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TTIT
12th November 2008, 08:40 PM
Pics first, explanation once you've had a sticky.:;

TTIT
12th November 2008, 08:42 PM
This piece started out purely as a hollowing exercise to give my BIL a shot at the Proforme. When I roughed down the outside it was only to get it to maximum diameter of timber - shape wasn't involved at all - obviously:o Hollowed to about 10mm or so wall thickness, it then bounced around the shed for over a year until I needed something to test my laser-gauge with the '' hollowing support. I then took the walls to 3 to 4mm to prove the laser system, still with out worrying about the shape. Had no intention of doing anything else with it until it started whispering at me "c'mon dude - ya reckon ya' can fix anything - fix me - gimme a makeover". So who am I to knock back a challenge.:U
What I wanted to do was take peoples attention away from the crappy shape. Considered cutting the top off and calling it a 'calabash' but in Orstraylyun that translates to 'crappy shape' anyway. Thought about bands and rim textures and so on but I figured they might actually make the shape look worse. Then I wondered if drawing attention directly to the problem area would help disguise it. :shrug:

So I want to know.....
A. Do you agree the original shape was crappy?
B. Do you think the 'worms' worked?
C. Is the pyrography at the overlaps too much?
D. How would you have 'hidden' the shape?

Be brutal people :~ - I can handle it (in my best septic accent!)

thefixer
12th November 2008, 09:30 PM
G'day TTIT

Love the shape after the event, love the design and love the intrigue. Don't like the pyrography, bit of an overkill methinks. Kid of detracts from the craftsmanship and skill, both of of which you far too much of.

Cheers
Shorty

orificiam
12th November 2008, 09:45 PM
Same here TTIT.I like it better without pyrography.I love the design.cheers Tony.:cool:

joe greiner
12th November 2008, 10:26 PM
A: No.
B: Yes.
C: Yes.
D: Dashed if I know.

I think you could have stopped at the carving. Very cool either way, though.:2tsup:

Joe

Claw Hama
12th November 2008, 10:34 PM
Inclined to agree with Joe, the pyro is ok but the plane carving I think was better.

powderpost
12th November 2008, 10:38 PM
G'day Vern,
Yep, the shape is "crappy", but remember it was not pre-designed, but simply "grew". In my opinion, the carved holes are too circular. If they were more tear drop shape, ie more pointed towards the bottom, the profile may have been a bit more concealed. May still work if the circular bottom to the carvings be elongated towards the bottom of the bowl???
The fullness of the bottom would be better about one third of the total height and the narrowness of the neck, two thirds the height from the bottom. Just my opinion.
Still a good effort to achieve 3 -4 mm wall thickness.
Jim

Robomanic
12th November 2008, 10:53 PM
Hey TTIT,

Nice work - it is a real art to asses how a project is going and adjust accordingly. Something we all aspire to really. I do like the carving over the form, but i think the pyrography makes the carving lines very heavy.

To hide the shape (which is not terrible btw) i would suggest having more carving around the base. I think the carving at the top made it look more bottom heavy. If the eye could follow the carvings up and down, the form behind it would become secondary and might maintain balance. In this case you would need to make some solid sketches around the base and see how it actually looks.

What do you think?

Manuka Jock
12th November 2008, 11:08 PM
TTIT,
I reckon , scrap the pyro , and finish the carving at the top .
By that I mean , complete the Knotwork .
Return the threads back up and into the weave . Knotwork , and especially Celtic Knotwork , very rarely , if ever , has loose ends .
I like the shape and proportion as is , it has an earthenware beaker look about it :2tsup:

Harry72
12th November 2008, 11:11 PM
Starting with the worms area a bit thicker would have given it more natural/organic look, you'd have to work down the areas inbetween the worms too blend in the bottom half so the worms would stand out proud.

TTIT
12th November 2008, 11:21 PM
Thanks for the input everyone :2tsup: As soon as I started the pyrography I suspected I wasn't going to get the look I was after. Wanted that aged-look like really old carvings where all the nooks and crannies are dark and dirty. Any idea how you get that look in a hurry???????


....... In my opinion, the carved holes are too circular. If they were more tear drop shape, ie more pointed towards the bottom, the profile may have been a bit more concealed. May still work if the circular bottom to the carvings be elongated towards the bottom of the bowl???



...... To hide the shape (which is not terrible btw) i would suggest having more carving around the base. I think the carving at the top made it look more bottom heavy................
What do you think?

I reckon you both might be onto something there - I've got it in my mitt right now and I'm thinking about extending the cut-outs downwards like negatives of the worms - could work!:;

Ed Reiss
13th November 2008, 12:38 AM
Thanks for the input everyone :2tsup: As soon as I started the pyrography I suspected I wasn't going to get the look I was after. Wanted that aged-look like really old carvings where all the nooks and crannies are dark and dirty. Any idea how you get that look in a hurry???????



Shoot the "nooks & crannies" spots with black paint . Let the paint flash dry for about 15 minutes, then shoot over the black very lightly with brown paint, let dry for another 15 minutes, then follow with a very, very light dusting of off-white spray paint.
After the whole affair has dried, sand the high areas around the "nooks & crannies" ....this should give you the desired effect:2tsup:

Paul39
13th November 2008, 03:56 AM
I think without the pyrography it is not strong enough of an image, with the pyro too much.

I think what Ed Suggests will do what you had in mind. I would seal the whole piece with comething clear before painting so the paint doesn't bleed into the grain.

I like the loose tails

Overall I like it.

Paul

Cliff Rogers
13th November 2008, 03:17 PM
Don't sit it on a high shelf, it looks better when viewed from slightly above. (lower than eye height)

thefixer
13th November 2008, 10:02 PM
Don't sit it on a high shelf, it looks better when viewed from slightly above. (lower than eye height)


That would be on the floor for me.:p the name says it all:D

Cheers
Shorty

tea lady
13th November 2008, 10:20 PM
Thanks for the input everyone :2tsup: As soon as I started the pyrography I suspected I wasn't going to get the look I was after. Wanted that aged-look like really old carvings where all the nooks and crannies are dark and dirty. Any idea how you get that look in a hurry??????? Woodwould would know. He is the expert here.:cool:


For my two cants worth....I think the "worms" need to be a bit more varied in width and have a bit more tension in the curves. They don't look like natural growths. :shrug: Its a bit to thin to make the tendrils look like they are on top of the form isn't it?:doh:

TTIT
13th November 2008, 11:20 PM
Don't sit it on a high shelf, it looks better when viewed from slightly above. (lower than eye height)

That would be on the floor for me.:p the name says it all:D
Cheers
ShortyThat's alright! - I thought he meant I should bury it!!!:U


....... a bit more tension in the curves. ...........:C Please explain?!?!? (as one of our popular compatriots once said :B)

Skew ChiDAMN!!
13th November 2008, 11:32 PM
I've been AWOL for a few days and am currently using a "strange" computer...
and I gotta ask is there actually a pic attached to the first post? :?

Can't see any sign that there's an image or attachment, but have no problems seeing 'em in other threads. :~

(It's not April already, is it? I thought 'twas still only a quarter to summer!)

TTIT
13th November 2008, 11:41 PM
I've been AWOL for a few days and am currently using a "strange" computer...
and I gotta ask is there actually a pic attached to the first post? :?

Can't see any sign that there's an image or attachment, but have no problems seeing 'em in other threads. :~

(It's not April already, is it? I thought 'twas still only a quarter to summer!)6 pics to be precise - burn that strange computer - or log off and then back on - whichever sounds more fun!:U

Skew ChiDAMN!!
14th November 2008, 12:26 AM
As soon as I started the pyrography I suspected I wasn't going to get the look I was after.

I think your problem is more a case of too much pyrography for one style, not enough for the other. I think that if you drew in a wide shadow pattern(perhaps in a hatched or scaled pattern) not in the "worms" but in the bowl form, - I've actually got the picture in my head but not the words to describe it :rolleyes: - then the pyrography work wouldn't looks so... ummm... "out of place."


Wanted that aged-look like really old carvings where all the nooks and crannies are dark and dirty. Any idea how you get that look in a hurry???????

Brew a strong, billy of tea... a "leave the leaves in until it reaches room temperature" type strong. Wet the wood down with water, then brush on the tea, mainly in the cracks'n'crannies. Give it a few minutes, then using a lightly dampened cloth/sponge wipe off the areas you don't want strongly stained. Repeat until it has the "age" you want.

Works better with some timbers than others. For the "others" a bit of food-dye can be used instead of tea. :)

Manuka Jock
14th November 2008, 08:18 AM
As soon as I started the pyrography I suspected I wasn't going to get the look I was after. Wanted that aged-look like really old carvings where all the nooks and crannies are dark and dirty. Any idea how you get that look in a hurry???????

TTIT
There is an old Celtic surface finish called brambling .
So called because it resembles the surface of the bramble berries , raspberry and blackberry .
Leather engravers have a punch tool that does this
A nail punch of the appropriate size can substitute , tho the job takes longer.

Brambling first , then Skew's tea-stain may give the 'nooks and crannies dark and dirty' antique look you're after .

Trouble is , the punching may have to be done before the hollowing , least the vessel collapses

Skew ChiDAMN!!
14th November 2008, 08:50 AM
Rounding/smoothing the end of an old brazing rod and mounting it in a Dremel or mounting an old burr "wrong end out" can do a passable imitation of brambling without the whack-factor, if you're going to "age" the wood. The charring in the dimples can enhance the effect.

But, like anything, it needs experimentation first lest the results prove disastrous. DAMHIKT. :rolleyes:

lubbing5cherubs
16th November 2008, 09:28 PM
Well I am the opposite I think the burning makes it a nice piece. I be happy with that sittting on my shelf any day
Toni