stand that the sounds could smoothly drift around without distortion. It was kind of whimsical, but fun to think of a beautiful wood and the smooth flowing lines of a stealth aircraft and the sounds from the instrument. The musical instrument and the music stand he envisioned as both instruments of the musician and both should be quality.
	This is a wood grandfather clock, handmade of Hawaiian Koa and Macassar Ebony. Wooden clocks were used in Europe for several hundred years before it was practical to precisely machine metal gears. The gears and frame are made of wood. It is a showpiece in our store, Gallery Florist, where many pieces of his work may be purchased.
	This is a picture of a Bubinga and Wenge chair he likes to build, in the construction process. along side the completed chair, shown in his gallery, at Gallery Florist.
	This is a Hawaiian Koa and Wenge jewelry box inspired by a style Tony Lydgate made popular in the 1980�s. It is a classic in every sense of the word. Generally Larry likes to do his own designs, but this is about perfect as they come in design.
	Many years ago he discovered that he could build lamps out of the scraps left over when building furniture and it was almost pure profit. With the prices of exotic woods going through the roof today and quality shades, it costs him more now to build a lamp than what he would have sold it for fifteen years ago. He has many different styles of lamps that he makes and greatly enjoy building them. This lamp is made of Brazilian Rosewood (legal old growth veneer) and Macassar Ebony.
	This is a coffee table that Larry has built many times over the years. He never builds it quite the same, intentionally. The legs have taken numerous forms. It is a fun table to build and he enjoys making everyone jut a little bit different! This one is in Bubinga and Wenge, but it looks fantastic in Cherry, Hawaiian Koa or Walnut as well.
	In 1994, his youngest daughter, Krista became engaged. During dinner at a restaurant one evening she presented Larry with a sketch of the hope chest she would like to have. The result was a hope chest exactly like this chest only it incorporated different varieties of woods. The original was made of walnut and black cherry, while this chest has sides made of Bubinga and top and legs of African Wenge. The floor of the chest is Tennessee Red Cedar to repel moths. This is only the second one he has made, as it is very time intensive to build. The legs are done in a cabriole style and the sides of chest have been mortised in a finger joint fashion to allow for the seasonal expansion and contraction of such wide boards. This is a very time consuming process, though it keeps the wide panels from splitting. Finding such wide single boards in this day was very nice, as they are not readily available.
	This is a look inside our gallery at Gallery Florist. They feature not only the work of Larry Books, but other local artists work in oil, watercolor, ceramic, metal and blown glass as well.