Boscoyo pen

Anyone who has ever had to maintain a lawn that has a cypress tree knows the pain of dealing with cypress knees. Cypress knees are those ugly knots that look like huge warts, growing out of the ground from the roots around the tree. They are actually the means by which the cypress tree "breaths". Since cypress trees grow mainly in or around water, they've adapted to growing the knees above the waterline to allow them to breath.

Cypress knees

While most folks in the South know them as "cypress knees", the proper Cajun term is "boscoyo".

I am always interested in trying new and exotic woods in my pen making, so my brother cut a cypress knee out of his backyard and brought it to me. From the outside, this ugly looking piece of wood seemed to hold little promise. But, sectioning the inside revealed beautiful shades and woodgrains that make gorgeous pens. Not surprisingly, the wood is very wet and requires a long time in a dehydrator followed by stabilization in a vacuum chamber. But, the end result is well worth the extra work.