Witco freaks

Anybody here able to identify a Witco peice for me if I provide a pic? I can't be certain that the sig is Witco. It looks like Withcom to be honest, very hard to read.

Anyway, it's a couple of ships on a sponge paint looking background. The style is certainly Witco even if the piece isn't.

Anyway, it's for sale and cheap at this place near by. I'm not much of a Witco fan save for the tiki specific items, but if it is Witco and someone might want it I'd take a digital pic and maybe pic it up for them.

Ahu

"Work is the curse of the drinking classes."

-Oscar Wilde

[ Edited by: Ku Ku Ahu on 2004-11-28 15:35 ]

Ku Ku Ahu!
If you can provide a pic, I'd love to see it (and possibly buy it if you don't want it for yourself).

Just let me know!

Mahalo!

[email protected]
or
[email protected]

I'll get a pic tomorrow for ya if I have time to hit that shop. Hopefully it will still be there.

Ahu

where in ohio are you? TD

On 2004-11-29 15:31, TIKI DAVID wrote:
where in ohio are you? TD

Kahiki, Ohio

(Columbus)

Ku Ku

Okay, here's the situation for all interested parties.

I'm going to go there (the store) tomorrow and see if it is still there. I'm going to go ahead and buy it then and post a pic.

The problem is that one member here wants it sight unseen, but another has inquired about it first. I'm not looking to profit on this thing, I just thought it would be good in an aloha spirit sense to pass along an item to someone that would like it. It's a cool piece but it's not my bag.

I spend alot of time hunting stores for neat-o stuff like this and it seems like as a community we might pass along info on items we leave behind for others.

So how can we get this thing to somebody fairly when there is a good bit of interest?

I'm open to suggestions. Lottery? A forum members only auction? What? All I need to get out of it is the price + shipping and packing and maybe a thank you.

I suppose we can talk about it after the pic is posted, but the person who wants it sight unseen seems to be a reasonable choice.

I guess we could auction it here with any profit going to TC or something.

Ahu

I'm curious to see this too! I've got a large Witco piece with ships on it as well, and am wondering if this might be the same one or perhaps one that would go well with mine...

On 2004-11-29 15:45, Ku Ku Ahu wrote:
I guess we could auction it here with any profit going to TC or something.

you could buy yourself a Grand Membership!

I say let the first person that publicly replied to your post have the first crack at it...

Of course that's my biased opinion.

:)

Witco made many ship wall paintings/carvings, on canvas, fake fur, or other cloth that had only "accents" of paint on it. If it is a fully painted background it is likely to be non-Witco.
If there is a signature on the front, it will read "Wilrongo", not a Polynesian deity, but the first syllables of the three designers, WILliam Westernhaver, RONald Hovde, and GOrdon Robb.
And we are not "Witco Freaks".

On 2004-11-29 20:49, bigbrotiki wrote:
Witco made many ship wall paintings/carvings, on canvas, fake fur, or other cloth that had only "accents" of paint on it. If it is a fully painted background it is likely to be non-Witco.
If there is a signature on the front, it will read "Wilrongo", not a Polynesian deity, but the first syllables of the three designers, WILliam Westernhaver, RONald Hovde, and GOrdon Robb.

Well, there ya go. That explains why I couldn't nail down the sig as "Witco". It is certainly a Witco piece based upon the paint, the style, and the sig. Thanks for the expertise, I appreciate it.

And we are not "Witco Freaks".

Of course you're not...but it got your attention didn't it? :wink:

Ku Ku

I AM a Witco freak!

Arrrgh...

I just called the shop and talked with the guy I spoke with last sunday. He says the picture is still there, but that it is $75.

Now when I expressed a passing interest in it and told him it was possibly a Witco it was $45. That was a mistake on my part I guess. I never should have mentioned that it was a desirable work by a known company.

So there you have it. My fault. Sorry for getting everyone worked up over it.

I have decided not to go and pick it up now due to the price jump. I'm glad I called first and got the owner. If I'd gone down there and had to talk to some kid I'd be angry.

If you all still want me to photograph it at that price I will go down there this week, but I am a little disenchanted about the whole thing now.

Ahu

[ Edited by: Ku Ku Ahu on 2004-11-30 11:53 ]

I agree. That stinks that he would do that. I'd pass just because he did that. Thanks for posting though!

[whine]But I still wanna see it!![/whine]

On 2004-11-30 17:43, Doctor Z wrote:
[whine]But I still wanna see it!![/whine]

Well, I'll tell ya what, I'll go take a pic since there are a few items at the store that I'd like to look at again anyway.

He has bunch of cool furniture that I didn't get a chance to peruse on sunday due to my interest in his tiki stuff (which BTW was a major score the subject of which will have to be an entry in the "finds" thread).

I'm not sure when I'll go down there, but likely this week or weekend.

If the owner guy is there (though he likely will not be) I'll try to haggle him down to a more reasonable price. If I decide to buy some other tiki items I had my eye on (mugs and a lava lamp) I may be able to get him to cut me a deal on the Witco.

I dunno.

Either way, you'll get to see it. (Anybody able to host the pic for me on a moments notice?)

Ku Ku Ahu

Ku Ku Ahu wrote:

I just called the shop and talked with the guy I spoke with last sunday. He says the picture is still there, but that it is $75.

Now when I expressed a passing interest in it and told him it was possibly a Witco it was $45. That was a mistake on my part I guess. I never should have mentioned that it was a desirable work by a known company.

I had something similar happen this past summer...and with Witcos, at that. I was negotiating to buy a pair of owner-painted Witcos (I wasn't using the company name) from a large family that was selling a lot of decor from their defunct sort-of-tiki restaurant. During the negotiation, I posted a question to TC about painted Witcos along with a pic of the ones in question, which almost turned out to be a mistake.

The next time I saw the owner, the price of ONLY those pieces had doubled and I was suspicious. I had many more questions about things these people were selling but avoided posting anymore. I later bought the Witcos from another member of the family - one who was more "get it out the door" oriented - and paid less than the original quoted price.

When all the negotiations were over, I learned that the guy who had raised the price had been reading TC, which I had recommended months earlier when the restaurant was open so that he might tikify the place in a more tasteful manner.

Has anyone else been bitten on the rear by their own altruistic sharing of tiki information?

YES!

On 2004-12-01 04:00, tikijackalope wrote:
Has anyone else been bitten on the rear by their own altruistic sharing of tiki information?

Well, I did mention TC to the guy, but I doubt he came in and sifted through posts that quickly to change his mind.

My guess is that he either quoted me the wrong price to begin with (45 vs. 75 ...well, my hand written sevens could be mistaken for fours. I suppose he might have the same chicken scratch problem), or he changed it after I left because I gave him a maker name to research.

I'm not convinced there is "foul play" going on here. The guy saw my passing interest and then I told him it wasn't my thing and I wouldn't be buying it. If he raises the price after I do all that and give him a positive word on the item, I guess I can't blame him.

He is in the antiques business after all.

Now the funny bit on the ass story actually involves my wife. We were out junk shopping last December and managed to come across a large collection of vintage volcano bowls and skulls mugs. I'm a sucker for skulls, and the volcanos were in great shape, but with the holidays aproaching it wasn't prudent for me to buy them for myself.

My wife insisted that they would be there when I had the money and that we should move on.

Two weeks later on monday morning I had called them to see if they were still there. The lady tells me that yes they were still there and I could get them for 50% off.

Wow!

So I tell her I'll be in tommorow evening to pick them up.

When I arrive to get them...they are gone. I'm really upset about it, but it's not the end of the world I guess. Just such a good bargain for such nice (though common) pieces.

That weekend we are in the same store with some friends who went to pick up a piece of furniture. When we head to the register area the woman behind the counter smiles at my wife and says, "Did you manage to get all of the tiki mugs home safely?"

My christmas present.

The lady was embarassed once she got the message behind the red-faced angry stare my wife was shooting her.

Anyway, I opened them that day at my wife's behest, and told her how much I loved her and that it didn't matter that I found out early.

I'm not sure it helped 'cause we don't go to that store as often anymore.

Heh heh heh!

Ku Ku

"Work is the curse of the drinking classes."

-Oscar Wilde

[ Edited by: Ku Ku Ahu on 2004-12-01 12:00 ]