Simple Yet Deceiving

Hooray...Good Job...Go Team.  When the red knob is cranked the hands will clap and smiles ensue.   This was one of the mechanisms that I had trouble understanding and wanted to conquer while at Arrowmont.  Once again my teacher was able to give guidance and I was off and running.   I started with a solid block and cut out a rectangle by drilling holes in each corner and using the scroll saw to sever from hole to hole.  As I have stated, I do not like making boxes because they call for precision, and of this I am lacking. It will not replace the need for making boxes in the future but for this application it was perfect.  I drilled 2 holes through the top crossbar and 1 hole straight across in each sidebar. Using wire, surprise... surprise, I ran a piece through the side holes and bent it so it will move in a circular motion when cranked.  To make the hands move I had to feed the wire through the top holes, cross them, and loosely connect them to the cross wire.  Because the wires are crossed, the circular motion makes the loose connections move across the wire which in turns makes the hands open and close.  A bit confusing but when seen it is an Ahhh moment.

I highly suggest watching Blair Summerville: Lost and Found - Worlds Largest Collection of Rustic Automata on YouTube.  It is quite incredible what he makes out of found items.  This is where I caught a glimpse of this piece and the idea for the mermaid from my last blog.

Yesterday was my first try at home made apple cider.  Using our crockpot, 10 apples, one orange, cinnamon, sugar and cloves, I made the house smell terrific.  Although the juice came out a bit weak...the recipe said to cover the apples, which float, so therefore I kept adding water...I believe with the addition of more spices it may be salvageable.  I shall be testing it out shortly.

On this rainy evening I am off to a comfort meal of ham slices with mac and cheese.  Can't get much better than that.
Peace,
Hilari

A Different Perspective

As I stated in a previous blog, there are times that the process just flows and all goes according to plan.  The pieces are cut straight, the fit is perfect and the motion is smooth.  (See X-Box Widow post)  This was not the way in this case.  I came across a bag of nice wood cuts at a yard sale, and having a particular project in mind I handed over my three dollars. After using the allotted number for the initial use, I had a few of these 2 x 3 inch blocks to play with.  The first manipulation, cutting the openings inside the rectangle, worked like a charm. After that, all was a time consuming mess.  My first thought was to have the movement wire driven.  The wire worked wonderfully for the piece in my last blog.  I drilled tiny holes in the side walls and the top for the wire to move through easily and formed the wire to make the balloon spin.  All was going so well.  I turned the crank and nothing, no spinning or movement at all. The wire was not able to move through the hole due to it jamming up. Ok, simple solution, just drill a slightly bigger hole in the top.  After more adjustments, I realized that the movement made by the wire manipulation was not going to work. Not just needs more time to figure out but the actual wrong type of motor, so to speak. Wire put side, I grabbed1/8 and 1/2 inch dowels.  More adjusting and now : spin, jam up, slightly spin, hop a bit, jam up again. Gggrrrr!!! Last ditch effort is to go up in size again from 1/8 to 1/4 with drill bits and dowel. This was the answer to the problem that plagued me for many hours. She is still not as smooth as others but she has taken all I have to give her. 

We just returned from the Angel Tree outside of Charleston, S.C. for a wedding this weekend and the bride asked me to design her wedding Thank You gifts.  This is why the wooden blocks were originally purchased. I had the glass vials in my stash, also from a yard sale, so with these, the blocks, a drill press, sandpaper, and a tree stamp from ETSY, these bud vases came to be.  Thank goodness she did not want girls spinning balloons.

Before we left, Amazon dropped off a glass orb to play with during our weekend travel. It creates a fisheye effect while holding it in front of the cellphone lens. I have to say there was a bit of a learning curve but once I got the feel for what I thought the outcome was going to be it was fun to play with. It was by my side all weekend and I got some interesting shots. I even captured the bride and groom with a bit of help from the bride's son. It was a lovely weekend and a great pleasure to share all our love with BFF and her new husband.

I am now off to snuggle in bed and watch a Hallmark movie...She is not interested in him, He likes her, She now likes him too, there is some dissention, neither likes each other, and then in the end all is right between them. Sometimes mindless tv is what is called for to end the day. May you find your true Hallmark love, if you haven't already. Hilari

From Beginning to End

I was able to return my happy place, Arrowmont School of Arts and Craft, a couple of weeks ago and needless to say I was Happy.  My mornings started with a brisk walk through the little town of Gatlinburg Tennessee, where the school is located (also where I was raised, my old stomping grounds).  One can only call this town sleepy in the mornings because due to it's proximity to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park it has grown into a tourist destination.  Once the visitors are up and fed they fill the sidewalks and streets, which is why I like the peacefulness of the morning.  It is a beautiful walk up the street looking at the mountains and heading back to the school by the river.  The school is located just off the busy strip but the entrance must be enchanted because the second your feet come onto the property you are transported.  There are no street sounds and you feel surrounded by the nature of the area, woodsy and artistic. As I said, my happy place.

My chosen field of study is wood manipulation, usually in the form of automata.  I have taken classes in different fields and loved them, but the smell of wood and watching the projects come to life fills my heart.  This piece started with a leftover cut of wood from the Carving Kitchen Tools class next door.  Both shops , woodworking and wood turning, share a common work space containing the bigger electric tools, band saws, drill presses, etc.  I saw this lovely form cut into the discarded block, asked to make sure it was trash and off to my wire I went.  When cranked Mr. Fisherman fights his big catch while the other fish bob up and down swimming safely away.  When completed, I found the first manipulator of the wood and she showed me her beautiful knife (I had thought spoon) which she had cut, carved, and finished.  Block of wood from beginning to end.

In the few moments of spare time, I would corner the teacher with a video or picture of a movement  that I could not figure out. He was very helpful and giving of his time with all my questions.   With his insight, I was able to create this piece.  I had pondered over it's movements for a good while and I could not mentally see how to make the spiral do what I thought it was supposed to do.  Come to find out, it is nothing more than support and does not move at all.  The mechanism consists of the wire connected to the wheel and it moves through, as opposed to, moving with the spiral.  Once this was thought out, the mermaid , covered with lovely handmade marbled paper (thanks again wonderful supply store), was moving along swimmingly.  Even though the movement is simple, learning how the parts work together will open up new doors for creating the pieces that wake me up in the night.

It is a lovely Sunday afternoon.  Hope yours is lovely as well.
Hilari


#arrowmont #craftexperience

Under Over...Over Under

Each year I have to start thinking about Christmas a bit early because I have a handful of cousins that receive handmade items as gifts.  At first this was easy because there was so much of the art/craft world that I had not explored.  Gift giving gave me the wonderful excuse to play, expand my knowledge and buy all the new and exciting gadgets.  As the years have passed I have honed my skills and found what works for me, as well as paths never to be wandered again. ( I keep the gadgets because I have been able to use many in the most unconventional ways) Each year gets a little harder to be fresh in my gift giving so I have to get my creative juices flowing. 

 After a couple of lopsided and floppy attempts I am on my way to making woven coasters, each recipient will get a set of 4.  Yep, I got to purchase a lap loom and thanks to a store coupon it was under $15.00, score! (who knows what else I will be able to concoct with this)  With my crochet background I have a love for and a working knowledge of yarns so I picked out some variegated medium weight acrylic/cotton mix balls.  Variegated let me know the colors would work together and I did not have a great investment in multiple yarns in case this craft was a flop (like the crochet Christmas stockings).  I separated and balled the different colors because if used straight from the original ball I would only get one color per coaster.  This has turned out to be a nice distraction from my normal creating and it fills the criteria for gifts...east to ship, cost efficient, utilitarian ( some years not so much) and does not over tax me to make.  One year I was given family heirloom crochet squares and I took it upon my self to tat them together into blankets and gave them to the descendants for Christmas. They were much appreciated but that was the year I learned about being over taxed, never again. So I will spend my evenings under/over...over/under for the next few weeks and have that part of Christmas under my belt. Whoo!

Our family is expanding with the arrival of our niece Haprer and our way of helping out is getting to play with her brother Grant, 18 months.  Last weekend was my first diaper change in over 20 years and I had to work to get it on correctly but he was patient and we giggled through the process.  He has been a joy to watch as he thinks about and manipulates items in his path.  Sometimes we need a different point of view to help open up our world.  The great thing is he can say juice and Os (Cheerios) so I know he won't dehydrate or starve to death under our watch.

Enjoy whatever the day brings!!
Hilari

X-box Widow

The Brothers Jack

Spring is in the air, at least that is what the calendar says.  I believe we have had all the winters...dogwood, blackberry, redbud, locust... blow through bringing their cold temperatures and dreary days.  Don't get me wrong, I really like a good dreary day, getting to stay snuggled up inside with a warm fire and an idea to keep me engaged, but we have had our fair share and I am ready for some sunshine.  With spring it becomes a challenge to keep up with the neighbors and their bountiful yards due to the fact that my thumb is not green, not in the least. We mow and keep up with the trimming so we are presentable but anything we get to grow is a delight.  I have one small patch that comes up this time of year and I eagerly wait for the green to peek out from the dirt.  It has trilliums, some tall green leaf things, a patch of yellow flower somethings, and my favorite Jack-in-the-Pulpit.  This year we had Jacks 2 pop up and I am thrilled.  Soon it will be time to plant zinnia seeds and hope for the best.

 Apparently Husband was a very good boy last year and Santa brought him an X-box 1 for Christmas.  He enjoys playing... a lot... and apparently so do his friends, including our son who lives out of town, which is nice that they can interact but...I have become what I call an X-box widow.  Husband laughs and agrees. At least he is home and not running out and about, and I have a quite a bit more time to spend in the workshop.  This little rocker is a result of that extra time.  She was one of those quick and easy projects that does not come along very often.  The curve cut is nice and smooth and when resting it is almost dead center.  The weight distribution is spot on so the rocking motion is effortless. The tricky part was the basket the girl is holding due to it wanting to slip out of shape each time another rib was attached but with a little patience and some man handling it came into it's own.  When the piece is tipped the basket swings and the apples wiggle about.  I will have to keep this one in mind the next time I am struggling with an idea (like the ones that are sitting unfinished on the workbench) and know that every once in a while a project can be a simple pleasure to make.

The X-box is on and the workshop is calling.  With no particular direction pulling me, I will just see where inspiration leads.  I have one project that has to have the hands epoxied to wire that is fitted through holes in a box...hum...not exactly sure the next step in this process.  Or another unfinished workbench dweller consists of parts that, at some point, will be a man carrying a stack of wobbly books.  I have the wooden books carved and have played with the sway but I am not happy with it just yet.  Those are both viable options or I may just see where the sawdust takes me.

Side note*  I am thrilled to announce that there are 3 Jacks in my tiny woodland landscape. This is a first, Whooo!

Peace,
Hilari

Pizazz and Following Directions

While I love the holidays with the joy of family and friends, ours extended into January and this was our first weekend that did involve having to clean the house for said joy.  I did not care what state the house was in, and really how dirty could it be anyway, so I took time to play.  I spent Saturday morning at KBAG and this book was the result.  We chose a book, cut out the innards, cut the spine, sewed new signatures and voila a new journal to be filled with new ideas. Voila is a bit of an overstatement because at least 3 out of the 7 of us, me included, cut our spines wrong and had to reevaluate our process.  To add interest I crocheted an inner lining.  I liked the way it looked, how soft the yarn felt but I will have to add a closure due to the thickness.  Truth be told I did not read the instructions properly ( see below).  I thought it was going to be a simple sewn book and I wanted it to have a little pizazz which was the reason for the crocheting and ultimately the improper fit.  After all that I was thrilled to have a finished project.  That does not happen often for me in the gatherings.  It was a fun morning being with creative people, even if my partner in crime (we sit in the back and giggle...a lot...hence the reason for incomplete projects) was not there.   

My afternoon and Sunday were wrapped around a mini mobile that has 6 books which are 1/2 inch tall.  The mobile itself is 7 inches and stands 11 inches with the base. It is sturdy but looks very delicate as it spins and glides around.  The book covers came from a site that deals with miniature houses.  The signature pages, which came from an old dictionary, were sewn together in sets of three and glued into the covers. Sewing thread and my trusty wire were used to create the actual mobile.   The base is some cool rusty spring thing I found somewhere and have had for sometime waiting for the right use and this was it.

I must admit that I have an addiction.  I have had it for so time now and do not believe it will abate any time soon.  I love to acquire craft/art books.  Oh, the possibilities the beautiful pictures and written instructions allow one to explore.  I will say that I am much more about the pictures because I have a hard time following written directions.  The words get jumbled up and I have to really get involved to follow the process. Just ask Husband about the countless time I have screwed up dinner following recipes. (I have learned to cook by taste and we have eaten much better because of it) This mobile is a direct outcome of this.  Coupon = new book, yea, and in said book was a project using old book parts to make a hanging bird.  To me this sounded very confusing so I looked at the intriguing photos and came up with my own lovely bird which I turned into 3 and hung as a mobile.  The idea of the mobile was born and the next logical step was to make one with tiny books, of course.  I am going to teach my version of the bird mobile in our KBAG meeting next month.  It will be fun to see the colors and patterns chosen by each to make their birds come to life. 

It is dreaded tax time in our house so off I go to gather and conquer. Be sure to stop and watch the clouds pass by every once on a while.

Peace,

Hilari