Wooden Dreidels

Oh dreidel, dreidel, dreidel,
I turned it on a lathe

Not quite how the original goes, but more fitting for a woodworker.

I turned three dreidels on the lathe over the past week for Hanukkah gifts. It was nice to get back out in the shop and make a couple things after a long hiatus.

One of these is going to a coworker without any finish so he can paint it and add the Hebrew letters with his young son. One is going to our friends’ son who is Charlie’s age. Those two are made of cherry.

The other is going to my close friend and is intended for decoration. It is crafted from a piece of white cedar originating from the same tree used to construct the arbor under which he and his wife exchanged wedding vows. It has a separate walnut handle.

I used the lathe, rasp, disc sander, and belt sander.

I’m still trying to decide the best way to finish and put the Hebrew letters on two of them. This is one of those times I wish I had access to a laser engraver, because I think that would look really nice on these.

Chag sameach!

Next up: Christmas ornaments. I made some a couple years ago and am ready to more more.