Post #208081 by Loki on Tue, Jan 17, 2006 6:34 AM

Ok, the Tiki Jam was a tremendous success. I didnt work on much tiki carving myself as i was absorbing as much knowledge as possible from the masters, BenzArt and GMAN. I did finally get to work on my beast Monday, as well as finishing up the one GMAN donated for our Tiki garden.

GMANS tiki was a Ficus stump. I personally hate ficus trees as the roots are a menace to deal with, they use up all the water that the natives need and on and on. We decided to grab a few ficus logs just to see what could come of them. Benz told us that they carve real well. So, GMAN grabbed a log and went at it. I think we were all impressed at how easy they are to work with. After GMAN left the little guy, i cleaned him up, gave him a quick sanding and started staining him. As you can see, the ficus really has a nice grain to it and has lots of good colors that really pop out with stain and poly coat. Thanks again GMAN for this little guy we reall love how he turned out.

This was the initial coat of darker stain. We thought we'd highlight some area. Dont be alarmed, the ficus is very thirsty wood and the dark really toned down.

So, i finally got to work on the giant. After admiring Benz Lono and watching some of his technique i decided it was time to work on his mouth. I have changed the design a few time but am very happy with the results. It was fun sculpting the teeth and gum line. I had to think about how real teeth meet the gums. Anatomy lesson 101.

"Just because you have a mouth now, doesn't mean you can talk to me like that!"

Lady Loki started working on a Moai mask from a sliver cut off a coconut stump. Its only about 3 inches thick so its more delicate work than she thought, but i thinks its really going to look great when its done.

One last thing Kiddies...a SAFETY REMINDER. I am lucky to be typing this with all my fingers attatched. I was debarking a log using an angle grinder and an Arbortech wheel. I reached for the extendable handle and my left little finger brushed against the spinning blade. Thankfully i was wearing a leather glove. When the pain stopped, i took the glove off and to my surprise, no blood and the finger was still there. Just remind yourselves, to always be aware of where your hands are when using power tools. I know, you all know this, but sometimes we dont concentrate 100% all the time and need to think about this lesson every time we work. Stay safe. More to come.