giant swizzle sticks project - creature's cove finished !! last pg.

greetings all-

just wanted to share progress on one of my side projects that coincides with the sign replicas i have been making......it's an idea i have been kickin around for sometime now and have finally managed to forge ahead with it. It all started when my girlfriend was tellin me about a dream she had about being in a salvation army store and finding a barrel full of sticks with carved tikis on the ends of them.......a little bulb went off and i said sounds like giant swizzle sticks!...and thus a new project series was born......basically, i want to make giant replicas of vintage swizzles as well as create new ones (or custom ones for personal bars), not exactly true to actual swizzles but ones of my own creation.....like the example below which is half finished..... Aku Aku didn't have a cool swizzle in actuality...so i took liberties and made a new design......this one i made out of MDF particle board.....keeps it lightweight and sturdy....I also plan to experiment with ones out of colored acrylic for a very real looking swizzle and ones that are made out of regular wood and stained - just to get a feel for different looks that i can acheive with these.......They will be able to hang on walls both vertical and horizontal.....the same hooks on the back will enable one to hang them from the ceiling by thin cable so that a viewer can look up and see the sticks facing down at them.....these will work great in small places like above windows and alongside doors or any other place that is hard to fill with just the right tiki decor (especially if the wooden tiki spoon and fork is your only option). On this particular one i am going to keep the colors down to 2 shades of red....dark for the base and outlines and light for the flat surfaces....this swizzle is about 5 ft long.....sizes will vary but will all be about the same scale,,,,the tiki or whatever the main icon happens to be on these will be removable via screws so that i can ship these in a shorter package if need be....I'm hoping to pitch this idea to a few bars.....i think a few of these would look cool behind a bar mounted on a wall or even have a bunch floating off the ceiling......(hey ben, does frankies need a giant swizzle or 2 for their new bar ??).. :)

anyway- enough yappin on my part.....here's the pics!!!

[ Edited by: Tipsy McStagger 2011-06-26 18:00 ]

[ Edited by: Tipsy McStagger 2011-08-06 16:34 ]

[ Edited by: Tipsy McStagger 2012-01-19 19:38 ]

[ Edited by: Tipsy McStagger 2017-07-08 05:38 ]

Very cool Tip.

What a great idea. Let us know when you are taking personal orders...I would love to have one built for my home bar. :)

Another great idea. Keep em coming, Tipsy!

......(hey ben, does frankies need a giant swizzle or 2 for their new bar ??)..

Give them a jingle.

They're open 24hrs a day!

I picked this up at Frankie's on Grand Opening Night:

It's a little smaller than yours...

Drake made it.

Buzzy Out!

[ Edited by: Bay Park Buzzy 2009-02-19 23:20 ]

Kick ass idea Dave, and great execution!

Something about being stuck indoors for 6 months out of the year... gets the wheels turning. :wink:

See ya Saturday!

thanks for the kind words everyone!!

damn buzzy!!......small world after all....had i known frankies was using the same moai like i did here i would have hit them up sooner!! :)...perry has helped me out with stuff in the past....hopefully he still has the moai on file and if they want i can scale it up......except i'll probably get rid of "grand opening " and change it to "Las Vegas Nevada".........

Ben- awww!! your're not gonna be my marketing agent in the field no more ??!! :) .......keep me in mind for future projects just the same, though!! -thanks!

vampiress - i'll keep you posted!! -thanks!!

lake surfer - see ya saturday - can't wait to check out your new stuff !!

,,Next swizzle coming up after this "swampfire lounge"....which will probably go to doug after it's done. It will feature a flat 3-d likeness of his tiki logo on one end, overhanging letters (like in the frankies swizzle), and a 3-d spearhead type thing on other end of end of the swizzle.

• if you haven't guessed already, yes, i have been using letters that were left over from previous sign projects i did in the past.....i like the recycling aspect to these....it beats just tossing them out....

stay tuned!!

[ Edited by: Tipsy McStagger 2009-02-20 05:11 ]

On 2009-02-19 19:48, Tipsy McStagger wrote:
....this one i made out of MDF particle board....this swizzle is about 5 ft long.....

How's the MDF carve, does it hold together well? Seems like it would be crumbly.
You should put something in the pics for scale, it does not look 5 ft!
Great idea, but now you need to carve a giant mug to put it in!

Fine looking piece, Tipsy, and a cool original idea!
MDF is the greatest stuff to carve, isn't it? With enough sanding and primering I've been able to achieve mirror smooth surfaces with it.

Bowana

i think mdf is quite versatile, but finishing can be a pain..done right, the effect is worth it....sometime i cheat though by using that texture finish spray paint. it helps to fill in the edges, which are the hardest part to get smooth.....bondo is your friend when it comes to this....just apply it to the edges, sand, prime then fill in any inconsistencies with some spot putty. ...prime again then paint.

..ya gotta use the dense mdf....your're right, the coarse stuff is way to crumbly. i would never consider using it for these.

...after i get this painted i'll post pics of it standing vertical against a door for scale....

[ Edited by: Tipsy McStagger 2009-02-20 08:46 ]

I would buy these in a heartbeat and can only imagine how many different ones you can create! Love this for sure and keep em coming!

yes VERY cool cant wait to see the progress!........custom orders is a great idea as well

I LOVE your giant swizzle stick!!!
What a great idea!

I keep looking at this, very cool!

Maybe one of these could be used as a home bar sign? I still need a sign for the Lava Lounge....

:drink:
Tacky

On 2009-02-22 09:48, Tacky Tiki wrote:
Maybe one of these could be used as a home bar sign? I still need a sign for the Lava Lounge....

:drink:
Tacky

...could easily be done.....let me know what you have in mind...

..and thanks everyone for the compliments...i should have more progress pics up in the next couple days....

Damn good idea.

The lettering looks as good as laser-cut.

On 2009-02-23 09:27, Robb Hamel wrote:
Damn good idea.

The lettering looks as good as laser-cut.

it should.....it is laser cut! :)

thanks!

Since it looks like it's laser cut and it is laser cut--where do you have it laser cut?

This looks great Dave, and it's a one of a kind great idea! You do some fine work!

On 2009-02-24 07:50, Sam Gambino wrote:
This looks great Dave, and it's a one of a kind great idea! You do some fine work!

thanks sam!!...now if i can get just convince you trade me some of your art for some of mine, the world would be a better place!! :)

...as for the swizzle....just finishing up the priming and spot putty.....tonight i'll get the inserts set to attach the head to the stick, drill holes for the hangers on the back, and glue all the letters on....tommorrow it's one more final coat of primer before it goes to paint..i found a color red i like that looks vintage...i'm painting the whole thing with this red/orange color and then painting the faces of all the letters in gold, just like a real swizzle would look....

stay tuned...i'll have pics as early as thurday night....

[ Edited by: Tipsy McStagger 2009-02-24 09:14 ]

Tipsy- based on where you and I say we're from, we must be neighbors :lol:

i'll also be making giant swizz . . . oh, wait, nevermind. :P

tipsy, i think it's a great idea.

Tipsy you always impress.

I am a big fan of blending old school creativity and artistic skill with modern day application of technology and computer aided cutting tools.

it makes for such brilliantly conceived ideas and flawless execution.

Thanks for sharing. Its fantastic.

On 2009-02-27 22:38, Monkeyman wrote:
Tipsy you always impress.

I am a big fan of blending old school creativity and artistic skill with modern day application of technology and computer aided cutting tools.

it makes for such brilliantly conceived ideas and flawless execution.

Thanks for sharing. Its fantastic.

thanks monkeyman!!.......i consider your lamp creations right up there with the best of em'.....you manage to keep the old school look with updated styles and patterns...always been a big fan of them.....i like the ottomans as well.....maybe you will make some more again soon ???..

I am completely blown away by the concept and the execution... both top notch!
AMAZING work, Tipsy!

thanks!!..sorry for delay on this....but i've been experimenting with the best way to paint this so that everything gets an even coat....got some minor patches to wet sand then a final coat....hope to see it finished by the end of the week....gotta finish up the details on doug's swampfire sign well.....stay tuned, they are both almost done!!

TAA-DAA!!!!!

...Finally got this one wrapped up..just have to add the hangers on the back and i will mount this on the wall for a better shot of it for ya!!......it measures about 6ft 4 inches from tip to tip...and about 10" wide at the head......I gave the head some texture to it and left the rest of the stick smooth...except for the letters which have texture on their sides.....

enjoy!

..i hope to start the next one this week.....stay tuned!!

" In a perfect world...Elvis would still be alive ....and all the elvis impersonators would be dead!!"

[ Edited by: Tipsy McStagger 2009-03-08 12:37 ]

Fan-freakin-tastic!

That really came out swell.

Now you better start cranking them out because I am sure orders for them will start stacking up!

WOW, Tipsy - that looks just plain AWESOME!!!!!!

Great Job Tippsy!!!
Now make me a huge drink to go with it.

..thanks gang!!

On 2009-03-08 13:56, tikiskip wrote:
Great Job Tippsy!!!
Now make me a huge drink to go with it.

:lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:

even looks like it has a seam from the shadow.

just need one of those little nipples from the pour spot...

Good Stuff!

On 2009-03-08 17:57, RevBambooBen wrote:
even looks like it has a seam from the shadow.

just need one of those little nipples from the pour spot...

Good Stuff!

thanks ben...i think.

what the hell are you talking about - pour spout??...nipples??

Tipsy, that is amazing!

man those are great!
i also like the idea of a giant coctail to go with it
could be a new record for ripleys!!!!

On 2009-03-08 18:17, Tipsy McStagger wrote:

On 2009-03-08 17:57, RevBambooBen wrote:
even looks like it has a seam from the shadow.

just need one of those little nipples from the pour spot...

Good Stuff!

thanks ben...i think.

what the hell are you talking about - pour spout??...nipples??

Took me a minute to get it too. He's saying that it looks so much like a real injection molded plastic swizzle stick that you can almost see the seam and the nipple where it attached to the sprue. (it's a compliment :) )

.got it!!....that wacky ben confuses me sometimes!! thanks again!

Elvis loves his new giant swizzle stick!!! .......and you will too!!!

(shown here next to what would be the actual size of the tiki mug that would go with it)

swizzle stick shown here is approximatly the correct proportion to what mine are in relation to an actual person.......and if i built a mug to go with it it would probably be better off as a tiki hot tub......

[ Edited by: Tipsy McStagger 2009-03-14 20:01 ]

Wow....looks like Elvis is packing some heat in those short shorts!

On 2009-03-14 20:49, leleliz wrote:
Wow....looks like Elvis is packing some heat in those short shorts!

..he's very excited about his new giant swizzle!......and if this is how elvis reacts.....imagine how you're gonna feel when you get a giant swizzle of your own!

On 2009-03-15 06:37, Tipsy McStagger wrote:
..he's very excited about his new giant swizzle!......and if this is how elvis reacts.....imagine how you're gonna feel when you get a giant swizzle of your own!

I'm pretty happy with my own giant 'swizzle', but these giant repro creations you're making are pretty incredible!
Now as long as no one else finds out about my idea for bar-stools in the form of extra-large flipped-open vintage matchbook-covers...

The difference between me and Elvis is no one will know I am very excited about my giant swizzle since this girl doesn't get the pleasure of having many giant swizzles come into her life! haha

Speaking of giant swizzles where is the next creation Tipsy? We are eager to see what one you recreate next so get to steppin!

On 2009-03-15 11:20, leleliz wrote:
The difference between me and Elvis is no one will know I am very excited about my giant swizzle since this girl doesn't get the pleasure of having many giant swizzles come into her life! haha

Speaking of giant swizzles where is the next creation Tipsy? We are eager to see what one you recreate next so get to steppin!

..i actually have an order from bamboolodge.....they will be using it over their booth at hukilau this year so you folks will get to see one up close.....

first though, i gotta finish doug's sign and ship that baby out!!.....

oh, laser cut? is the swap fire sing laser cut too?

On 2009-03-19 11:59, Clarita wrote:
oh, laser cut? is the swap fire sing laser cut too?

sing a song of swap fire!!!

...please try to refrain from posting to this thread while intoxicated, people....i appreciate your interest in this project but it makes it harder to respond to your questions when i don't understand what you are talking about.....

..and only the letters of the swampfire sign are lasercut..all else is fabricated by hand..and without the use of a safety net....

[ Edited by: Tipsy McStagger 2009-03-19 12:31 ]