#357

NOW SOLD

Purple Heart and 24ct Gold Plated Ballpoint Twist Pen

PURPLE HEART - Peltogyne

When freshly cut the heartwood of Purpleheart is a dull grayish/purplish brown. Upon exposure the wood becomes a deeper eggplant purple. With further age and exposure to UV light, the wood becomes a dark brown with a hint of purple. This colour-shift can be slowed and minimized by not leaving the pen in direct sunlight for too long.

Sometimes called Amaranth, this colourful Latin American hardwood is tremendously popular for furniture and other designs that call for a unique splash of colour. In addition to its colouration, Purpleheart has excellent strength properties, and can be used in applications where strength is important—a wood for both form and function.

We had a lovely evening in the New Inn (and later back on the boat) at the top of Buckby Locks with friends but the next day the Buckby flight beckoned. The flight (properly called the Whilton Lock Flight) is not that long being only seven in number and they are well spaced out through pretty countryside, but a few of them are really tough. Big heavy balance beams on sticking gates can make the going very tough.

It didn't take long to get through them and we had timed our run to coincide with boaters leaving the visitor moorings at the bottom. There is only a few hundred yards of suitable mooring before you are well and truly sandwiched between the railway the other side of Whilton Marina and the busy M1.

We had a relaxing couple of days catching up on chores, bumping into boaters (not literally) that we hadn't seen for ages and even managed a stroll around the marina to see what boats were on offer for sale. Back on the boat it was time to take advantage of the lovely sunshine charging the batteries via the solar array and get some turning done.

Pen #357  was turned on the 3rd August 2015 at the bottom of Whilton Locks.