Mr Skill

Oftentimes the simplest things are the most enjoyable. Like a small child playing with a paper boat in a stream, or a couple walking hand-in-hand along a river bank. To me though, the gentle sound of a bamboo wind chime resonating gently in the garden is the best sound of all. The good news is that these delightful inventions are so easy to make, that there’s no need to Find a Joiner this time at all.

• Obtain some lengths of bamboo from the hardware shop or garden centre. These need to be dry so that they resonate nicely, and be of different diameters too.

• Cut different lengths of bamboo from each source. There are two principles here. The diameter affects the depth of resonance or tone, while the length affects the pitch. Remember to ensure that there are no segments within the length you cut, or else the sound will not travel between the ends.

• Knock the lengths of bamboo together gently to check results. You can even tune them by adjusting lengths. Some pieces will work better against each other – these are the ones you need to juxtapose as some do at better London Joining Firms.

• Finish off your bamboo pieces with shaped lower ends like organ pipes. This is done by removing one-half of the last inch or so and tidying up. Some say this affects the pitch. Others like me just think it just looks better that way.

• Drill holes through the top ends for the hanger-strings. Remember to make these parallel to the bottom detail, so that these all present the same by facing outwards. Attach the strings ensuring they are of the same length, and tie the ends together neatly before hanging the set in an appropriate place that will catch the wind.

• Obtain a spreader disc of an appropriate diameter, and notch it deeply to receive the hanger strings. Set this in place between the strings and hey-presto you have a wooden wind chime. Finally, secure the strings to the spreader disc with hot-melt glue.

How’s that for a bit of fun for a Sunday’s home entertainment. And you don’t need Carpenter Quotes either. Although Mr-Skill is a serious business that matches clients and skilled tradesmen, we also like to give good ideas away. You can decorate your bamboo wind pipes any way you want. Did you notice how easy it is to rearrange the pipes.