Layia Village Crafts

Handcrafting & Designing., The shape of things to come, do you see what we see ?

Tarka thought to himself, watching the water & leaves drift lazily past his webbed feet. I am supposed to juggle rocks, slide down muddy banks, catch fish and make dams. But look at this pond in Cyprus. It’s an absolute logistical nightmare, and do not ask about the cats. I need to get back to Devon quick.

Its not a bird or plane what can you see guys, 30kg of olive wood ? more to follow long project. Mother Nature - Stage II (Work in Progress)

The DoodLynn Den is busy this week. I've started on a another new 300-year-old olive wood project—an otter! It's a heavy 5kg challenge, but the grain is starting to reveal the shape. You can follow the full progress on my Workbench Diary here: https://layiavillagecrafts.com/the-otter-project-week-1-selecting-the-olive-wood/

A sincere thank you to the mystery benefactor who left three beautiful, heavy logs on my workbench at LVC this morning!

This wood has an incredible deep red heartwood and a texture that speaks of our Cyprus mountains here. With Larnaca officially named the European Capital of Culture 2030, this gift feels like a timely inspiration—a piece of our land to help us prepare for the journey ahead.

I have a strong feeling about what this tree is but not 100%, but I’d love to test your knowledge! Does anyone recognise this wood as I use Olive wood most of the time, or anyone know its local Cypriot name? We are looking forward to turning these into something special that celebrates our island’s story. 👇"

So…. Not a donkey, not a mouflon, or a cicada!! The Golden Flamingo Aliki, she is now in her new home at the Larnaka Tourism office🦩
Sean… you win a bag of sawdust!!! 😂

OK Guys
"I see all the guesses! and well done some far out, and some near to the mark. You’re all getting closer to the truth, but the mystery of .................... will be now solved tomorrow, just a slight delay and hopefully it will be worth it. Keep on trying to figure it out 🇨🇾🧐🕵️‍♀️

Behind the scenes at the DoodLynn Den at Layia Village Crafts 🛠️✨

We have been working on a major new piece that celebrates the true beauty and heritage of Cyprus. It’s hand-carved from our local olive wood, and stands over 2 feet in height x 8in wide but it’s definitely not your usual bowl, pen or Donkey.

The big reveal is happening this Late Thursday Afternoon ! Can anyone guess what this beautiful piece of olive wood has turned into? Lucky winner will get a full bag of olive saw dust that smells beautiful.

Drop your guesses below! 👇🇨🇾

Nature always provides the perfect blueprint. This raw olive log has a very specific posture already built into it by the elements.

Hint: This upcoming piece is being created specially for our upcoming The Natural World & Cyprus 2030 collection.

What iconic island creature do you see hiding in the grain? Let us know your best guess!