Off To The Marble Mill

Our client for the black vanity sent us the specs for the sink she had chosen and in looking it over, I noticed the highlighted sentence below ... After talking it over with my marble cutter, Johnson Marble, in Proctor, Vermont, we decided it would be safest if we got the actual sink and faucet since the top was going to New York City ... We have time to do it right, but not time to do it twice .... Click the pictures to enlarge them ... We started by cutting a section out of the cardboard so we could trace the inside outline of the sink bowl.
Cut some holes for the faucets ... Interestingly, the pipe for the faucet was not in the center of the fixture and was a different size .... glad we checked
looking from underneath
Set it up right side up and then we had our finished template ...
Off to the marble mill, a fantastic old facility adjacent to the Vermont Marble Museum in Proctor.
Coming in the front door .. Its a great old industrial space ....
Looking back the other choice from the far end...
Showing the honed finish
A rough slab of Danby Montclair, with nice black/brown markings ...
showing the layout .... I forgot to take a photo of the building from outside, but its very cool the choice it relates to the rest of the site ...

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Mr Pileated Comes ToThe Feeder

Well, actually, we dont know if it was a Mr. or a Mrs., but there was a pileated woodpecker on the suet feeder for quite a while today. Kit was in a good viewing spot and was able to take quite a few good close up shots .... Its nature time here as the winter begins to relax its grip .... Click the photos to enlarge them ... Enjoy ... You dont get this close often ....
A couple of evenings ago
Orchids in the bedroom
Frost on the garage door
Morning light in the front yard

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Yo ! Turkeys ! and other images of spring

We had these daffodils on the kitchen island a week ago and they gave me the feeling that the weather was about to break ... And it did. We still have snow on the ground but this weekend was 100% sunny and warm. I think I saw 50 degrees on my car thermometer for a minute .. Anychoice, it was beautiful and I was lucky to catch some turkeys prowling through the woods a few minutes before I found my first pussywillows ...
Click the pictures to enlarge them
Mr. Turkey above, and his ladies below ... He had a nice beard but hes turned just enough that you cant see it in this picture ...
I think there were 3 or 4 more ladies I cropped out ..
Pussywillows on the porch and Cactus Man Goes to the Pyramids by Jim Parsons, the guy Jim you see working in the shop photos ...
Sunset yesterday ... two months to leaves ...

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Open Studio mr lucky stops by for a hat

We had a great Open Studio Memorial Day .... It was easily our best turnout ever. We estimate there were 250-300 people total over the two days ... Lots of clients, a couple of neighbors and lots of people with their Southern Vermont Artisans driving tour looking for signatures for the raffle drawing ... There were four artists at our site so that was probably at least part of our draw. Kit sold a bunch of jewelry and I sold a couple things ... Penny did ok, and Denise was happy to have been included for the first time at our site ... She had not previously met Mr. Lucky, and was happy to assist him with a hat choice .... Click the pictures to enlarge them ...
Shopping
Youd think this would be Mr. Luckys ride, but it belonged to another visitorwe had crowds like this several times, both days ....they parked on the lawn and up the hillChecked out the progress on Wills banjo building
Just a few of Pennys coloringssold my sculptureand my coffee tableand Mr. Lucky checked out with his new hat ....

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Mr Lucky

Towards the end of the day today, the boys cleaned up for the weekend and Jim and Sam did their usual dumpster run. Lo and behold, ... jackpot ... A good week for Lucky Jim .... Today he found this coat and claimed it all for himself ... I mean, what can a person possibly say about this .... Im speechless ... I pay people to work here?
Click the pictures for the full effect ...
Earlier in the week he came with a winning lottery ticket. He swears he has NEVER bought a $10. ticket before but just felt lucky. He won $20. on the first ticket, put 10 back in his pocket, bought another and instantly became a $500. winner. Had to go to the bank to cash it in and had to buy muffins for all this morning ... He called it his share the wealth program.
The president of good attitude strikes again ...

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Clean House Back to the Big Tables

Quite a week .. In the last seven days we have delivered or shipped a total of fifteen (15) pieces.
The duck bed last Thursday, the big tv cabinet and two other pieces to the house in Grafton last Friday, a table and 6 chairs to the Southern Vermont Art Center for an upcoming show of New England Furniture Makers that opens next Saturday, two single beds and the recycled oak table to Marthas Vineyard, and today, last but certainly not the least, the big claro walnut slab table to Connecticut. ... I cant believe all that stuff was here at my shop at the same time ... I should have upped my insurance ... My mind is clear, the shop is empty (?) except for the 26 x 9 table and another dining table Will is working on, and I even got a round of golf in today .... Sams in the metal shop working on a piece for another upcoming show at The Bennington Museum called State of Craft 2010 and the steel for the big table .... All for now ... individual updates on these projects and shows as time allows ... Click the photos to enlarge them .... click the links to see the pieces ... One of the single beds heading for the Vineyard ... Simple, modern, maple ply ; the two singles push together to form a king for guests
One of the State of Craft flyers ... more on that later. the show opens the 22nd of this month..
Sams got his part of the bench ready to paint ... Will and I will start the wood tomorrow ... Hey, we dont have to deliver it til next Friday ... Bridge To The Future ...
The steel granite supports for the big table ... Sam will tap them to bolt two to each of the seven sections and weld end plates on to finish them ... Rugged stuff ...
Almost forgot .. We had our first meeting at the shop yesterday afternoon for a sculpture we;re building at the Northshire Bookstore in Manchester to celebrate this years Open Studio which takes place May 28th and 29th. Over 250 Vermont artists will open their studios to the public for the weekend .. I think its the 17th annual and there will be a total of five artists represented at our studio here ... Kit with her jewelry, Dorset Custom Furniture woodworking, Sam and his metal work, Penny Viscusi with her pastels and Denise Tilley with her hand made totally cool hats ... More on that as the event approaches.
Artists concept ...

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mr oriole feeds the kids

I was having my coffee yesterday morning when Kit said that the baby orioles were on the feeder. I didnt have my tripod at home, but managed to get a couple of decent hand held pictures anychoice. This is something I have never seen before and I dont know how long it will go on, but it is a really cool thing to watch. This morning I was prepared, and the light was a little better. They didnt stay long, but I did get a short video that you can see at the link below. Click the pictures to enlarge them ....
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=89oXq5AjUqY
Scene of the action ... I usually have my coffee while sitting on the couch in the foreground with the wide purple arm. To take the pictures yesterday, I rested the camera on the green couch arm and the feeder is about 8 feet from the window in the orange circle ...

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