AND….here is the finished product Joanie gave us as a gift! It’s amazing to think that this lovely bowl was just a chunk of solid wood a few hours ago. Thank you, Joanie!!!
As we were leaving the woodshop, we came upon Homer Burrous tinkering away at a project so stopped to see what he was up to. WOW!! Homer repairs and builds violins!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
He said he started reading about the craft several years ago and just likes to learn more as he goes along. He started out doing repair work and is now crafting one of his own. 
Take a close look at the photo below where he has written the measurements for the thickness of the wood to achieve the right sound quality.
This next picture is the back side of the one he’s building….and check the curved strip of wood that will eventually hold the two pieces together. 
After writing the above paragraph about Homer’s violin hobby, I stopped by his house this morning to see if they had a sign outside announcing their last name. It’s funny how we all know each other by first name but we hardly ever know a last name. Anyway, I found Shirley and puppy Nisa at home and Shirley invited me in to see “more” violins. OMG! (for you non-computer geeks….OMG means OH MY GOSH!). Homer was being very modest at our talk at the woodshop as he led me to believe he had a “few” violins he worked on. He didn’t mention he had a plethora of them at his home workshop as well. Shirley showed me the workshop where he has created quite a few instruments already and is working on a lot more.
He even completely built two banjos……and did the fine woodcarving on the handles! Check out these photos! 
On my way out the door, I happened to notice some paintings on the wall and found out our master violin maker is also an artist. Way to go, Homer! 
Thank you, Shirley, for the lovely tour of your home!
Thank you, Shirley, for the lovely tour of your home! 
