One Priceless Treasure

Want to carve a pen out of wood. Yes this is not a unique idea. The normal way is to use a lathe and maybe a drill press, which I dont have. First attempt for drilling a straight hole wasn't very good. Need a better way to hold the piece. Yes, I have a bench clamp however it has its limitations. But I will not let it stop me. I will just go back to the drawing board to figure out a way.  

I used the idea of a chain and built a picture frame collection. I started with a small piece of wood to anchor the top. It was also a good way to gauge the size and space the pictures out. Of course, the burning question was “how to mount the pictures together.” Especially since I wanted them to be free hanging. I also wanted flexibility with how the picture could hang. With vertical or horizontal positioning and possibility to rearrange the pictures.             Carving the top was easy. Building the picture frames took some time. I also had to use the Christmas lie because it was for my mother and “she a snoop.” Plus, for simplicity it was easier to build in their garage.             Everything was going together until it didn’t. Of course, nothing bad, I just had to “adapt on the fly.” When I was laying out the hooks, I didn’t have things lined up. So unfortunately, it ...

 

  Portraits are difficult, especially if you’re trying to make a portrait of a person. The hard part is capturing the character of the person. I have tried a portrait in the past. The biggest problem which caused it not to be successful is because “I tried to soon.” Because I was still in the infant stage of my learning. I don’t regret trying, the biggest thing was my motivation dwindled, and I didn’t pick the right picture to reference.             I hadn’t considered trying again until a random picture was sent to me. My mother shared a picture of her dad in my family chat. As soon as I saw it, something changed. I started the processing, figuring, and planning. The normal trying to talk myself out happened. But my heart-maintained control.              I started carving, and of course the process w as incredibly slow. I wanted to make sure every step was educated. I also made sure to ta...

  I can’t count the number of times people have said in some form that I need to be selling my work. I had only made one project which wasn’t finish and people would say for me to “start selling.” From the start I didn’t know where this hobby was going to take me. But I knew one thing from the start was to “enjoy the journey and not move to fast or expect too much to soon.”   After doing this for a while I still don’t have interest in selling my work actively. Many people have said I would be making more money, which is probably true. However, I have another point of view, is the amount of work required to get there and to make consistent money. I also “don’t want to lose focus and purpose.” My primary goal is to enjoy being creative and bringing to life priceless treasures. For some people after turning a hobby into a business it loses value and becomes unenjoyable which causes stress. This is because “they have to,” just to make a living.       ...

  A non-for profit was created in his memory by his family. Its called Camron West Memorial Foundation. Keeping his memory and legacy alive. 

  How does a random log which is doomed for the woodchipper, or the fire pit transform into something elegant and useful. The answer is for it to “pick a fight with an angle grinder.” It also helps if the person holding the angle grinder has brave nerves and an imagination. The discs which are used for woodcarving look very daunting.      The transformation fight continued the next morning despite the operator being sore, especially in both hands. The worker used the lines drawn from the day before and realized more material needed and could be removed. As material was removed there was a shift in the inner transformation. It was found to be better weight loss to connect the holes together in the center, which would forgo the smaller twist. The center holes were connected and the angle grinder concluded they looked like a bug did it. It also helped highlight the other nature bug holes that were found through the material weight loss. The operator agreed with the angl...

       I was talking to my brother about different creative ideas. My brother makes things out of EVA foam. He expressed that he wanted to make a sword. We started brainstorming and talking about different components to consider for a functional sword. After I got off the phone with him for the next two days or so, the idea of making a sword didn’t leave my mind. I then started asking myself how I could make a sword out of materials that I use. Don’t get me wrong, a wood sword is not a knew idea. Exploring online I found videos of people making beautiful swords for wood, but there made with multiple pieces. I became engulfed with how many different kinds of swords have been made throughout history. I found an appreciation for the historical significance and how they were able to create beautiful work by hand.             I kept pondering, developing a plan, and of course trying to talk myself out of it. But I c...

           I was in the medieval project mood and was pondering other ideas I could make. While I was doing research for different ideas, I could use a sword and shield, I found many different shapes and styles. Through my research I took different elements from multiple shields and developed my own idea. I started drawing with my friend graph paper, just shape reference lines.   I will say while drawing this project, it’s difficult to make sure everything is lined up.             I picked out the piece of wood I wanted to use which dictated the size of the project. I try not to stress the size and keep it simple to the materials which are readily available. Yes, this does bring some limitations, however I look at it more for as “inspired design challenge.” It can help you work with the meaning to have, to craft something amazing. I finished the reference lines and of course it “looked boxy.” I c...

     I have met many people, and some have become valuable mentors. Who has taught me, helped me, and supported me through adventures which modeled me into the person I am today. Some people might say a mentor is only a person “who has taught you something.” I found that not to be true. A mentor is anyone who not only is a teacher, but gives support, encouragement, and is a good listener. Because sometimes I just need someone to listen as I talked my way through a problem. There is always one thing I found in common with each mentor, they never expected anything of monetary value in return. Of course, a regular visit and adventure story time is always fun. How can you repay someone who doesn’t expect or want anything? Especially when they say, “just pay it forward,” but can you pay it forward but in reverse. The answer is simple if you are willing to work for it. It comes through the sharing of your different talents and abilities. Repaying can be paying it forward in d...

            The hardest part of wood carving and doing crafts is “what to make.” Especially when you don’t want to make “everyday things.” I know there is nothing wrong with that. But for me I love unique and different challenging factors. I also find that being different gives me different capabilities and a way of looking at things. It helped inspire me to explore options which could help create endless possibilities. Researching for inspiration and opportunities to learn and try.      Each project has its interesting challenges, necessary evils, and of course problems to solve. Which yes, can change fun into stress. From the start people have tried to convince me that I should sell my work. I was surprised considering I had just done one project and had not even finished it yet. I knew I still had plenty to learn. I knew that selling my work was not on the table and would not be for a while. I needed to first figure out if this was “s...