With most of us having been all cooped up at home for weeks on end, the only way to nurture one’s sanity was to get creative. Many of us found ways to stave off the boredom, we had to endure for weeks on end, when the sudden and unexpected restrictions were implemented. I had regularly been driving to the firewood supplier to keep the home fire burning and had picked up some chunks of carob. If I didn’t watch it, my to-keep pile was going to get larger than my to-burn pile. When I finally decided on the lump of carob I wanted to use, out came the chainsaw and the project began!

When I embarked on this idea, I didn’t have a lot of electrical equipment, so much of the work was done by hand.

During the process, I didn’t have a definitive plan but wanted to use the rotten areas of the slab to create a light feature. I removed all the loose and rotten areas of the wood and sanded smooth the rest. After all the dust was removed, I gave the cavities a coat of clear epoxy. This seals the area and also helps to reduce air bubbles when you get to the epoxy pouring stage.

‘The creative adult is the child who survived”– Ursula K Le Guin

As I’ve often followed the ‘learn by doing’ philosophy and had time on my hands, the comment ‘I can do that!’ often resounded in my mind. Whether or not it was the right thing to do, to just dive into the deep end with what I thought would work, rather than searching for alternative methods that would obviously work, it felt like the right thing to do. And overall I mostly think the process went well. 

When using epoxy, it is essential to have a 100% sealed area where you are going to pour the resin. You’ll find out very quickly if there are any leaks. My method of parcel tape, a glue gun and countless clamps seemed to do the trick. What I did discover is that I had initially chosen a complicated shape, when it came to adding the epoxy to get the light effect. I had no real straight, flat edges, so a lot of preparation had to take place prior to pouring. If there are any areas where the epoxy can seep through, it will, trust me, and at that point there really is nothing you can do to stop the flow! (I patiently scooped up some leakages and put them back, over and over, until the epoxy started to harden! Tedious, I know but remember we were in lockdown. And besides, my social agenda was a blank!)

The only aspect I’m not too keen on with the final result is the colour I used with the epoxy resin. Worried that if I used a darker colour, the lamp effect simply wouldn’t be bright enough was possibly overthinking on my part. I’m not 100% happy with the gold glow it gives when sitting idle. However, the first time I switched on the lights I found myself getting completely lost within the ambient glow and even began to see movement within the complex layers of the wood and epoxy. The lights seemed to have the same hypnotic effect as an open fire has when the mutable flames lick and burn the firewood. For that reason, I decided I was content with the overall result. 

I’m not sure if my sanity is still intact, but I’ve appreciated all the positive comments and feedback I’ve received since it’s completion. My favourite one was from a neighbour, who after seeing it come alive with illumination, he summed it up with one word:  “Sexy!”

One can find an abundance of epoxy lamps online. Some are plain boring with no real imagination involved, while others are works of art. I like to think that I achieved the latter. The most important point, of course, is that while diving into the unknown, embarking on something not tried before is not only challenging but opens up numerous avenues of inspiration. I may never make another lamp like this again, but it has certainly given me wood for thought.