A Very Special Lovespoon!

My son “C” has been dating a lovely young lady who from Monchengladbach, Germany.  That is just west Dusseldorf and just east of the border with Holland.  “G” – her name for our purposes here -- was back home for the Holidays and “C” flew over to visit and popped the question.  So, it looks like we’re going to have a brand new Daughter in our family!  My wife and I are delighted!

Before he left, I carved a spoon for him to take along as a Christmas Present for her parents.  This one is not an original design – again, it is one that I have mined out of the Internet -- but I think is a very nice, delicate design.

“G” has already received a spoon from me so she “knows” my rules:  “Anyone who gets a spoon has to send back a picture of it hanging up.”  With typical Germany efficiency, she made sure that the spoon was promptly hung up and that “C” had the picture to bring back with him.  Good girl!

To “G’s Parents”: ”Fröhliche Weinachten!   We hope to meet you soon.”

The 4000th

 Well, we’ve made it.  Clear up to 4000 hits!  Thanks to all. 

The hit rate is still accelerating.  The last 1000 hits took just a tad over 2 months.  From what the site counter measures, it seems like Lovespoons are where it’s at.  

I hope to have more to show in the near future.

Thanks for “Tunin’ In” and keep makin’ chips!

I guess this piece really can’t be considered a “lovespoon” because it doesn’t have all of the normal lovespoon characteristics.  Instead, I’d have to categorize it as an “L’object D’art”, especially since I have introduced some color into the equation. (Note: the color is not quite as bold as it appears in the photo.)

Long ago, back in the dim, dark past, I found and saved a picture of this design with the intent to carve one for myself someday.  Back in November, I saw a spoon just like this (sans color) at the Dayton Woodcarver’s Show and resolved to make it my next project.  (By the way, if that was your spoon and I didn’t comment to you at the time, you did a really nice job!)

When I located my copy of the picture, I decided that, even though the leaves were good reproductions of actual maple leaves, they were “way too busy” for the rest of the spoon.  The original design also had one less leaf, leaving (IMHO) a big “hole” that detracted from the overall look.  I set out to modify the design.

I shopped around on Google Images and found a nice replacement leaf -- still a Maple but a different species -- one with broader points and smoother edges.  I incorporated the new leave and “plugged” the hole.

Recently, I have been trying to move in the direction of more delicate spoons.  While this one may not be super-delicate, I found that the section of the handle near the bowl was thin enough to flex slightly if I put too much pressure on it during the sanding process.  Easy does it there, Tom!

  

Color

At one point, I thought it was “done”, but my living-in, home-decorating consultant indicated that the spoon needed some color to fully bring out the leaves and make it go better with the walls in the dining room.  I didn’t necessarily disagree with her opinion but using colored washes to blend colors together has never been one of my strengths.  So I approached the idea of painting my latest creation with just a “bit” of trepidation.  Then, I reminded myself that it was “just a piece of wood” that in the event that I ruined it by doing a crumby paint job, I could always carve a new one.  So I plunged ahead.  I’m glad now that I did.   

After all, it’s all about growth, isn’t it? :-)

I went back to Google Images and found some really nice shots of autumn leaves.  I spent the best part of two evenings applying wash after wash after wash.  Finally, the color blending seemed to work and I stopped.  There can be too much of a good thing.

I think that this “toe-in-the-water” into the realm spoon painting worked, so I’ll probably do some more.  Besides, I just learned that now we need another piece for the other side of the dining room window :-)

One for the Bench

"Don't get your knickers in a knot. Nothing is solved and it just makes you walk funny." - Kathryn Carpenter

‘Til Next time…Keep makin’ chips!

Hello Portugal and Spain!

For reasons known only to people who live there, I have recently had an extraordinary number of “hits” from Portugal and Spain…in particular, about my love spoons.

I’m sorry that I speak neither Portuguese nor Spanish but if there is something in particular that you would like to know about my spoons, like patterns or technique, let me know.  I’d be glad to oblige.

‘Til next time…keep makin’ chips!

New Lights for the Shop!

OK, I have been busy and not tending to my blogging.  Sorry ‘bout that.  I’ll try to do better.

One of the reasons for the time period between posting is that I have started to do a few things to update and streamline my shop in anticipation of reducing the time I'm spending "workin’ for a livin’ ".  I plan to drop back to only 3 or 4 days a week during the next calendar year to leave more time for workin’ in the shop.

The first improvement was to update the lighting that I installed about 14 years ago.    Apparently, on those rare occasions when the previous owner ventured downstairs to actually do something he must not have need much in the way of lighting because the entire 24’x30’ basement was lit (not counting the light at the bottom of the stairs) with just two, count ‘em, two light bulbs: A 60-watt over the laundry tubs and a second one over the workbench.  This would be “techno genius” had installed -- well, let’s call it “a remote lighting control system” -- so that he could turn on either of the two lights “remotely” from the bottom of the stairs.  He had carefully fished extended pull cords for both lights through a number of strategically positioned screw eyes so that they were accessible from the bottom of the stairs.  My! what a clever Gent! (?).

As you can imagine I didn’t retain his…er…uh…”system” for long after we moved in.  I splurged on four double 4’ fluorescent fixtures and added two new circuits to control them.  That was a big improvement but as time went by, the sawdust accumulated and the bulbs aged -- to say nothing of my eyes – I started to think that I needed to update the lighting again.

A couple of weeks ago I invested in four new fixtures each with FOUR bulbs.  And this time they were “Cool White not the overly dim “Warm White”.  Wow! What a difference!  It is so much easier to see now.  Short of installing a skylight, this is as close to daylight as my shop will ever see.

I did discover a bad ballast in the second  fixture...after installing...of course.  So I had to take that one down again and schlep it back to Home Depot for a replacement.  You can bet that I checked out the remaining fixtures on the floor using a “suicide cord” before going to the trouble of lifting them into place and wiring them in.  They all work now.  Nice!

Unfortunately, though, the improved lighting also makes much easier to see how dirty, rundown and out of date everything has gotten.  So I will be spending time over the next few months trying to update the work surfaces and storage so I can take full advantage of my nifty new lighting.  I have some ideas (some original, others, not so much) for improved tool and supply storage that I hope to highlight here over the next few weeks and months.

I also have a couple of spoons (read: “Christmas presents”) to post.  I’ll do that as soon as they are delivered…you can’t give away any secrets at this time of year.

So until I have more that I can post, have a wonderful Holiday Season and…Keep makin’ chips!

Once again with the Stupid Headlines

Some one of these days I'll have some more stuff to show.  But for today just some more foolishness with Newspaper Headlines...I thought they had people to check these things.

Quarter of a million Chinese live on water – Wait a minute! I thought they were all starving because I wasn’t eating my broccoli.

House passes gas tax onto senate – It’s hard to say, maybe that would actually help the situation.

Iraqi head seeks arms – Maybe he should check into the following story…

Headless body in topless bar – …that might save him some effort.

NJ judge to rule on nude beach – Most judges seem to prefer the courtroom.

Ice cream man has assets frozen – That sounds painful.

Local Couple Slain; Police Suspect Homicide – You sure can tell they have been watching CSI.

Squad helps dog bite victim – Man! These guys are mean!

Arson Suspect Held in Massachusetts Fire – Talk about a heated interrogation.

Lawmen from Mexico barbecue guests – I'm all for Law and Order but these guys are kinda over the top!

Local High School Dropouts Cut in Half – OK! OK! I’ll go back to school.  Just put that machete down!

Drunk drivers paid $1,000 in 1984 – Maybe if we stopped paying them they would stop.

Miners refuse to work after death – I know I would.

Ban on Soliciting Dead in Trotwood – I agree.  It would be just mean to keep bugging them.

Typhoon Rips Through Cemetery; Hundreds Dead – Here, I thought that they already were.

Red Tape Holds Up New Bridges – Now do you suppose that red duct tape is better than the conventional gray?

Man Struck By Lightning Faces Battery Charge – You’d think that he had suffered enough already.

New Study of Obesity Looks for Larger Test Group – I expect the larger the better.

Kids Make Nutritious Snacks – Yum!

Chef Throws His Heart into Helping Feed Needy – I hope he doesn’t need it anymore.

Hospitals are Sued by 7 Foot Doctors – Are they sorta like the proverbial 10 Foot Pole?

'Til Next time...Keep makin' Chips

The Aviator

The dictionary defines the word Caricature as: “A picture, description or imitation of a person or thing in which certain characteristics are exaggerated to create a comic or grotesque effect.”   By that definition I guess that this is probably my first true “caricature”.  I have done a lot of “characters” before but they tended to be just characters in comical situations but were free of exaggerated physical proportions.  I think I exaggerated things “a bit” here.

This piece was done in his honor of a friend of mine, who I’ll refer to here as “E”, who just turned 80.  My boss, who actually introduced me to “E” about 10 years ago, asked me a couple of weeks ago if I had given any more thought to what I was going to carve for “E’s” birthday gift. 

If I could get paid for vacant stares, I would be really rolling in the cash right now.  I drew a complete blank at that statement.  I didn’t even remember discussing it.  In fact, I’m not even sure that I knew his birthday was coming up.

Note to self:  I really have start writing this stuff down!

To appreciate the piece, you need to understand a little bit about “E”:  When people refer to a “Renaissance Man” they may not realize it but they are talking about “E”.  An old-school Physicist who didn’t mind getting his hands dirty, there is very little that “E” can’t do or hasn’t done.  He has a wealth of “war stories”; is a great “idea man” to have around and he is also an exceptionally talented machinist.

My boss and I brainstormed for a few minutes and suddenly something that he said just caused this idea to pop into my head…right down to the paint job.  “E” logged many hours as a pilot.  For a time, 30 or so years ago, he moonlighted as a pilot for “The Flying Tigers” Air Freight Company.  He flew all over the world.  So it was not much of a stretch to decide that the carving should include a plane and that it should definitely be “P40-sique” with the traditional Spinach and Sand paint job and shark’s teeth nose art of the American Volunteer Group that served in China during WWII. 

This caricature also has obvious roots in the “Brown Shoe” days of the Army Air Corps and early USAF.  All shoes were black by the time I was in during the 1970s:-)

The story is told that many years ago “E” and his wife moved into a house that had issues with its existing water well.  Most people, myself included, would just groan, dig deep into their pockets and place a call to the local well driller, but not “E”.  He thought about it a bit, scrounged around, found an old VW engine, built a drilling rig around it and just drilled his own well.  Well, doesn’t everybody do that?

Apparently, “E” did have to do some reading on the subject as shown in the photos.  Heck, those overseas flights are long and you gotta stay awake somehow. 

Old time film buffs know that Alfred Hitchcock always made a cameo appearance in all of his movies.  In keeping with that tradition, if you look closely at the back cover you’ll see that apparently, yours truly wrote the book he’s reading:-)  

 I should add that unlike one particular excellent caricature carver (who shall remain nameless here but I will reveal the name if you ask) who can print an entire page of the encyclopedia on a postage stamp-sized object and make it readable, I have to resort to other means to get print that small.  I have discovered that PowerPoint can help out here.  I drew up the book cover at a reasonable size so (I could see what I was doing), grouped it and shrank it down to the correct size.  You have to play around with the font style, size and color but you can produce a pretty good replica of many tiny printed objects.  (All the signs in “Ollie Bord” were done this way.)  While I was at it I copied it a dozen times across the sheet before printing it out.  That way, I figured, if I didn’t have to get it glued on right the first time -- as it turned, I didn’t -- I could just cut out another cover and glued it on.  Sometimes it does pay to think ahead:--)

As a final comment, I turned the base from a chunk of the Wormy Chestnut that “E” gave me back when I got my lathe a few years back.

Happy 80^th Birthday “E”!!!!!

One for the Bench:

Going to school and sitting at a desk doesn't make you an intellect any more than sitting in a garage makes you a car.

‘Til next time…Keep makin’ chips!

Wow! 3000 Hits

I am pleased to announce that the blog received its 3000 hit last night 4:00 this morning.  Talk about Night Owls!

This last thousand only took a bit more than 1/2 the time for the previous 1000.

So thanks, everyone.  Keep coming back.  Let me know if there is something in particular that you 'd like to see here.  I am open for ideas.

'Til Next time...Keep makin' chips!

The (mis) Use of English Today , revisited

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  * Warning ! Curmudgeon Alert *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  * 

Long time readers know that I find it interesting -- OK... "disturbing" -- how often people don’t really say what they think they are saying, witness a couple of my recent posts regarding the unfortunate wording of newspaper headlines. 

One of the things that I have noticed lately in everyday speech and, regrettably, in the media as well, is way that people now tend to choose odd – or at least confusing – sentence constructions when making “negative” statements.  When I hear one of these statements I just want to shout out, “No, No, No, that’s not what you mean!”

For example, on the news this morning one of the field reporters made a comment that went something to the effect:

“Everyone in the car was not injured.”

For the sake of argument, let’s say that there were 4 people in the car.  That makes this statement true if one, two or even three people actually did receive injuries.  Think about it.  As long as there was at least one person in the car who escaped unscathed, "not everyone was injured" so the statement is still correct.  It is only incorrect if all four occupants were hurt. 

I don’t know for certain but I’m betting that what the reporter really meant to say was:

 “No one in the car was injured.”

It is as if people don’t want to start a sentence with a “negative” word, so they hide it at the end. 

I predict that if you pay attention, you will hear a statement like this at least once during the rest of your day and, more likely, multiple times.

One for the Bench

“The best mind-altering drug is truth.”

‘Til next time…keep makin’ chips and protecting the “King’s English” :-)

Frank, a VERY troubled soul

Frank N. Stein

Frank was brought into existence about 5 years ago out of a bunch of Basswood spare parts, just in time for Halloween.  

He generally spends the entire month of October standing guard at the corner of my cubical at work to protect me from all of the undesirable Halloween “goblins, haunts and spooks” that might approach to do me harm.  I appreciate his efforts and so I try very hard not to comment on his personal hygiene, shabby clothes or his "way-over-the-top" body piercings -- Man, that one in the throat has got to hurt! 

When the first of November arrives, he returns to the comfort of the third shelf of curio cabinet in the living room for 11 months of well-deserved rest and relaxation. 

Last year, as I took him home, he confided that the rigors of his yearly, hazardous, seasonal responsibilities are beginning to wear on him.  He really didn’t know how much longer he could handle the stress. 

You might find this as hard to believe as I do, judging by his otherwise cheerful countenance, but spending the entire month of October on alert has subjected him to bouts of severe depression and anxiety.  He says can’t help but feel that he is not quite himself and even claims that it often feels like he is living with someone else’s brain inside this head. I’m sure that he is just exaggerating, but on the way in this morning he even complained about being wracked with repeated “out of body” experiences. 

To his credit and without being asked, Wrigley Gumshoe has generously offered to shoulder part of the responsibility and stand guard with Frank.  When I informed Frank of Wrigley’s most generous offer, I think I saw him smile ever so briefly.

‘Til next time…Keep Makin’ Chips!