Art Allstate

This Friday and Saturday Liesl and I will be working at The Worcester Art Museum as artist/mentors at the 25th art all-state.  Art All-state is a collaborative art project involving junior high school students throughout Massachusetts.  The students are all top artist in their own right and have been juried into the event.
Artist/mentors work with groups of eighteen students as facilitators and help them create awesome art installation projects.

Snow Farm Seating

I found these awesome chairs and benches at Snow farm.

This beautiful wrought iron love seat was at the back of the lamp work studio.  This is a design very reminiscent of the designer Harry Bertoia.  I love how the landscape took over the seat. 

Behind the kitchen I found this beautiful modern rocker love seat.  The last chair is a chair made by a student in the rustic furniture class held that week.  Mark Ragonese is a great rustic furniture maker.  This chair is one of the pieces his student made in the week long class.



More Snow Farm

Here's a few more inages of the grounds, sculpture and the glass studio Snow Farm.



Snow Farm

This past long weekend Liesl taught at Snowfarm.  Snowfarm is a beautiful multi media craft school located in the Berkshires, in Williamsburg, MA.  I had the privilege of spending two summers there.  One as a woodworking instructor and the other as an assistant director for the summer program.  It's been over ten years since I was last there. It was nice to visit the school again, the grounds are beautiful.

Here are a few random images.  Some of the wood studio, some of the grounds, some of sculptures, seating, etc.  If you're near the area you must stop in.  You'll love it.

Road Side Attraction

I'm always on the look out for used materials that I can incorporate into my work.

A few weeks ago Liesl and I were driving and saw this old table on the road side with a sign on it that read

 " Free"

The table is a great table from the fifties/sixties, right up my alley.  The table top was in bad shape but I brought it home anyway and took it a part.  The legs are fantastic, I'll definitely be able to use them in a project.  I also was able to salvage all of the hardware from it, corner blocks, latches, catches, etc.  A great find'.  You have to be savvy in tough times.

Bread Side Story

Yesterday I completed another chrome Bread -Side table.  This one is going to Virginia.  My friend Jeff Ellis supplied the box.  He is giving this to his friends in Virginia.

Odds and Sods

I'm working on a lot of different projects right now.

Today was a busy day in the studio.  I prepped and glued up stock for a table top.  I milled stock for table legs and cut tapers on the legs.  I made aprons and cut tenons on the aprons.  I cut leg parts for a wine box table.  I cut the notches in the legs for the table and I made the cleats for the top. I also cut plywood for the bottoms of my bread side tables.  I'm using plexi glass for the tops of the wine box table.  The plexi is a lot cheaper. It is a prototype after all.

Tomorrow I'm going to torch the edges to make them clear. 

I use a home made jig to cut the tapers on the legs.  It's a simple piece of plywood cut to the shpae of the taper and screwed to a plywood base.  A couple of toggle clamps is all you need.  It works well 

I always cut my tenons on the table saw using a set of stack dado blades and a false fence attached to the regular saw fence.  With a single set up I can cut the shoulders and cheeks of the tenons without moving the fence.  It makes very accurate tenons.

Brooklyn Art Library

Yesterday I received notice from the Brooklyn Art Library that my Sketch Book Project was cataloged into the library's system.  If you happen to be in Brooklyn please visit the library and check out the book, the call number is 182.25-4

Recaptured Originals

The studio is getting busy.  In two weeks a new gallery is opening in Cranston, RI specializing in re-purposed objects.  I have been invited to show my work with the potential of having my work be part of their inventory.  I have a meeting next week.  It's nice that my re-purposed furniture might have a home.

The gallery/store is called 'Recaptured Originals'.  Cranston is only 15 minutes south of Providence so please visit if near by. 

Red or white: Continued

I was busy outside most of the day but I did have a chance to add a pine and walnut wine glass hanger onto the bottom of the table.  It looks really nice.  I finished the table with a coat of urethane and will add a coat of wax.  I plan on attaching a glass top to the table to finish it off.  The glass will be suspended two inches above the box so the details and graphics on the wine box are visible.

Red or white?

My local liquor store gave me three wine boxes.  They're awesome.  I had planned to make some tables out of them. Today I started working on one.  I attached some taper legs by cutting a notch into them and gluing them to the box and then I used copper roofing nails to act as pegs and to add some detail.  I used a metal punch and hammer to add some texture to the nails.  I beveled and carved the top of the legs. I'm going to attacheda  hanger to the bottom of the box to hold a couple of wine glasses.  I'm going to add a glass top to the table.  I'm using a urethane to add a little amber color to the table which works nicely with the pine and the copper

 

Table for four

Today I received a commission to make a picnic table for four. 

The client wanted something different and unique.  The table will be like the table for two I made a few years ago only larger with four independent seats.

The table looks light but with the double 1x4 frame it's very sturdy.

CBG No# 7

Today I put the finishing touches on cigar box guitar number seven.

I have three more to make for the Art All State exhibition at the Worcester Art Museum on June 1st.

These guitars are always fun to make'

Episode Nine: Toy Box

We are getting ready to shoot episode nine of " The Garage" next week.

The project for the episode will be a toy box.  I made this toy box for Quinn two years ago as a Christmas gift.  The box can easily be painted to act as a toy box or a blanket box. Jeff and I received some great news from Charter Communications.  They have put the show 'On Demand" so anyone who has Charter cable can watch it'   Go to 'on demand' click on ' community interest' and play the show.

CBG'S The Epic

I'm in the process of making and finishing five cigar box guitars for an exhibition at the Worcester Art Museum. The exhibition is part of the art Allstate event happening om June 1st and 2nd at the museum.

I'll have five guitars there as well as a video loop that will show me making one.  Art Allstate is a great event.  To learn more about it and the museum go to http://www.worcesterart.org/

Rock-a-Bye

Last evening I was working on an antique doll cradle.

One of the rockers needed to be replaced, painted and made to look aged.

I used 3/8 " Baltic birch plywood for the rocker.  I used the old rocker as a template and cut the new one out using my scroll saw.  I sanded and filed it to final shape.  I used a Benjamin Moore sample paint for the rocker, burnished it with steel wool and distressed it lightly with a hammer and a set of keys to give it an aged look.  I then put on a coat of Johnson's paste wax and rubbed it out to add  patina.  It worked really well.  I'm happy with the way it looks 

Worcester Steps

Today I went to Worcester, MA to take pictures and measure some front steps for a potential client.  They want me to replace the steps and railings.  I'll price the job and give them a quote and hopefully I'll get the commission. It's not fine woodworking but it helps pay the bills

 I'll keep you posted