I styled this Norway Pine in the Spring of 2010. I was never really happy with the result as the top was featureless. The low branch that ran across the back had some good movement though.
I decided to cut back the top and then removed all the bark.
The next thing I did was to trist the sappy wood from top to bottom. Strong wrists are needed for this work.28 years as a thatcher helps with this kind of work.
I then applied 3mm Copper wire to the new deadwood and twisted some more. The Copper wire has great holding power.
The ends of the cuts were split and peeled back to give an aged appearance to the deadwood.
I felt the deadwood infront of the live wood was a distraction, so I put Raffia on the live branch and very tightly. This enabled me to carefully bend the branch up and over the deadwood.
Mission accomplished. I will let the tree rest for a couple of weeks and then restyle the branches.
