Gallery Show

   

Something New

   I had ben reading a lot about "Love Tokens" which are designs, names, initials or monograms engraved in one or both sides of a coin where the face or faces have been polished smooth. These date back hundreds of years and are a unique little piece of the engravers art anyone can afford. They were often worn as pendants or charms on the neck or wrist. I cut this one as an example of what can be done to give everyone an idea of the possibilities. This one was made from a well worn Buffalo Nickel where I polished off the Indian Head and cut the border and monogram. Anyone interested in more information can check this one out on Etsy by clicking here. Thanks for looking and stay tuned for a lot of paintings as I am getting ready for a Gallery show and am working on a lot of new work.

A little one from last week

   A little water color from last weekend as I start to warm up the brushes for an all out art assault in the coming weeks as I prepare for a Gallery show that begins mid January.

One from the engraving bench today

    I did this little Rough Rider Hunter style knife today. I like this style because of the large bolsters that give me a lot of area for engraving. These knives are imported but have nice fit and finish and a snappy lock on the blade. I have it listed on Etsy if you are interested, click here to see it. Thanks for looking!

Eagle Knife

    Well today was my last show of the year so I am going to concentrate on filling some orders now and this is one of them. I started this knife last week and finished it up and am now working on a mate to it for a customer. This is an all Stainless Buck Gentlemans knife and they engrave pretty nice and give you a little more canvas to work with than the similar Case model. I engrave both the Buck and Case knives and normally let the subject somewhat decide which knife I choose. The reverse side of this one has the same scrolls and a banner with a name on it in place of the Eagle. Thanks for checking out my work and if you are interested in something for Christmas you need to get in touch with me real soon!

Bird Box

  I did this box for a holiday show at a gallery in Indianapolis and thought I would include some shots of it as it was engraved. The box itself is from TDC and is a copy of an early american tinder box in Nickel Silver. The box measures about 3 1/2 inches by 2 3/8 inches. The fist shot shows it with just drawing on and then some as the cutting progresses. It is mounted to my engraving ball for engraving under my scope so I can see to cut the detail. Entire scene was cut with an engraver sharpened to 116 degree universal Lindsey point. Thanks for looking!

Flower Pendant

   Here is one I just finished up tonight for the event at Battleground and Prophetstown this weekend. It is the 200th anniversary of the battle there which occurred on November 7th 1811 and was probably the first major battle of the war of 1812. It was a major clash of cultures and resulted in heavy losses to the Native American forces that day. Pendant is nickel about 2 inches in diameter and formed into a slight dome.

Hand engraved vintage Case XX knife

  Finished this one up today at the engraving bench. A real nice Case folder I found at a flea market this summer that I dressed up with some hand engraving on the bolsters. These small spaces to work on pose a challenge for the engraver to find a good design that fits the knife. I was happy with the way this one turned out. If you are interested in it you can learn more about it on my Etsy site here.

Something new for the Holidays

   Here is something new for the Holidays! This is a hand engraved ornament to hang on your tree or in your favorite window. I hand engraved this design into a solid nickel silver disc, bird on one side and "NOEL" and 2011 in old english script. A one of a kind art ornament that can be purchased from my etsy site by clicking here.

Man of the Moon

  Here is a pendant I did yesterday while at the engraving bench. It is cut in solid copper and about 2 inches in diameter. I saw the face in a book on engravings from the late 19th century and dressed it up a little and added the star border. I cut this all with a tool ground to the 116 degree Lindsey universal point. If you are interested in the piece here is a link to it on my Etsy site Pendant.

Little Hinged box.

   I guess I would have to say this is another in my Eagle series of boxes. This one is a bit different with a hinged lid and is in steel not nickel or brass. It is a traditional style of early box often used to carry a flint and steel or tobacco. The Eagle is from a piece done in the 19th century with some additions to the border and few other changes. I left the area at the bottom in case a new owner might like their name there on a banner or some other decoration. You can see more about it on my Etsy site here.

A Little Bit Of Sunshine

  Here is an engraved box along a little different and folksy fun direction. I put a happy early Sun on the domed lid of this one to bring a little sunshine wherever it goes! This is a small box about 1 5/8 in diameter and 3/4 tall. If you are interested it is on etsy here Brass Sunbox. Thanks for stopping by.

Another Eagle!

  This is a larger Nickel Silver box that I engraved an Eagle patterned after an example from the 1700's on. The box is from TDC and is about 2 3/4 inches in diameter and makes a really nice basis for some art! You will notice the proportions of the bird are a little off but that is quite common with these early works. The animals are always somewhat stylized and leaning towards the folkart side of things. I cut all of this one except the knick and dot border with a 116 degree tool, used a 130 on the border.

Eagle Box

  This engraving was done on one of the small TDC cap or pill boxes in German Silver. It was all cut by hand using a small hammer and chisel. It is about 1 1/2 inches in diameter. Sorry this one is sold.

Buck 110

   Here is the latest knife I have engraved. These are a real nice knife for engravers as the bolsters are large and made of solid brass not castings. Knife is about 4 1/4 inches long closed with a 3 inch blade for an overall open of 7 1/4 inches. I made this design up just for this knife and felt it was a good fit to the bolsters. If you are interested in purchasing this knife please check out my Etsy site at Etsy. Thanks for looking.

Chair Season

  It is chair season in the shop right now and I am building furniture instead of painting. This is a pair of Connecticut style Doublebacks with Knucklearms. They are about the highest class chair I make and my personal favorite. They will be given a coat of red milk paint as soon as the Crest Rail in on and the two coats of dark green. Second shot is a stanley 113 circular plane I use to finish up the Crest Rails.

Twitch the Kitten

  Here is a little one from last week of one of our barn/shop cats when he was just a kitten. He and his brother were just fuzzballs with eyes and a tail when we got them. they would hide in the feed room and have nothing to do with us but now you cant get rid of them when you are outside and they will just drive you crazy with their attention. 5x7 watercolor on 140lb Fabriano paper.

Silver Flower

  Here is a pendant I cut in nickel silver yesterday. I enjoy a variety of work as this blog shows and I hope it inspires others to try various forms of art in their lives. I like to believe a little art is everywhere in our lives and we just have to reach out and find it. I got his idea from another engraver and mixed some different elements he was using into a new combination. A lot of engraving in the traditional style like this is built on the work of others that engrave before you, sometimes centuries before you. I like to find good designs and then work with them to fit my own style. This particular flower shows up in many places including the grip cap on early black powder pistols from the 1700's. The pendant is about 1&1/2 inches in diameter and is available for purchase at Etsy. Thanks for looking and I hope the variety of my work inspires you to create!

Something old something new!

  Years ago I dabbled in metal engraving and recently found myself drawn back to this wonderful art form. I have been doing several commercial pocket knives and lately and this is the latest one shown here. It is a Buck 120 lock back folder. I laid out the design with a .03mm mechanical pencil directly onto the knife and then cut the design onto the metal using a graver. This is all done under some pretty strong magnification as my eyes do not seem to be getting any younger! I will try and post some more shots os a piece in progress to better show what I am doing for those not familiar with the process. You can purchase this knife from me on Etsy by going here Etsy

One from yesterday

  This is the newest rooster on the farm a lovely Barred Rock we raised from a chick this spring. Painting is a little one at 5x7 inches and painted on 140lb Fabriano paper in watercolor.