Conga....Wisconsin stuff!

:)

Haha very cool! I know it has nothing to do with tiki but, I sense a little Nosferatu vibe on this guy (maybe because Halloween is coming?) :)

I can't say if he regrets summer's end, needs a toilet break, or needs a refreshing drink. But I do feel some empathy towards him...I walk around work most days with that same exprssion on my face because I didn't get enough carving done during the summer. Can't wait to see him finished and stained up! :D

Looking good!

Hi guys...the nosferatiki was moving along nicely until...oops....

Which allowed me to explore foot fetish art

And allowed more time for sanding in the tough spots

And I now have a back-up plan in the event repairs are unsuccessful

Thanks for stopping in for a peek.

Wow, I really enjoyed hopping around your thread. Page one is terrific. Sorry for your broken legs. Our largest tiki was found broken in half. It's now put together with metal pipes, wood glue and wood filler. Painted it looks fine. Wendy

Thanks the God's for the Glue.

Ugghh, I Hate when that happens and he REALLY Looks Angry now!
However, things like that open the doors to innovation and fun stuff such as in your "Foot Fettish" exploration. Nice save and great work and Nice to see you thinking things out.
Go Beat your drums!

Ben, nice to hear from you. I thought of you many times during the carving of this little
feller, you are pretty inspiring you know :)
Well, it looks like the diminutive one might turn out to be a "tiki" after all



Still some work to be done, just happy that I could overcome the last major problem.
See ya soon.

Thanks Conga, Looks like he's standing on his own 2 feet now so you Done Good! Also, with the further refinement, he looks like he just heard a really Funny joke and can't stop laughing. I'm Liking this guy More and More every day. Take your time and finish him right!

Looking great! it doesn't show that the legs were broken at all, great job on that, a ton of personality on this guy I like him a lot, I don't think i've seen so much body language as this guy has,ever, very cool.

Hello everyone!
This little feller is finally off the bench.
Ben, I did something that you inspired.
I generally do not sand after staining, but I this case we have three coats of stain with
sanding in between. Seems to create a bit more depth in the finish, not sure if it shows
in the pictures.
And thank you Clarita, always appreciate you visits over here. I sorta got carried away with
the body, which is why it broke of course :) He appears to be more "tiki" than Nosferatu now!




He's about 18 inches tall...
Winter is just around the corner up here, the next project will be a BIG one that I can work
on for several months. Thanks for popping in.

Conga,,, Yes it Shows!! Those extra coats with sanding between make All the difference in the world.. Try one with 5 or 6 coats,, Sanded between of course, then you really see it instead of "Almost"
Excellent work on this guy, now Please, Show him to the Restroom!!! :P :o

:D :D :D I have to give this one three big grins. Overcoming the broken legs and the extra effort on the stain. . .A+

Repair job well done. Carving well done. Finish excellent! Btw, what grit did you sand with in between coats?

Hello carvers...thanks for the feedback...appreciate it.
Big T. I usually use 80 grit for the first go through because I carve pretty
rough until the detail stage. Then I bump up to 160...and I think I used the next
one...probably 240 for the final sandings. I use a lot of basswood which I think allows
me to get by using the more coarse paper. Is that how you spell course?

I know Ben's money is more tiki than this...but...just for fun...
making a carving of Petri the wonderdog for my daughter...

Petri is ambidexterous, can flop either ear.

Also just about to start a 20 inch marq out of cherry...gotta get back to work.

Two months since I posted anything? What's up with that?
Well, winter drags on, the Packers are in the super bowl, and I have a couple of things
on the bench...



The marq is made from Wisconsin cherry, nice grain, very hard wood.
The other one is a piece of basswood that I hope to make into a presentable mask,
right now I'm just carving without a plan, perhaps I will find a plan as I progress.

Glad to see ya back. Don't worry to much about having a plan, your work always seems to find it's face in due time. That may even be why I enjoy it so much. Keep hackin' away bro!

Great new stuff. Love the dog. The mask is kinda interesting.... are you planning on cutting it off from the main block of wood? Or are you hollowing out the block of wood behind it?

Hey, thanks, nice to be back in the swing of things.
Amate, as usual, just digging into the wood till I find something,
that seems to work for me.

And, along the same lines, Big T, I'm not really sure where I'm
headed. There is a big crack in the middle of the chunk. It works
really nice to leave it all together so I can move the face around
on the bench. Then I may have a buddy slice it down the middle with
his chainsaw. I know one thing for sure, there will be a lot more
wood chips before I'm finished.

Thanks for looking in.

great work conga and thats a grooovy dog ya got there.....he's got style. man it must be cold up there.......not in florida...heee heee heeee....sorry

Right on! good to see you going at it strong. Im digging the dog. The fur looks great.

thanks for visiting Chimp and Seeks and anyone else who popped in.
Winter hasn't been too bad up here (especially compared with the east
coast and the middle of the country) but all of my carving has been indoors.
Between skiing and nfl I haven't had a lot of time...but some progress
(I think) is being made....


That's it for the next several days, gotta get the skis wet, and I've heard
there's another football game today.

Great job on the face. It is really expressive.

Really Lookin Good there Conga, Take your time and make this one special?

On 2011-02-06 08:06, congatiki wrote:

but some progress
(I think) is being made....

progress is there for sure! Self portrait?

J.

Thanks Johnny...Benz...and Jerome.
I'm gonna keep pushing on this guy since he is starting to
develop an attitude. He might get scary before we put the
chisels to rest.

And Jerome...could be a self-portrait, he "looks" like I
"felt" after several cocktails during the American football
championship.

Very strong new one, great expression on his face, nice. I specially love the carving of Petri the wonder dog, puts a smile on my face.

Lookin' good Conga!

Yes! attitude is right. Great looking carve.

Nice Benzart

Nice Benzart

Here's a little update on the guy...not really sure where it's headed at this
point but I'm happy with it so far.

Could wind up being a tiki, could wind up being more NW Coast totem style, we'll
see what happens when it warms up and I can separate it from the backside.

Many thanks Clarita (I'm glad my work makes you smile, you need to smile) Hodad and
Seeks.

Not sure how to take your comment Teakey, if it's a compliment I graciously accept.
Benzart is an inspiration to all of us and I cannot deny being inspired as others have
been.

If it's a "dig", which I suspect it is based on our history, then I accept that as well.
The piece is not finished.

Nice BENZART Conga.

( A Compliment in case you were wondering)

Now that's a compliment :)

:) !!

I would take 'Nice Benzart' as a compliment any day! :) :)

You can copy my stuff any day Conga! Nice Benz!

Thanks everyone, you are inspiring me to keep pushing. Having my
name mentioned in the same sentence as Benzart is compliment
enough for me. He's a purdy good carver :)
I've been fairly busy lately getting in my last few ski outings
for the season but I should be able to get a little carving in
during the week....then we'll see where this chunk of firewood is
headed.

Hello everyone, finally making some progress with the tiki-inspired chunk of basswood....
first coat of stain and a bit of detail work...slow but sure...

He's 14 inches tall and 8 inches wide...I took off a lot more wood than I have left :)
Another week or so of piddling around and I think he'll be done.

YES ! and very nice progress indeed!! I love the eyes and can't wait to see the finished product. I got a large block of basswood for Christmas and need to plan a project for it. I'm eager to see the finishing technique you use.

Very nice work Conga!
He look like quiet, he breathe wisdom... Very nice!

J.

Holy COW Grasshopper, you have learned your lessons Very Well, this guy has life and is Full of Feelings. I credible detail,,, How'd'ja Do It?
HAPPYHAPPYHAPPEEEEE!

Hello kind friends.

Thanks Amate and Laojia, not really sure how I'm going to
complete this project, I appreciate your comments. In one
sense I think it would be a cool wall thing with a tiki-ish
shield, and on the other hand I sorta like the free-standing
head. Who knows?

And Benz, you are too funny. At least I am able to make the
venerable master happy happy happy. To answer the question
"how did I do it"...well....I just copied you :)

So....let's say you wake up on a sunday morning and decide you just need to do a "little
something" to a carving...and you find some cheap seashells and think they might work for
eyes. Like this...

And to make it work you need to undercut an opening in the eye so the shell will fit....

The handy dremel took works pretty well to dig under the opening so the nasty parts of
the shell will fit under it

Then another coat of stain...this time a shade darker...and we have either improved or ruined
a fine tiki carving

Now the carving looks sorta like Petri the wonder dog

And that's it for another week...or so...thanks for visiting Congas Corner.

woooooo! your dog looks possessed.....must be a full moon...ha ha ha ha

great carve on that face with the inlay shell eyes conga......groovy job.

Conga,,,,, You Done GOOD!