news & updates

Watch an Expert Woodworker Carve Perfect Fibonacci Spirals with a Hand Chisel

fibonacci spiral image

Woodworking is a prime example of how math is used in real-life scenarios, proving that these skills are useful long beyond test-taking in school. Woodworkers often have to learn all sorts of formulas and calculations to get the proportions of their creations just right – but the Fibonacci sequence – a series of numbers in which each one is the sum of the two numbers before it – isn’t seen quite as often as others. When you make a square with these widths (0, 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21 and so on…) you get a beautiful spiral.

fibonacci sequence

In this short but immensely satisfying video, expert woodworker Paul Sellers shows us what it takes to create perfect Fibonacci spirals with a razor-sharp hand chisel.

Though Fibonacci developed his numerical sequence to provide a formula that’s used throughout many mathematical considerations, and mathematicians may enjoy its reality in their work, it also occurs naturally in elements of nature too. The nautilus shell is an example and so too the natural numbering system appears in the arrangement of plant leaves, pinecones, pineapple cones, rose petal arrangements and so much more. The scroll in the violin range of instruments relies on the same system. Though technically not a Fibonacci sequence, I thought you would enjoy what we put together here where we combine the art of woodworking with the art of video craft. Enjoy and share!

fibonacci spiral image 2

RELATED ARTICLES

A Swatch Book of Eastern White Pine Grades

Eastern White Pine Swatch Book This unique informational marketing item takes on ...

A Day in the Life of a Lumber Mill

Check out these videos shot at Limington Lumber in East Baldwin, ...

Colonial Cottages: Eastern White Pine in 17th Century Massachusetts

Built in 1636, the oldest wooden house in America remains in ...