Lake Tiki - 8/23/2013 - Red Cedar

Tiki Kupcake... I've got to finish them first. :wink: They might turn out horrid.

big daddy, thanks much!

I love to see where my carvings end up after they leave my hands... and its a real honor for someone to make them a part of their home like this.

Yeah, right! I have not seen a single one of your pieces turn out bad. There have been so many that I've wanted.

..okay lake...since you didn't like my sign replica idea for your tiki bar carvings, you leave me no choice.....i'm going to have to start making replicas of the wrecking balls that originally demolished the original bars your replicas are based on....they will be in scale with your tiki temples.....i would appreciate it if you built these so that they can easily come apart as i would like to have my wrecking ball actually function......it can hang on the wall next to the temple and when the wrecking is done, your temple will be able to fit together again like a puzzle for more wrecking fun!!...:)

..seriously - those look really good!! keep up the good work!

Lake very classy looking work! Man everything about this goes
well together the color the wood your carvings. Fantastic!

You are going to be doing this tell you retire if this get out.

Tiki Kupcake, I really appreciate your vote of confidence! :)

Naw, these are turning out pretty good for a first run.

Tipsy, I think you're on to something. :wink: Kids would love 'em!

Thanks for the compliments, Dave, but there's many times I think that I've gotten in over my head on these things.
I just want to get the first one done and out of the way so I can breathe a sigh of relief.

If I can get the damn raffia to stick to the awning sometime this weekend, I'll have a super update by Monday morning.

The whole thing should hopefully be done by then so I can distract myself with something else before I finish up the second Tiki Temple I started with the first.

Sometime in February, I have the basics of a huge building cut out, that one will take some time.

Seeks, thanks man! It's cool 'cause I can tell you're on the same wavelength as me on these. The goal was to keep them in the style that I'm accustomed to with the darker, earthy colors and have the whole piece tie together well. One of the biggest concerns of mine when I started, but so far it seems like I am succeeding at my goals.

Have a good weekend everyone, I'll have some pretty pictures for you on Monday morning!

Lake,

Thought of you today while riding from HB to Balboa with

C'Al and my son Jack.

High 70's...total glassy....no waves though...

a killer day for a bike ride.

When you moving out here??

C'MON, Hurry Up will'Ya? We're All sitting here on the edge of our seats waiting for these things. Lookin' Great So Far lake!

Benboo... sounds wonderful.

Nothing better than peddling the bike path along the beach on a sunny day.

Would love to move except I've got this house thing that isn't paid off yet. :wink:

I told myself (and the wahine) no more Wisconsin after I'm 50.

I want to enjoy my later years. :wink:

Benzart... go ahead, ease back in your seat... its Monday morning!

Whew.

I lost track of how many hours went into this one.

34" W x 11 1/2" H x 4 1/2" deep.

And it hangs on a wall.

Really, I tried it out. :)

Want to see more of them?

You'll have to wait until August. :wink:

The limited collection of 8 - 10 different Tiki Temples will be available exclusively at Tiki Oasis 2009.

[ Edited by: Lake Surfer 2009-03-04 23:56 ]

Holy hell that is one amazing piece!

Can't wait to see what else you come up with .

awesome job lake......i'd love to see that as a liquor bottle shelf.....with a platform to hold the bottles right at the roof line and the temple sittin right below it....

leleliz... many thanks for the kind compliment!

I need to get back to some stock work for a few days and give my brain a rest. :wink:

Thanks Dave... I love how you always think of ways to make my work more difficult. :wink:

wow so cool keep up the good work

Well Worth Waiting for Lake, Excellent job!

Thanks Dave... I love how you always think of ways to make my work more difficult. :wink:

..sorry...can't help myself...it's a habit i picked up building sign replicas! :)

Great Lakes Surfer dude,..........what they all said.

Great idea and excellent execution!!

holy guacamole !! well worth the wait you made us make. that is just awesome and the detail is incredible. did you actually sleep any while doing this or were you just on a long carving jag? looks beautiful. congrates and can't wait to see the rest.

bd

Marcus, Ben, Dave, Vic and Tom, many, many mahalos for all your compliments!

I really appreciate the input and feedback of all the artists here... there is no other place like this for like minded artists to share and become inspired by everyone's work!

big daddy... you snuck in under my radar as I was posting, but thanks so much for the kind compliments!

I did sleep, barely... and when I was sleeping I was thinking about what I was going to do next. :wink:

Hard to put projects down and actually sleep when you get going on things and that passion for creating runs strong.

Aloha!

That is awesome and such an incredible amount of detail...wow, love it! Any chance you might bring it down for a pre-Oasis debut at the Chef's Chinese New Year celebration later this month? :D

Lake - your stuff looks great on albino tiki's bar! Love the tiki temple! Would look killer backlighted or rigged with miniature lights/LEDs. Ya, I know, that'd be even more work huh? I predict the will sell out quick!

Many thanks albino tiki, for the kind commendations!

I'm detail obsessed, and these creations will allow me to work out those problems. :wink:

I think I will have it on display at the Chef event for the local Ohana... I've had some other requests.
I'm looking forward to the event!

BigT: Thanks for the kudos!

Having a lot of fun here concepting, building and seeing the finished results of the work I've been doing!

That's the double reward of creating art... happy creating and seeing the new owner happy with their creation!

I love your suggestions, who knows, they may come to fruition as I continue to build out more of the collection.
I'm over the hump, and know that I've figured out the ins and outs I can build on to the idea.

I'm getting one! I am going to Tiki Oasis this year! YAY!

Looking forward to meeting you in August, Tiki Kupcake... and thanks for your support!

POOL PARTY!!!

On 2009-02-04 08:06, RevBambooBen wrote:
POOL PARTY!!!

Cannonball!!!

I'm currently carving an order for Trader Vic's Chicago...

the deal went through this morning and delivery takes place on Saturday. :)

Gonna be burning the midnight oil on this one!

Congratulations, it's a cool feeling, you'll probably be wanting to frame that first PO.
The Tiki Temples are fantastic too.

Congratulations!! They don't give you much time, huh? Oh well, you seem to be able to crank your work out with great speed and skill.

Numatiki is taking me to TV Friday night for my birthday. Maybe we will have to go back on Saturday to check out the improvements. :)

that's really cool. congratulations. i must make a pilgrimage in order to see any trader vic's. had i known they were so cool when i was a youngster i would have hoarded all the stuff my uncle brought home from work. he worked at the houston location many, many, many years ago. unfortunately, he wasn't a collector. guess i now have a really good excuse to go visit those relatives in chi-town. congrates again.

bd

Waiting on the stain to dry before I start the finishng details...

cheekytiki, thanks for the congrats!

Its a real honor to be a part of an establishment like Trader Vic's... decking out a local tiki bar is great, but Vic's is a whole 'nother level.

albino tiki... I love working under pressure. :)

They actually asked what I had in stock, but I am creating all brand new pieces for this job... with a little extra special tooling involved.

Happy early Birthday to you... hope you have an enjoyable evening at Trader Vic's!

I'm not sure when my work is going up, but it will be featured in the private room that is being finished up.

The wahine and I are meeting some friends for drinks and dinner on Saturday which works out great for hand delivery of the new masks.

Swing down if you're free, if not I'll see you guys at the Chef.

big daddy... thanks very much for the congrats!

If you're in Chicago, for sure spend an evening at Vic's!

It's 80 miles for me, and worth every mile... they did a wonderful job with the new location!

Lake! I've been meaning to comment on your recent stuff, I finally get time, log on, and THIS! That's awesome. Your hardwork is paying off!
I love your brilliant new idea on the Tiki establishments. Such a good idea. Something NEW to create, delve into, with so many possibilities. It gave ME an idea or two. I got one started now...keep ya posted.
Keep the stoke!
-Dave (the other)

surfin Dave!

Thanks for stopping by... and thanks for the compliments! Glad I've inspired the wheels of your mind to start spinning!

Vic's purchased another extra piece from me last minute in addition to the custom ones I created for them.

It was a busy end to the week!

Last night we met some friends for dinner and I handed off the new additions to the manager.

He showed me where their new home will be... in the party room all decked out with tapa and bamboo.

They should go up very soon, and when I get back down to Vic's I can get some pictures of them on the walls.

[ Edited by: Lake Surfer 2009-02-08 19:46 ]

Another new collection in the works!

This one will premier at the Chef Shangri-La Chinese New Year Party on February 21'st!

Come check it out, and enjoy the great music, great food and great drinks at the Chef!

I will also have items from this collection at the events I am vending at this summer... updates to come!

Amazing!!!

Thanks so much, Clarita!

More to come soon!

Can't wait for the february the 23rd to have the pix on T.C.
Seems like your hands are on fire !

Benjamin.

Benjamin,

Many thanks!

I might just sneak in a preview by the end of the week! :wink:

Tha's ma boyee!

Hey Lake,

These Tiki Temple wall hanging are a terrific idea. They look great. I can't wait to see the next one you come up with.

LT!
LOOKIN GREAT!
Way cool you have work in TV's!
Your Tiki temples should be
in every single TikiBar
the fancy ones and the home-built ones!

May 3rd is just around the corner!
WHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOP!

Sick Dave! it looks so real! Like people might walk out and drive away.
Really nice detail here.

Big shout-outs to Tiki Diablo, Babalu, LLT, and Seeks!

Mahalo guys!

Babalu, next one's coming up soon, I've got to finish up a few more of the "Fire" series.
Sneak peaks to come.

LLT, I like how you think! :wink:

Seeks, I swear I saw a little someone swagger out of there the other day. :o

Got some waves Tuesday!!!

Big meltdown with temps in the high 50's and a water temp of 34 degrees. Made for a good 3 hour session.
Back to winter by the weekend, but at least the ice is gone.

Hard to keep all the projects I've got going straight these days.

But as the sawdust settles a little, I find my way over to the 8 brand spanking new "Island Fire Collection" pieces!

They will make their debut this Saturday at 7 PM at Chef Shangri-La in the suburbs of Chicago!

The forecast calls for a snowstorm of 6-8 inches, but the weather be damned!

These guys are ready to be seen!

Hope to see the local Ohana out in force for some great drinks, great tunes from the Bikini Beachcombers and the Cocktail Preachers and great food from the Chef!

Oh yea, and there will be some local kine tiki creations to check out and purchase for your hale. :wink:

In other news... putting the wraps on another "Tiki Temple" in the next week... a Marquesan theme for a smaller "hut" style tiki bar.

I'm swinging by Trader Vic's Chicago for a couple Mai Tais and to hopefully get pictures of my new work for them hanging on the walls.

I'll post photos up as soon as I get them.

And then I've got this other little "collection" thing going... again, local peeps get a look-see at this venture this Saturday at Chef Shangri-La. :wink:

All in due time. :wink:

Coming to Tiki Oasis 2009 with guns blazing!

[ Edited by: Lake Surfer 2009-02-20 00:41 ]

Special shout-out to LLT and BenbooBen... thanks for the best wishes via Myspace... :wink:

You guys are both kicking out some top notch creativity... and keepin' it tiki!

Jetted over to Trader Vic's on Saturday before the Chef Shangri-La event to check out my work that was hung last week.

A proud milestone for me, and Chicago's GM is stoked on them.

The work I did for them are centerpieces in the room with other art to come hung around them.

The carvings work well with the barkcloth and the other tikis in the room.

It was a little tough shooting pictures with the lighting in the room, very yellow and on a dimmer... we tried cranking the lights up a bit but that washed out some things.
I'll try for some better pictures next time, but for now here's a look...

:up: My "Beachcomber Ku" on one of the walls

:up: My Marquesan Honu on another wall

:up: Tangaroa Mask

:up: Room overview with the Ku on the back wall and Tangaroa on the side wall

:up: Marquesan Mask on another wall

:up: Kona Style Mask on the west wall of the room.

:up: A washed-out closeup of the "Beachcomber Ku" on the wall

Another trip to the museum Monday for some research, then tying up some loose ends on some unfinished projects this week...

More goodies to come!

[ Edited by: Lake Surfer 2009-02-23 23:04 ]