Post #297010 by Tamapoutini on Thu, Apr 5, 2007 2:52 AM

Hi guys n gals.

Tipua: Remember, they're watching you too... :wink:

Sneaky: Who knows how that Mexi-tiki came about but it sure does look like a Maori one eh? I would be very surprised if there wasnt travelling back & forth by many different peoples. Im sure there was an awful lot more to our Worlds' history than we know about. The reason we have so little evidence is because the population was far fewer & impacted much less on the environment, hence making retracing the journeys very difficult.

Paipo: I was contacted by a mutual US friend of ours this morning; at this moment digging out his tools & may soon be TCs' newest posting newbie carver? He's been promising me long enough. -I think he has a piece of jade for when the time comes but is starting out with bone. An apprentice for Gman perhaps? :)

A couple of new pieces this week, both rescued from 'the Box'. Ive decided to simply referr to it as 'the Box' now as 'the 80' is sometimes 'the 60-100' and I just feel like its time the Box had a proper name. Happy birthday 'Box'

First out of the box was this wee Kokopu variety wahine. She has some beautiful patterning that runs right through the stone & a warm honey-brown translucency. (almost impossible to see whilst all scratched up and dry like this)



*the magic WD-40

I was originally going to give her blue/green paua eyes but thought better of it upon seeing them in. The m.o.p is a bit more subtle & doesnt yell "look at me!" quite so loudly, allowing the earthy tones & patterns of the stone to be noticed.

All finished...

And this large-ish fella was buried very deep in the Box. He had been down there so long he had missed several stages of evolution (mine) & required some massive cosmetic surgery. Luckily he was a good solid chap with plenty of bulk to spare. I was too embarrassed to get a 'before' pic but you wouldnt recognise him as the same tiki. I feel a bit like a tattooist going over an old faded home-made tat with a bright, fresh new design; not a perfect job but an amazing cover-up & twice the piece it was. It is made from the same 'Sth stone' I mostly use today, but was a piece I aquired several years ago. I have always used the best stone I have available at any one time and this guy takes me back to when I was just a 'weka' and happy to get my hands on any stone I could find. (a weka is an annoying flightless bird notorious for getting into tents/packs & pilfering anything you dont tie down when camping) Remember Paip? :lol:

Still havent finished my swap piece. Knowing me I will get a pic of him at 11.45pm on Sunday night, looking straight down on him so the freshly glued eyes dont fall out. :lol: Stay tuned...

I have picked up another shop order which is going to take me away from anything Tiki for a couple of weeks, but in the not so distant future I have a couple of Tiki-commissions that have somehow sneaked through the barriers...

Happy carving all!
Tama :)