The Wood Wyrm

The Wood Wyrm "The Wood Wyrm" is where you can see wood intarsia pieces by Becky Barnes. Becky comes from a family of artists – each with their own unique talents.

Many hours as a child were spent in her grandfather’s carpentry shop, father’s jewelry store, and mother’s painting studio. Mix together all of the fine detail, plus a love of stained glass design, and she found wood intarsia to be a perfect artistic medium. A self-taught woodworker, Becky enjoys drafting her own patterns for projects. Where many modern intarsia artists employ an almost sculptural

aspect to their designs, Becky prefers to follow the 14th-16th century style of imagery. To do this, she uses woods in varying shades to achieve areas of light and shadow. As a paleontologist Becky puts together fossil puzzles every day, so puzzles made out of wood aren’t that different! Each piece is cut and fit by hand to make a picture. Whether a pet portrait, flower, small ornament, or large scene, she hopes people will appreciate nature’s rainbow of trees. She runs a one-woman-woodshop, so while projects take time, she hopes to make them worth your while.

05/03/2026

This is why I drill out the holes of my cross stitch blanks, in real wood, instead of using a laser. I tried again with plywood, which at least didn’t start on fire, but it looks and feels cheap. All the edges and holes are blackened (to be expected). All in all - I’ll keep drilling, and leave the laser to marking surfaces.

Arrrrrrrgh - I be at the “Snow Daze Carve-In” this weekend, working on me skills, and trading cross-stitch blanks for tr...
04/25/2026

Arrrrrrrgh - I be at the “Snow Daze Carve-In” this weekend, working on me skills, and trading cross-stitch blanks for treasure. It be a good day!

Sliiiight detour from my regular medium.  Both my Mom and paternal Grandma ran ceramics studios when I was little, and s...
04/18/2026

Sliiiight detour from my regular medium. Both my Mom and paternal Grandma ran ceramics studios when I was little, and sometimes the desire to work with clay becomes overwhelming. Happily the local Art Center just held a “build your own dragon” class, and it was too good of an opportunity to play!

Meet… the fungal floral incense-burning dragon! We’ll see if it survives firing, did my best to remove bubbles, and slip-scratched all the attached bits. Fingers crossed!

Don’t worry!  I’ll be back to working soon.  Carpal tunnel surgery now, means a future of less pain, and more functional...
04/10/2026

Don’t worry! I’ll be back to working soon. Carpal tunnel surgery now, means a future of less pain, and more functionality. Just a minor hiccup.

Had tree branches fall in the yard, and wanted to upcycle them into something.  I love how nuthatches are such crazy gym...
03/17/2026

Had tree branches fall in the yard, and wanted to upcycle them into something. I love how nuthatches are such crazy gymnasts (check out their hallux claws!) - worked up a flat plane birb, and affixed it to the branch with a dowel. Added a magnet and bingo! New fridge buddy.

Future Flickertail carving project for the May Whittle-In. Yes, it was a number of branches! The dog was very sad when she watched me cut up a perfectly good stick.

Ash wood with amber, and walnut wood with malachite.  I’m excited to see how these turn out!The piece with a dot is for ...
03/14/2026

Ash wood with amber, and walnut wood with malachite. I’m excited to see how these turn out!

The piece with a dot is for making example pieces. That way there’s a record of the wood-stone combinations I’ve made.

New Runes in the making!  Ash (finished runes) and Elm (boards below).  Made a jaunt to Wood From the Hood to find the E...
03/12/2026

New Runes in the making! Ash (finished runes) and Elm (boards below).

Made a jaunt to Wood From the Hood to find the Elm. I’ve never worked with it before - but it’s very pleasing! It’s a little softer, and smells vaguely of cedar or juniper.

Trying to get as many blanks done as possible.  I’ll be teaching in Wahpeton, ND this June, and I have a vendor table at...
02/27/2026

Trying to get as many blanks done as possible. I’ll be teaching in Wahpeton, ND this June, and I have a vendor table at Snow Daze (St. Cloud, MN) this April. Lots of new designs, and im adding more constantly - a list is available here: https://thewoodwyrm.com/shop/

If you’re interested in carving and woodworking opportunities in the Midwest, check out www.carvinghub.org

One Rebel Loon cross stitch, on cherry wood.  Because I can’t make art if I’m dead.  I can’t sell art if my customers ar...
02/02/2026

One Rebel Loon cross stitch, on cherry wood.

Because I can’t make art if I’m dead. I can’t sell art if my customers are kidnapped. I can’t take classes if my teachers are deported.

Ice Out.

I am taking a greenwood bowl carving class through the American Swedish Institute.What kind of bowl is it…….?……………A CHIP...
01/15/2026

I am taking a greenwood bowl carving class through the American Swedish Institute.

What kind of bowl is it…….?





A CHIP bowl!

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Bismarck, ND
58503

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