Still Waiting Around

It's not the brides fault, but I haven't seen pictures from the center piece boxes i made for her Tunisian-style wedding. I created two 6-inch boxes, seventeen 30-inch boxes, and one 5-foot box. The boxes were filled with either flowers or these amazing candles that they had custom made to match their chosen colors. They look little like the original post from months ago, so it probably remains a mystery to most of you as to what I have accomplished.

Here I am ready to stain the boxes, before moving on to the complicated stencils. Incidentally, I'm standing in the future spot of my very own regulation-sized four square court. I can't wait to paint that thing and have you people over for a fun party.

It's coming, it's coming!

P-P-Palanca

Here's a box given to Augie Leyva as a thank you for heading up Palanca for Search 140. It features the ever-popular Josie Leyva imitating Augie's patented funk stroll (complete with afro-puffs to boot!) We all signed the sides with a gold paint pen, and it was a huge hit!

I love the negative space created by both her forearms. This was the first time I used a more neutral stain. I think it works here, but I still can't be sure I don't want a darker stain for most of my items. This almost looks as if it has no stain at all.

Rodney and Nella look on as Augie takes it all in. Of course that's me hovering over the unveiling! Thanks once again, Augie, for a Funky Good Time!

Some of you have been asking about the wedding boxes I created. They turned out amazing, and Luca and Laura were very pleased. It was great practice for me moving towards a deadline while maintaining quality work. Unfortunately, I've been waiting forever to see actual wedding pictures. I'm hesitant to post the few pictures I have of the boxes. I don't think they do them justice.

It's the New Style; 4 and 3 and 2 and 1 . . .

I had a new stain color mixed to add to my collection. (It's a light orange that really isn't as nice as the green.) This time, I tried a stencil of my own, and had planned to print it with a dark cherry stain instead of the black acrylic you see here. It looked amazing, but when I lifted the stencil, I found the dark stain had soaked through the index paper I use for my stencils. (I still haven't found the right thickness acetate sheet.)

In order to salvage the box, I had to cover the entire piece with the darker stain. What I found was a happy accident. It looks so nice and even better in person! Using the black paint then, I have a subtle look that is part elegant - part edgy.

Here's a look at the second box. I was so excited to create it that I forgot to cut a grove in this one. I shopped the top one around at work and have found people to be interested. I'm searching for the right price to charge for a generic box, and for a box with a custom stencil I create based on the photo you supply. I've been working hard at creating more stencils and have 10 originals ready to go. I think I'm on the verge of something big!

Animal Box

A box I made for a friend rests atop a real-life pedestal in my backyard. I was inspired by the boxes I'm making for the Tunisian wedding. Incidentally, those are working out great, and I have perfected the use of stencils.

This box, unlike the wedding boxes, had mitered corners. This proved a bit trickier, as the cedar is too tall for my chop saw. Thankfully, I have a compound miter saw, and the head can be tilted at a 45 degree angle. Still, it's a bit of a hassle, and makes accuracy a touch harder.

The best part of all this is discovering how easy it is to have a custom stain mixed at Home Depot. It's a hair more expensive than the regular, but it will last a lifetime. I think I could get almost 100 boxes out of a tiny quart!

Be sure to always look in the Oops Basket for cheap paint. I happened to find the exact turquoise I need for the wedding boxes. 1 quart will run you a buck, whereas a gallon costs $5.00.

After finishing the stain, I quickly ran the completed box across the table saw on each side. Move the fence a bit; run it through again, and you've added a nice decorative element. It might be old-hat for veteran wood-workers, but I just discovered it!

I'll be constructing more of these, where I'll go for a more dilapidated look; possibly adding decoupage and stencils combined.