Surfboard coffee table

I've only just noticed how long it's been since my last posting, so from this, you can imagine how busy I am, there's lots going on, and only a part of it goes onto here.

So, back in March 2013..

This little beauty has been on the cards for over a year now. I wanted to make a coffee table that would be suitable in a living room and also be able to be taken in a camper and used as a coffee table whilst camping out.

So while things are picking up in the workshop, I do want to make different types of things, so I thought it was time to get on with it, and fit it in between jobs.
Some days, it took over and I just kept on going with it, then I might not touch it for a few days.

The wood, the plank of Mahogany has been around a long time, some from John Boddys Timber, and I picked some Maple up from the timber yard a while ago. I always try to pick up the odd bit of timber when I can.. and this Maple is from the same log as the LA Photo frame, in an earlier posting.

When I thought about the design of this table, I wanted it to be able to sit in a modern room or 50s -60's living room... but with the option of being able to take it camping or keep in a camper van. So the legs had to be removable, hmm tricky.

Finished in April, ready for our Open Studio event at the Ruskin Glass Center. But halfway through the build I was asked if I would mind being filmed and interviewed for a piece for The Ruskin Glass Center.

Here's that interview  Click on here

And here is the table..

Lamp and mug are for scale..

60's inspired legs, with a twist..

I tried different layouts for the stripes before settling on these

Twin Stripes with Pinstripes..

The legs unscrew, each one is numbered to get it back in the right socket..

And the circle inlays are Bay Tree oysters.

Photographed in the Loft Photo studio above my work space, this is where i'll be taking all my photos for a while. The white painted old brickwork of the Webb Corbett factory wall is a great backdrop.

The table is for sale and details can be seen in the Gallery.

I've got some catching up to do so it wont be so long until the next time.

Thanks for looking

All the best

Jamie

Accordion music book rest

A few weeks ago, on a Sunday I had two couples come into the workshop, Lovely people who enjoyed my work. One of the couples bought one of my pieces, which was the first piece sold from the new workshop.

The other couple came back a few weeks later and discussed them commissioning a piece.

This is about that piece, a stand similar to one I have in the gallery area.

This one was made for Lynn 15 years ago,

to fit our colour scheme and still looks fresh today.

So we discussed the timber, because they have a Cherry dining suite it wasn't hard to make that decision.  Then sizes, a bit wider 255 mm and the base part only has to hold slim books, so down to 25 mm. I put all this information onto the inside of a job card, how much I thought it would cost and their top line.

So the piece will be American Cherry, the hinged part in Cherry and I'll probably use some of my Ebony stock for the hinge pin.

After cutting the initial shape and marking out, I cut the holes out..

then grooved the back to take the stand

Here's the face, with holes cut, but not cut to height yet.

Next to it the stand part marked out ready to cut out the hinge.. 

The temporary hinge pin is a drill bit, fun cutting the hinge.. 

but getting it to stay to the correct angle takes a bit of time

I cut the angle before adding the step and front on, but I had to get the angle of the rear support and the face both working together..

Dry fitting the step and the front, note the rear support is fixed in place now..

and I did use Ebony for the pin..only because it was in my stock of small parts made

cleaning up the excess glue..

Completed after several coats of Oil..

Sitting on my surf board coffee table.

Rear view.. I like it in American Cherry

and a close up of that hinge..

I hope Carolyn enjoys it as much as did making it. Apologies for the quality of the last three pictures, I hadn't taken any of the stand before it was picked up, so had to rush to get some completed images..

Your comments are welcome.. on this and other work on this site.

All the best

Jamie

Wollaston Fringe Festival..review

Yes I was there...

At the inaugural festival..the first one that started it all...

What  a wonderful way to spend a Sunday. I was asked quite a while ago now, if I would bring along some of my work to this event, for artists, makers and artisans to show what is made within a ten minute walk from where we were, Grahams Place, High Street, Wollaston. Some in smart workshops, others in sheds and front rooms, all sorts of people, making all kinds of things.

So when I was asked I though yeah okay, why not. I'll try anything once. It was free for me to get a pitch, no cost what so ever. And the few days before were cold, very cold and lots of snow...

On the morning I got to my workshop around 9am, and started carrying things into the doorway to get them ready to go. I couldn't find my black cloth that I use over tables to make everything stand out better, and searched high and low, but no luck. Anyhow I was ready and so was Vic Bamforth, the glass artist down the corridor from me, and we left at the same time.

To the show, oh yeah, about 3 minutes in the car. Then out again, there was still snow on the ground and all over the car park, but it wasn't too bad. Then Vic and I walked into the marquee to see what was going on and where we were. For Vic there was table set up, I grabbed a table and started to set up not far from the doorway, where I was asked to pitch.. (next time if it's cold... a bit closer to the heating). By the way, the heating wasn't on at first, but once the problem was solved, it was on by opening time 12:00 midday. And there was a trickle of people coming in, and it was pretty good, more people came in and then the live entertainment started and the place started to fill up, it was going really well..

Twelve till five were the official opening times, and the people just kept coming in having a wonder round, buy the odd thing like cakes, then watch Merlyn Farwell blowing some glass on The Stourbridge Lion.

This was a Glory hole and Lehr on a carriage that looked wonderful and worked great, he just sat on his seat and blew glass for hours, entertaining folk as they stopped by.

Here's Vic Bamforth, going through the process of how he makes his glass pieces with a visitor,
see those cakes in the foreground, they all sold out..

Not sure who this guy is, but he sounded great.
(if you know who he is, let me know and i'll put his name here)

and Hula Hooping, lots of it, kept people warm, and prizes were given out...

I took a few pieces and sold a couple of these cutting boards.

These girls were brilliant...

(if you know who they are, let me know and i'll put there name up here)

These guys were really good, I recognised a couple of tunes...

must be my age..

(if you know who they are, let me know and i'll put there name up here)

A good day, met lots of people from the area. There were others to that were selling pictures, photographs framed and others collecting for charity events.

Thanks to Bob Teal and Sam

I look forward to the next one..wherever it is..

all the best

Jamie

LA Photo frame..Maple and Ebony

Sue Parry, one of the glass artists in the centre, stopped by a couple of weeks ago and asked if she could commission a photo frame.

"The only thing is" she says "I need to take it to LA next Wednesday"

Out comes a blank sheet of paper and we're off...designing the frame that's going to be flying through the sky over the pond, before the finish has had plenty of time to cure...

Sue and I are going through all sorts.. then I'll be back in a minute. In she walks with her laptop, on Flickr going through some photos of the furniture and home of the person who will be receiving the frame... brilliant, this really tells me a lot about this guy, what he likes and dislikes...

So back to the drawing board, and it's then I say," why don't I just make it like the inside of my cabinet door, I think that would suit.."

 

So Here's the Sycamore, Maple & Ebony Cabinet

 

 

and this is the inside of the door shape..

 

 

 

Here's the lock mechanism and the corner 'key's in Ebony

 

 

Back to the drawing board, within minutes we've sorted the design, and now we're onto the sizing.

Out comes the cardboard, I cut up the card to the size of the photo, and start drawing around it until Sue's happy. "There we go, done".

Not quite, the Maple is only at 14% moisture. So I rough cut the Maple and took it home for a couple of days. Sitting on top of the wardrobe, then after each time I worked it, it was back home in the warmth easily down to 8-9 % before it was jointed.

 

This is the mock up on the wall..

 

 

Patterns and Maple cut...

 

 

The inside edges were cleaned up before assembly,

and the outside were done after the frame was dry...

 

 

Here's one joint from behind.. showing the kidney plate too..

 

 

It really started moving along now, I fitted the Ebony keys, rebated the back to take the glass, fitted some mount board to the photograph and some board for the back. Note the use of the kidney plates to hold all of the parts into the rebate. I like to use a hole for the method of hanging, that way the frame will sit tight against a wall, and I stamped the back board.

 

 

But..before I fitted the back board..

 

 

I placed one of my cards, dated and signed.

 

I gave Sue a nail and another card, folded in my tea stained recycled paper envelope..

It's just one of those things I do...saves paper and I like the stained look that a tea bag leaves

( I know...)

 

 

    

 

Showing the end and corners..

 

 

Done...

 

Sue was over the moon with it..and it jetted off to Los Angeles the next day.

 

 

All the best

 

Jamie

Chopping Boards..

Some things can start with a simple move around of some shelves..

I had put some new lighting in the Gallery part of my workshop, and it's looking pretty good, but in doing this the shelves needed dusting off, so I set about dusting, and in moving things around, found that I had a chopping board under a Wedding Archive box...I just hadn't picked up on it being under there..

Later that week, in walks Wendy, and straight away says she likes the Oak board on the shelf. When I tell her that it is all finished by hand, as in planed all round, then I use a scraper to finish the surface and corners.

Then after oiling with Mineral oil, I stamp my 'mark' in the middle of both ends and finally I burnish the corners and edges with a small block of the same timber, this gives a wonderful natural shine to the surface..

No sandpaper...at all..

It takes a bit longer by hand, but worth the effort and you can see it..

So it went. Number 1 gone

And it was time to make some more out of piece's of Beech and Oak worktop ends, sink cut-outs and hob cut-outs hanging around the workshop since I moved in.

Each board is a different size and while I have this stock I'll keep track of the sizes and they'll go through my books with a number.

So on Thursday, I'm working with Chris one of the students, and I'm showing him how to use the cabinet scraper, in walk a couple of ladies, Pat and Patricia, and before we know what's happened, Pat want's one of the boards, the one we're working on.. After a few minutes we have to prepare this board for sale, and go through the above process to complete it.

Wonderful.. It's great when people 'get' what it is you do...

Oak & Beech chopping boards.

Different sizes every time so I don't waste any wood, no two the same..

Have a look in the

 Gallery Items for sale

Come and have a look and enjoy seeing what I get up to in my workshop.

Every day is a different day.

All the best

Jamie

One for Cat lovers...

Based at the Ruskin Glass Centre, means that there is always something going on, and leaving the doors open means that anyone can walk in at any time. I'm okay with this, if I need to do some machining on the bandsaw for example, then I just shut the door and if I'm making lots of noise I'll turn the key. Do whatever needs doing then unlock the doors afterwards. That way people in the centre don't hear my loud machinery, and I get dedicated, safe time on the machines.

I'm going to work out some kind of card system to put in the windows, This should make it easier for the communication between myself and a visitor.

Anyhow, over the last few weeks I've had a number of visitors, who have made some fused glass in a workshop here at the Glass Centre, and was after some wooden blocks to stand the pieces in, quite a straight forward job. But one that a larger company probably wouldn't bother with..

I don't mind doing them, it helps them out and I make use of some small piece's of timber..

 

A lovely piece of glass work, with two siple 'feet' made in Beech to go with the wood in her kitchen.

Diane's going to oil these...

 

 

And another block for this piece

 

 

I'll put these and some more on the miscellaneous page.

 

All the best

 

Jamie

 

 

First evening class piece finished..

When Rebbecca had finished her first piece of stained glass, the only thing it needed was a frame...

She came to my workshop with a few ideas, but not really sure which one would suit the piece, it was then that I thought that if she came onto my evening class, we could work out the design as she made it, to ensure she got exactly what she wanted.

And tonight, Rebbecca has finished her Pine wood frame, made for the stained glass that she made in another class at Ruskin Glass Centre, with Paul Floyd.

Then what finish? the black stain originally wanted? or not...

Well, we sampled the Black Stain, and tried out some Oil, Rebbecca has taken the samples home and is going to live with it for a while, before comiting..

I think it looks great natural.

All the best

Jamie