Archive for the ‘engraved’ Tag
I get all sorts of odd requests when I’m out rubbing elbows with people at craft fairs.
Ah, memories.
Some of those requests I bring to life, as you can see from the unique projects below. Some are personalized, some are just personal.
Boards can be engraved with names as gifts for yourself, for weddings & anniversaries, for real estate closings ….
If you would like to order a special item for a special someone, email me and we’ll develop the idea. Some projects can be accomplished relatively quickly (like the board with “Hall” on it; that can be delivered in a very few days as I keep the blank boards on hand). Some boards require me to buy specific species of lumber, glue it up, smooth it, carve it, finish it … and when I’m busy that can take weeks. Months, even. But whatever the time frame may be, I’ll give you an estimate in advance and will always keep you informed of where I am in the process.
So, what have you got in mind?
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Yes, I personalize. Yes, I can customize. But, as the sign in the booth says, “Quickly? Maybe. Or Not.”
I can do things well, or I can do them quickly. It’s my goal to never move quickly if that compromises the work.
One of these pieces required a new technique: the cutting board, that was a wedding gift for Jaclyn & Spencer, had to have the board on the front edge carved on the CNC, and THEN I assembled the board. After the glue-up, I still had to do shaping & smoothing without damaging the personalization. Love the result, but it did take time to get it right. This was not a rush order for a last minute gift!
These pieces range from the aforementioned wedding gift to home decor to business gifts to special gifts for friends that have moved to the other side of the world. These special gifts are often a challenge to make, candidly. They always require special handling. But, I love the smiles on the faces of happy customers when they choose me to be the guy that makes their idea come to life.
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I have a plan, and it’s called Game Night. I’m going to launch another kickstarter campaign in 2019; it’ll feature a variety of games and game accessories … like my chess boards and cribbage boards.
The first new product to be introduced for this future campaign are these card boxes.
Yes, I can make boxes. Rarely of late, but I can do them.
Each of these boxes contains 2 decks of playing cards, and have a removable top that can be engraved with an image that you get to choose.
These first boxes are made from Cherry, Bloodwood or Birdseye Maple. The first box was designed to give to my mother … and she liked it.
She really liked it.
With that endorsement, how can these not be a big hit?
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I do a lot of wedding & anniversary gifts. Here you see several different styles … as well as a couple of other special orders thrown in.
I have a love/hate relationship with special orders, honestly. Keeping track of them, their individual deadlines & extra steps required for the personalization is another record keeping system that I have to maintain to stay on top of these orders. It’s a wonderful thing, truly – who wouldn’t want to be a part of a wedding as a gift supplier? Lots of love there, and that’s a good thing.
A very good thing.
Also shown are a sign for a restored car’s dash (the Beach Bug sign). It’s a carved sign with painted letters. Similar techniques were used with the making of the final piece, that shows the longitude & latitude for the happy couple’s meeting, engagement & wedding.
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Only a couple more new signs this time: the collection of signs for my booth is just about complete.
I’m out of wall space, for one.
And, now that the display is built out, it’s time to see if people really like these signs enough to buy them, or if they just like to point and laugh. Either way, I think I’ve accomplished my original goal of making the booth more attractive and interesting.
This weekend, I head north to do my first-ever Harvest Festival in San Mateo. This series of events is what the serious vendors do in California.
Time to see if I am serious enough.
Nah. Time to see if I’m happy enough. That’s the ticket.
I’ll be taking my indoor booth setup with 4 mesh walls, and I’ll be setting up a 10’x20′ booth. Hope it all works: after a week in the midwest dealing with the death of a loved one, I’m not sure if going a-vendoring will be a relief or another in a long list of really difficult days.
Time will tell.
Meanwhile, these are the signs that are going with me. Some are new, some are replacements for signs I’ve sold … and all hope to be entertaining.
CNC Siugn 18 – 90 Bless The Food
CNC Sign 18 – 91 A Banana
CNC Sign 18 – 118 The Answer Is
CNC Sign 18 – 92 A Banana
CNC Sign 18 – 93 Tis An Ill
CNC Sign 18 – 114 Many Have Eaten. Black Walnut with Gold lettering. Commissioned piece.
CNC Sign 18 – 94 Coffee
CNC Sign 18 – 95 Steak
CNC Sign 18 – 96 Pig.
CNC Sign 18 – 96 Chicekn
CNC Sign 18 – 96 Steak.
CNC Sign 18 – 121 A Banana Is
CNC Sign 18 – 99 The Secret Ingredient is Always
CNC Sign 18 – 112 Bless The Food
CNC Sign 18 – 113 Many Have Eaten. Cherry with Burnt Umber lettering. Commissioned piece.
CNC Sign 18 – 115 Tell Me What Brand
CNC Sign 18 – 99 Cooking
CNC Sign 18 – 116 Why Limit Happy
CNC Sign 18 – 119 The Answer Is
CNC Sign 18 – 120 A Banana Is
CNC Sign 18 – 122 Calories
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A year ago – A YEAR AGO – I brought out my first cribbage boards. They were simple pieces, and I knew I could do better. So, it was back to the drawing board computer for some Research & Development.
I bought some Cribbage Pegs. I bought some playing cards. I wanted to offer complete sets.
I got better at using the CNC.
And today, I’m pleased to show you the first 4 new prototypes of the Cribbage Boards I’ve developed. There are 2 sizes.
- The oval board has a 3-player track, and is 9″ x 14″ x 1-3/4″.
- The round board has a 4-player track, and is 14″ in diameter, and 1-3/4″ thick.
Both styles offer you the opportunity to customize both the top and the bottom.
- The top can be engraved with your name or other words that celebrate an occasion, anniversary, etc. The top can be engraved on the top side or even on the bottom side of the lid, if you prefer. If you’d rather have visuals engraved, I can do 3D engraving as you see below. Since the engraving is the star, wood designs shown here are simple, in either Hard Maple or Cherry. Note that woods can be stained, as the carved bass design is. Carved words can be painted, as the name is painted on the example, below.
- The bottom can be any wood design you like. Here, you see Hard Maple, Black Walnut or a striped version that has Hard Maple, Cherry & Bloodwood. Any combination is possible.
Pegs & playing cards are included with both sizes (the large round board comes with 2 decks). Finish is a penetrating oil stain (in the case of the bass & alligator), and then all pieces are finished with spray lacquer.
Cribbage 18 – 01. Hard Maple Bottom, Cherry 3D carved top.
Cribbage 18 – 01a detail.
Cribbage 18 – 01b detail.
Cribbage 18 – 02. Alternative top, Hard Maple with 3D carving of oak leaves & acorns.
Cribbage 18 – 02a detail.
Cribbage 18 – 03. Hard Maple top is stained Mahogany. Bottom is Hard Maple, Bloodwood & Cherry.
Cribbage 18 – 03a detail.
Cribbage 18 – 04. Black Walnut bottom & Maple top with bass carving, stained very lightly.
Cribbage 18 – 04a detail.
Cribbage 18 – 05. Hard Maple. Carved name is backfilled with gold acrylic.
Cribbage 18 – 05a detail.
More
New: Cribbage Boards (2017)
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I see it all of the time.
People see my hearts on the table. They smile. They hold one over their own heart, look to their significant other, and smile some more.
Nothing wrong with a big heart. Nothing wrong with showing your heart.
Such is the human drama I inspire when I go a-vendoring. Who wouldn’t love that?
I’m sometimes asked if these are cutting boards. Well, yes, they could be. However, I believe cutting on hearts is not something we should want to do. Surgeons, perhaps. Cooks? Not so much. I think these are serving pieces, not cutting boards. Buy one, and then you’ll get to choose who gets to cut on your heart.
This weekend, I’m going a bit far afield as I go a-vendoring. It will be my first out-of-state solo event for Mr M’s Woodshop! I’ll be at Faire on the Square in Prescott, AZ. I’m leaving Mrs M at home so she can work at her “job,” and I’m doing a holiday weekend road trip.
Pulling the trailer. Putting up the big canopy, solo. Running the booth, solo. Staying at an AirBnB, bachelor style.
Who wouldn’t love that?
Heart 18 – 928. Jatoba, Hard Maple, Purpleheart & Bloodwood. 11″ x 11″ x 3/4″.
Heart 18 – 927. Jatoba, Hard Maple, Purpleheart & Bloodwood. 11″ x 11″ x 3/4″.
Heart 18 – 933. Jatoba, Hard Maple, Purpleheart, Cherry & Bloodwood. 11″ x 11″ x 3/4″.
Heart 18 – 931. Jatoba, Hard Maple, Purpleheart, Cherry & Bloodwood. 11″ x 11″ x 3/4″.
Heart 18 – 930. Jatoba, Hard Maple, Purpleheart & Bloodwood. 11″ x 11″ x 3/4″.
Heart 18 – 932. Jatoba, Hard Maple, Purpleheart, Cherry & Bloodwood. 11″ x 11″ x 3/4″.
Heart 18 – 929. Jatoba, Hard Maple, Purpleheart & Bloodwood. 11″ x 11″ x 3/4″.
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Yes, I do custom orders!
Special engraving. Unique wood combinations. Oddball requests. You name it.
To be fair, I often turn down oddball requests for special one-time constructions. I have trouble making enough pieces just to keep up with my totally out-of-control hobby, after all. Adding ideas that take extra TLC to make it to the finish line usually doesn’t make sense.
But who said I have to make sense? Adding the occasional odd request does help me use my creativity & expand my skill set. At the right time, doing a unique project can be fun. Since that’s why I’m doing this, I try and help people with fun projects as much as I can.
And, no, I still don’t make backgammon boards. Or rolling pins. Or toaster tongs.
But, apparently, if you want a Fire Pokin’ Stick, then I’m your guy.
CNC Sign 18 – 68 Bloom. Hard Maple. Carved lettering with 3D sunflower. 12″ x 16″. Commissioned piece.
Carnivore Board 18 – 901. Purpleheart, Jatoba & Hard Maple. 14″ x 19″ x 1-1/8″. Custom Order.
The B side of Carnivore Board 18 – 901.
Engraved 18 – 0042. Hard Maple, Black Walnut & Cherry. 9″ x 11″ x 1-1/8″. Custom Order.
Special Order 18 – 950. Hard Maple & Black Walnut. The engraving says it all!
Special Order 18 – 950a. Reverse detail.
Special Order 18 – 950b. Handle joinery detail.
Small Board 18 – 210. Purpleheart, Canarywood & Hard Maple. 8″ x 12″ x 1-1/8″.
Small Board 18 – 210a. Flip side.
Engraved 18 – 005. Business Card Holder with V-carved personalization.
Engraved 18 – 003. Maple, Walnut & Cherry. 9″ x 11″ x 3/4″. Custom order.
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I love this design of cheese boards.
Some people want these to be cutting boards, but they’re really not; they are serving pieces. The elegant curves that are underneath these boards are made on the table saw & help them to sit very lightly on the table. For a photo essay on how this design is made, see the link below.
These are the first surfboards I have made since January, and they proved to be crowd favorites last weekend at the Ventura 4th of July Street Fair. Only two of these sold, but they were a focus. I even had a competitive woodworker tell me he wouldn’t steal my design!
Which made me laugh.
After all, I saw this idea on a TV show, PBS’s “Rough Cut – Woodworking with Tommy Mac,” and then “improved” the deisgn with better proportions and prettier wood selections, in my humble opinion!
Surfboard 15 – 14. Cherry, Hard Maple, Red Oak & Purpleheart.
Surfboard # 15 – 10. Black Walnut & Cherry.
Surfboard 15 – 13. Black Walnut, Hard Maple & Purpleheart.
Surfboard 15 – 11. Black Walnut, Hard Maple & Cherry.
Surfboard 15 – 09. Black Walnut, Purpleheart, Red Oak & Cherry.
Surfboard 15 – 08. Black Walnut, Hard Maple & Cherry.
Surfboard 15 – 15. Hard Maple, Black Walnut, Cherry & Purpleheart.
Surfboard 15 – 12. Hard Maple & Jarrah.
Surfboard 15 – 16. Black Walnut, Red Oak, Hard Maple & Cherry.
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Cutting Sideways = Curves
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These handled boards are proving to be quite popular. They’re more versatile than a counter-top cutting board.
Take them from table to stove to counter and back again. Do your work where you’re comfortable, and then carry the board to the stove to add to your concoction on the stove.
That’s my theory, anyway!
The first three are long handled boards with a larger cutting surface, about 10″ x 16″. The smaller boards have the circular handles and a cutting surface that’s about 9″ x 12″.
All boards are about 3/4″ thick.
Sous Chef # 15 – 39. Birds Eye Maple & Jatoba. It’s a beauty.
Sous Chef # 15 – 38. Black Walnut, Yellowheart, Teak and Birdseye Maple. 10″ x 18″ x 3/4″.
Sous Chef # 15 – 37. Black Walnut, African Teak and Birdseye Maple. This board has a wider work surface … I got carried away and couldn’t bear to cut anything off.
Sous Chef # 15 – 36. Maple, Jarrah, Cherry & Jatoba.
Sous Chef # 15 – 35. Hard Maple, Black Walnut, Yellowheart and Padauk.
Sous Chef # 15 – 34. African Teak, Black Walnut & Yellowheart.
Sous Chef # 15 – 33. Hard Maple, Black Walnut & Cherry.
Sous Chef # 15 – 32. Black Walnut & Yellowheart.
Sous Chef # 15 – 21. Hard Maple & Jatoba.
Sous Chef # 15 – 20. Hard Maple & Purpleheart.
Sous Chef # 15 – 22. Hard Maple & Purpleheart. 9″ x 16″ x 3/4″.
Sous Chef # 15 – 23. Hard Maple, Black Walnut & Jarrah.
Sous Chef # 15 – 26. Honey Locust, Hard Maple, Black Walnut & Birdseye Maple.
Sous Chef # 15 – 27. Black Walnut & Honey Locust.
Sous Chef # 15 – 28. Hard Maple & Purpleheart.
Sous Chef # 15 – 29. Hard Maple, Black Walnut & Yellowheart.
Sous Chef # 15 – 30. Hard Maple, Padauk & Black Walnut.
Sous Chef # 15 – 30. Black Walnut, Hard Maple & Purpleheart.
Sous Chef # 15 – 31. Goncalo Alves, Hard Maple & Purpleheart.
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