Monday, July 6, 2015

Shakers

There is a first time for everything.  I haven’t  carved a set of Salt and Pepper Shakers before.  A gift for a friend has been weighing heavy on my mind for a year.  He asked me to carve him a set of Salt and Pepper Shakers for his “lady friend.”

Well after much thought…I designed a pair of loons.

 

Loons July 2015

Here they are rough cut.  The wood is Yellow Popple (Aspen) and I sure like it for carving.

Salt and pepper shakers

I spent most of Saturday with Far Guys help carving out the innards where a bit of salt and pepper could go.  Then I painted and sealed them.  The corks on the bottom came from a garage sale set of shakers. That hole for the cork was a bit scary…but our method worked real good.

Pair of Loons complete

The pair is finished, sealed and packaged in a box all ready and waiting for our friend from Oklahoma to arrive.  He is retired Air Force and a local boy…full of fun.  Divorced but still talks about his wife kindly.  I hope he still has the same “lady friend” who collects salt and pepper shakers!  He was still taking her to dinner and a movie and whatever follows back in April. 

I will never carve another set of Salt and Pepper Shakers…I probably have 12 hours in the pair…way too fussy of a carving project for me.

Update:  Christmas Ornaments: 27 are completely finished, 5 are in process.  I need at least 73 this year.

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25 comments:

Anonymous said...

The shakers turned out beautifully. Hope you and FG have a good week.

Anonymous said...

The loon shakers are beautiful. Perfect for a local boy! I hope he still has the same lady friend, too.

linda m said...

The "Loons" are stunning. You did a super job on the salt and pepper shakers. Hoping he and his lady friend appreciate all the work you put into them.

Marty said...

I couldn't even imagine how you were going to turn those rough wooden beginnings into salt and peppers.
Too bad they were so much work - they're a novel idea.

thecrazysheeplady said...

Amazing!

Lynda said...

You and FG are an amazingly creative team! You both are highly motivated, too. I am so glad we get to see and read about the stuff you do.

Blogoratti said...

Really great effort indeed.

DJan said...

What a gift! And one of a kind, an original by Far Side. You simply amaze me with your talent. I hope she appreciates them as much as I do. :-)

Intense Guy said...

Those are incredible!!!

I hope you carve some more loons even if they aren't salt shakers!

Phyllis Pritchard said...

Very cute!! I agree with Intense Guy, just carve more loons, they don't have to be shakers.

Mac n' Janet said...

They're really quite wonderful, hope his lady friend appreciates them.

Out on the prairie said...

I like the shakers. I had a great uncle pass a decade ago and he had over 5000, so collecting them can become compulsive. I had started finding a few unusual ones, but passed them to my youngest. I hope Far Guy does well with his treatments. I let a student try on me when I had my knee fixed and she murdered me, but I didn't say anything. Her instructor came in and called a nurse who slipped it right in.

Leah said...

Beautiful (and so creative) - Oklahoma Guy is going to love them!

Tired Teacher said...

Very nice - she will love them!

Red said...

I can see why he asked you to carve salt and pepper shakers. They're awesome. Loons are also one of my favorite birds.

marlu said...

Just amazing! They are beautiful.

Linda W. said...

Beautiful work! The salt and pepper shakers turned out great. I'm sure your friend will love them.

Polly said...

Your Loons are gorgeous, you're very clever, your friend's lady friend is very lucky. Best wishes to Mr Far Guy.

Anonymous said...

Wow - you are very talented!

Saku said...

They are gorgeous! If his lady friend doesn't want them I'm sure he'll keep them for himself. You are truly talented!! Good luck with the Christmas ornaments.

Karen said...

They are beautiful! Something you needed to try, and once was enough! You are a great carver.

Rita said...

Those are just perfect!! I can see where that is just too many hours to repeat, but wow! Gorgeous!
You are so ahead of the Christmas game! I only make cards and this year with the move...who knows? Will have to be something super simple again if they get done at all. I can hardly wait to see what you came up with for this year's ornaments. :)

L. D. said...

They look really good but they did need a lot of shaving and sanding to be smooth. You have a great paint job on them. I always wanted to paint loons in the wilderness but I don't paint anymore.

MTWaggin said...

Those are AMAZING!!!!! Who cares about the lady friend - he better love those shakers.

Sam I Am...... said...

Wow! You are REALLY talented. I wouldn't know where to begin and I'd probably stab myself during the process. Those are beautiful!