Tikiwahine's Creations - Update Jan 22 - Mug shelf & rockin' out

Aloha all!

Here are a couple of tiki related things I've done. I'll add more as they come, however few and far between they are. I hope you enjoy my creations!

First off is the Moai bowl I drempt about in a hotel room, then awoke and just had to draw it. The bowl looks more like a hat or an angel food cake pan than a volcano, but dreams are funny sometimes!
Maybe someday I could refine this idea and actually make a bowl from it, that would be cool.

Next is an idea I've had for a long time. To combine tiki patio lights with solar powered garden stakes. Unfortunately, this was an expensive endeavor, and I've only done one so far. When husband returns I'll send him back to Home depot for more supplies(nuts and washers and such) so I can do all the other colours. They ended up costing me around $20 each in supplies.

[ Edited by: Tikiwahine 2008-01-22 17:56 ]

Very, VERY cool stuff, Tikiwahine... I had no idea that there was such creativity brewing there!

Tikiwahine, how about a Solar Powered Tiki Garden Light how-to & photo essay? I'm sure more people than just me are interested in the possibilities.

Thanks Sam! :)

I feel tiny in this vast sea of professional artistry, I can't believe I started my own thread!

Tapa lamps, fish float lamps, wicker lamps, small tiki quilts(wallhangings), drawings & a ceiling installation are other things you can expect to see here in the next few months.

Freddie, I will definitely do that.

It'll have to wait until next month, but when I put the other ones together I'll do a photo journal & how-to.
Chop sticks come into play, in an unexpected, mechanical way.

Very cool. I would like to see the lamp how to . I hope you will post pics of your tiki renovation when you start.

Yay for the Wahine. Bring it on girl.... Bring it on.

No one is tiny in this sea of small fish

Nice first "creating" post TiWa. The solar lamp looks sweet. Now you have to keep 'em coming.

Go Wahine!

Great idea for the solar lamps. I just bought a set at Costco - I wonder if they can be converted?

Aaron

That is a very cool idea!!! Good Job TW!!

When I saw your post I thought of a brand new technology and I love the opportunity to share.

Konarka’s photovoltaic fibers and durable plastics bring power-generating capabilities to structures including tent, awnings, roofs, windows and window coverings.

Huge potential for investors and inventors/designers.

Every one is an artist. I have a friend who owns a land scaping business. You might not think mowing lawns and digging in gardens is an artform. I drove by one of the run down properties he recently took over. you should see this yard now. It is a masterpiece.

http://www.konarka.com/products/

The torch is a neat idea. This site might give you some design options.

Aloha
E

[ Edited by: AlienTiki 2005-07-13 00:53 ]

On 2005-07-12 11:36, Tikiwahine wrote:
I feel tiny in this vast sea of professional artistry, I can't believe I started my own thread!

Tapa lamps, fish float lamps, wicker lamps, small tiki quilts(wallhangings), drawings & a ceiling installation are other things you can expect to see here in the next few months.

What are you on? From the sound of it you have plenty to offer! From these early pieces, the quality and ingenuity is up there too. Cool going, can't wait to see more :)

Now there's a "Bright" idea. Actually these are Very neat and look Cool. Get mor ehardware so we can see'em all.

I love the light.Great idea-chopsticks-hoodathunk?

Hey everyone!
Thanks for the kind words & encouragement!
Very much appreciated :)

That's very interesting AlienTiki. Other forms of energy have always interested me. My husband and I have talked about installing a heat pump on our property, but have settled with an on-demand tankless hot water system, for now.

After installing electricity to my pond and a sprinkler system, I'm done with digging trenches. Solar power helps me feel better about having the waterfall running 24/7 :)

Yesterday my Dad stopped by my work and we had a conversation about adding an little roof extension to the back of the addition on my house.

I scribbled it down on the back of my time sheet, and decided to scan it before handing it in today. Here it is! Not technical or anything, but since I'm turning my current patio into the enclosed Huki Lounge(it will be attached to the left side of the building in this drawing), I'll need another outdoor spot for the BBQ, patio furniture, etc.

I think it would be super cool to have something like this projecting into the backyard!
(float would of course be illuminated)

Something like this?

Humphrey's Half Moon Inn, San Diego.

Smaller, reverse view.

Rev. Dr. Frederick J. Freelance, Ph.D., D.F.S

[ Edited by: freddiefreelance 2005-07-14 13:42 ]

haha! YA!
It has to be self supported, and maybe slightly smaller.
Only slightly though :wink:

Did your dream bowl look like this???

Love the light project you did by the way!

Woah! That's awesome 8'!
That bowl has a wayy better volcano that the one in my dream, but the colour is almost identical! Same shade, and the moai are almost the exact same size!

I would say that is more the bowl of my dreams, and almost the bowl in my dreams!

I wish I had dreams like this. Ok get to sculpting!

TW what great ideas! Putting the hat on the solar lights will save them from losing color in the sun and gives them a great Oriental look!

Hey Motiki! Thanks!

The hat is unfortunately only evening attire.

Beneath it is the solar panel that gathers energy during the day, however he does look rather smart in it.

Great Idea TW! Looks Fab!

hey tikiwahine, i just saw you bit about the solar powered tiki lights in the backyard!! soooo kewl! i love it. great job dear!
maholo nui

Earlier this year I had an idea for a lit address sign. Made from metal, it would have cutouts with frosted glass behind, then lit from within. The part on the top is supposed to be flames. I think photoshop screwed them up or something, they hardly look like flames in this picture, but you get the idea.

My husband said that it's too crazy looking(our house has a sort of english cottage look to the front of it), and it would have to be huge for the numbers to be big enough. I didn't quite understand what his point was.

He suggested that I have someone make me some little guys like this, as garden lights, and thus the solar powered tiki idea came about. I would still love to have one or more of these made from a cylinder of metal, without the numbers of course.

When the 5 palm trees I planted out front get bigger, he might just change his mind.

I drew this guy one day, I was thinking that there aren't nearly enough moku sporting tikis. He's very simple, but I thought I'd share anyhow.

Cool! I'd recommend redoing the entire front of the house to match your sign.

:D

Youve been holding out on us. The metal tiki sign is a great idea.. Now when hubby is away just convert the front of the house . He cant make you change it back once its done.

That last one could be a cool tattoo.

I have another light related project I forgot all about!
Last year for the Hukilau I made a pufferfish necklace.
It was hard getting him to swallow the tiny bulb :wink:

Cool Puffer light! Didn't Flounder make a small one like that, too? I'd love to see a step-by-step on how to make something like that, I've wanted to investigate Puffer Lights that are more durable than those made from actual Puffer Fish, something that'll hold up to the outdoors.

On 2005-07-27 11:42, Tikiwahine wrote:

I drew this guy one day, I was thinking that there aren't nearly enough moku sporting tikis. He's very simple, but I thought I'd share anyhow.

Awesome design, simple and clear!

Freddie: Thanks! I'd love to see what Flounder's done with a puffer. I'm also curious about Swanky's LED puffer project, I'm wondering if it's tiny enough to go inside one of these.

This one comes in a larger size as well, about as big as your fist.

For the glow in this tiny one I found a light up gemstone ring at the dollar store, the ones with the cheesy oversized diamond you twist to turn on. These are good because they emit a glow all the way around, instead of a focused beam. All the excess plastic was dremeled away(makes quite the mess!) so that it will fit inside his belly. A small slit is made in his underside, big enough to slip the little light inside and out. The necklace was added in the Hukilau Hurricane room by putting a little hole in his top, slipping both ends of the necklace through then tying a knot on the inside(which is easy with his slit belly) Ta-Da! If you like, I can take him apart and take a couple pictures.

FezApe, thanks so much! I'm glad you like him! I sketched this guy on a piece of paper, then scanned him into Illustrator and traced him vector style.

Cool stuff wahine. I like the idea of that sign. Perhaps the idea in wood could work well? Blend in a little better?

The puffer fish is cool. Get a heap of them and make like a set of christmas lights!

That necklace is something else, TikiWahine! Very cool!

I like the necklace. Will you be wearing it at this year's Hukilau?

Thanks Hewey!
Wood would blend in well! Maybe a flat relief? Like a panel or something?
I love the Christmas light idea, I could hang them all over the tree, or make a garlandy thing to adorn the house! I need to find a more appropriate ready-made light. Grinding all that plastic away takes so long, there must be another type of small light that doesn't flash.(maybe those tiny glow sticks people used to put in their mouths at clubs?)

Thanks Sam!
I'd love to make more and offer them to TCers, or get everyone making their own!

Hey Raffer!
If I can make it to Hukilau, I'll be wearing it.

Let's Build a Solar Powered Tiki!
The parts I have used may not work with all solar light sets, but these plans can be easily modified.

Tiki Patio Lights

Here are some of the pieces you'll need to put this together. The blue thing on the left is an "ABS Test Cap" We'll be using it to create a large plastic washer, but any semi-rigid cuttable plastic would do.

We used metal washers, but another one made from plastic might be better, since the metal rusts.

The PVC fitting is a '1/2" Liquidtight Straight Fitting'. It's important that the fitting friction fits inside the metal post that holds the tiki above the ground.
The post is threaded inside on one end. It's important that you pound the fitting into the non-threaded end, since you will be screwing the pointy ground stake into the threaded end.

This is the set of lights I used. Any set will do, provided the light unit will fit inside the plastic tikis.

Remove and throw away the rubber o-ring. Remove the plastic nut, we will be using it later.

We will be inserting the non-threaded end of the PVC fitting into the non-threaded end of the metal tube.

Find a surface you don't mind mucking up(ie a block of wood) and pound that sucker in! You won't need to use a hammer, just take out a little frustration.

You'll need to make a washer out of the plastic, and a 3/4" wood spade bit made the right size hole.(use the end of the PVC fitting to figure out the size) It depends on your post size, so you might need to tweak it a bit(we used scissors to scrape it out a bit)

It doesn't have to be pretty, it will be hidden inside, but it should be a snug fit.

Like this.

Now put the washer on the bottom of the tiki, and insert the fitting.

Like this.

Holding the tiki and the parts on the bottom, insert the plastic washer through the top.

You will need some long pliers(at least 11"). We used chopsticks the first time, but it was very frustrating.

Using the pliers, push the plastic washer all the way down the threads on the PVC fitting.

Holding the plastic nut(flat side down) with the pliers, insert them both through the top of the tiki. Try to thread the nut onto the fitting. To tighten the nut, twist the post rather than turning the pliers. It's much easier.

Place the light on the top

All Done!
If you don't feel like going to all this trouble, I can make up some more and sell them for $20US each, plus whatever the shipping is. (will also swap for tiki art)

[ Edited by: Tikiwahine 2005-08-29 12:28 ]

Cool studd wahine! Awesome step by step. Im a little worried about how hairy your arms are for a "wahine" though :)

TikiWahine, Excellent work and tha lighted puffer pendant is KILLER, and Sure to cause a Riot if you were to pull out a bag full for sale. You have steadily been producing some great art pieces. Just keep the flow coming. Very Nice.

Thanks Hewey & Ben!
I think I may have solved the glowing guts problem with the puffer. I think I've got an easy cheap solution, I'll post tonight if my idea works.

Would love to make a lil puffer light necklace myself! Can't wait to see the details! That is so cute!!

No worries Hewey, I was taking the pictures & Hubby was holding the bits and pieces. No hairy arms here.

TTB, my idea is to use a tiny little glow stick. They're only good for a one time use, but they're tiny and would fit through a smaller hole. You can probably get them for 50-75 cents(they're $1 for a pack of 2 earrings up here)

I totally forgot about it last night, as we were ripping up cork and preparing two meals at once(crock pot stew for tonight). As soon as it gets dark I'll post a couple of pictures.

Mahalo!

Well, the little glow sticks didn't produce enough light, so I'm off on another hunt to find a little light source.

On 2005-09-04 11:30, Tikiwahine wrote:
Well, the little glow sticks didn't produce enough light, so I'm off on another hunt to find a little light source.

Maybe try an electronics store and get some LEDs?

Nice step-by-step, TW! Thanks for putting that together for us. Way cool idea!

A-A

This weekend I finally got my mug shelf put together and mounted.

I stained the shelves & shelf supports, and used a dowel to make pegs that will support a fishing line rail along the front. I used a dremel to carve little Tiki Bob tributes into the 5" pegs before staining, then gluing & screwing them into the shelves. The shelf is 16' long.

:down: Here DrunkenMunky pre-drills holes for the drywall anchors.

:down: Some of the little faces. This was my first carving and staining experience.

:down: The brackets are up, and the shelves have been screwed down to them.

:down: Mugs are finally up. Vintage on the left, new on the right.

It's amazing how few mugs this thing holds, I figure I need at least one more this size just to get all my mugs up on the wall. I'd like to clear off the other shelf unit below so I can display all my Treasure Craft, Coco Joe's, Hip Original and wooden items.

We're thinking of trimming the shelf front and brackets in bamboo, and installing a plate rail below the brackets. I think LPs will fit perfectly in the 16" spaces.

The ceiling is going to be covered in matting and bamboo eventually, since it has a wonderful vaulted shape to it.

Thanks for looking! I've been waiting forever to get a shelf like this up, it's great to finally have it done.

Nice job Wahine. From the looks of it you could use more than a few of those shelves.
The little carvings are a great idea for fishline railing holders.