Wendy Cevola - I've finished a Wish List Black Velvet. Time to post the steps.

LOVE the butts! And the monkeys! And the SHRUNKEN HEADS!!!!

Fighting bronchitis, inflamed larnx, inflamed ears & an ungodly cough!

Tiki take me away!
~kele

Love the mug updates. The mouth is looking great!

I know that the Torch mug is quite large. I can't imagine this one being even bigger. That will hold quite an impressive drink Wendy! Someone needs to create a drink just for you.

Dale

That Mahalo store ROCKS! Very cool to see your work in there Wendy. Looks like yer having fun. :) Of course all your new stuff is fantastic. I like those shrunken beheaded heads that may make the brew inside come to a head, the monkeys and well... everything on the Wendy and Dan show. :wink:

They don't drink often
But when they do
They drink a GROG

GROG Dan was glad that you didn't need to censor any of his photo.

MahaloTiki we wish you had been there too. You and Mary are a wonderful team. Your store is wonderful. Don't forget to check out his Tiki Website - http://www.mahalotiki.com

hang10tiki I think you and Dan were separated at birth. Twins!

WaikikianMoeKele I hope you a mending already. Don't get up too soon.

littlegiles diet Pepsi with lime, best drink in the world. This mug is huge, HUGE! I hope we can lift the mold when we make it.

Tigertail777 soon you'll be showing lots of your art on "other crafts" and I am looking forward to that day.

hang10tiki very tasty.

Is it Dan or is it his ancestor?

Progress Report

8 am until 8 PM yesterday and 3 hours this morning (that's why I'm late posting) to finish the blue hair on 22 mugs.

I still have to do white teeth and eye reflection. Black mess on face. Pink hair, mouth, tongue and runs at opening, then the red blood runs from the opening. Many more hours ahead.

Sacramento Crawl mug.
I'm preparing the mug to make it taller.

I'm going to melt these cut slabs so I can build the top faster.

Just having some fun.

TGIF...Enjoy, Wendy

[ Edited by: danlovestikis 2013-04-19 13:49 ]

Lookin good
Love the Dan-O pic
What do u mean by TGIF
U 2 never take a day off!!!

Jon

Wendy, looks like you and Dan are getting over run with those little ghosts again. Seem to be spreading. :) Feel free to send them over to me if they bother you. :)

How much taller do you think the new mug is going to be? Just curious since I have one of the torches to compare it to.

What did you mean by "Melt the clay" to build the top faster? Inquiring minds want to know and I'm just nosey.

Dale

Congrats to Dan for being the first customer at Mahalo Tiki...way to go JUNGLE BOY!!!

Grog, Dan in ape form looks slightly Amish. Maybe a tropical Amish... gorilla? Does Dan need to share anything with all of us?

Wendy, I'm shocked, ( & touched) that you have referred to my lowbrow skill as a useful tip. Of course, when you do it, it looks amazing. Figures. Show-off. :)

I've been learning from watching you work through your step by steps, it's really improved my carving technique & clay manipulating skills. I'll learn even more if you're working in a similar way (though recently I've taken a different approach to a mug, which feels very foreign to me (foreign, not Amish, that is).

The SH mugs continue to look great, and I'm excited to see more progress on the Crawl Mug- even more so since I signed up to get one...

hang10tiki actually we take some time off...to go to Tiki Events!

littlegiles the sculpt of the crawl mug as shown below is at 12 1/2 inches. I don't know if that is tall enough. The clay is very hard, you can't even press a fingerprint into the block of clay. But it is oil based and will melt. So I do that and when its mushy I can apply it. Then I can carve it or mold it with tools.

VampiressRN isn't this turning into a fun year. Not only do we get Mahalo Tiki store we get Dr. Tiki Mojo and Eva moving to Elk Grove and making another tiki home for the crawl.

hang10tiki they are all so cute, thank you. I've got to get Dan in here so I can hear him laugh.

TikiAno first Dan said to tell everyone that he's Italian and really looks like that ape when he showers. The little white box that I melt clay in...that was originally for wax. He had me wax off all the hair on his back a couple of times but when he found out it just grows back he gave up.

I started doing ceramics for the first time the summer or 2010. Before that Gecko cast all my sculpts. He still is doing a few. I will always be learning from others who love clay, that means you.

I'm feeling good about the crawl mug. I always want them to be different in some way. This being HUGE will make it different.

I saw Joe Banks post this of GROG and I didn't want any of you to miss it.

There should be a GROG toy. He's so cute.

Thank you everyone for all the kind or funny comments.

Progress Report:

I tried to push on some clay but after 20 minutes I only had a small ring around the top.

So I started melting the clay and I would add it to the top like frosting on a cake.

littlegiles wanted to know how it compared to my Zombie Torch mug from last year. Here's the front of each

as well as the backside of each.

After already painting the heads for three hours yesterday this is as far as I got in the evening. I did take some time off hang10tiki.

Cheers and have a happy weekend, Wendy

Another giant mug...

:wink:

Jon

Thanks Wendy I am looking forwards to that day too! I posted some progress shots you requested so you can see how its coming along. Meanwhile I have the Wendy and Dan show to entertain me. I gotta ask...how exactly do you melt clay to the consistency of frosting? You can't microwave it can you? :-?

Thanks Wendy.

That is one BIG mug. :)

Hope you are having a great weekend.

Dale

Wendy, if that mug gets any taller you'll have to fire them one layer at a time! :o Looking good :)
Jon ~ Grog, Dan and I look like "The 3 Amigos" in their waiter day job. Dusty, Ned, & Lucky :D

hang10tiki another giant TIKI mug!

tigertail777 good news. I'll go look at your photos when I finish here. I wouldn't melt clay in any appliance where I would prepare food. Too many toxins. I melt the clay in that little white pot you can see on the table. I wear a face mask because of the fumes.

littlegiles every day is wonderful because I have Dan. I hope your weekend is good, no you can't have Dan. I hope you box arrives soon.

MadDogMike I just posted on your event page favorite photos page. You are a star. I hope to bisque by lying them on their sides on two shelves. I don't yet know if I can do two shelves for glazing.

Progress Report Sacramento Crawl mug for October.

I wanted to be a plastic surgeon. Here's my first nose job.

It's not done but close. Wendy

When you pour your mold, don't make the walls so thick. GROG originally was pouring thick walls like you, but now makes them thinner, and they still work fine. Otherwise, your mold is going to be so huge, poor Dan is going to get a hernia lifting them.

Also, next time you have photo reference or a drawing for what you want to sculpt, blow it up to the size you want the sculpt to be, and you can better control how large or small the final sculpt will be and you can compare the proportions easier to make the sculpt more accurate.

[ Edited by: GROG 2013-04-21 11:51 ]

You know I love my mug butts, however watching how you form the nose is great too.
You are quite adept at rhinoplasty!
~kele

Hang10, I don't think it's fair to associate Dan with those other 2 loonies!

I could never steal Dan from you. Then it wouldn't be the Wendy & Dan show. :)

Love the work on the nose. You have a future in plastic surgery I'm sure.

Hey Jon, you calling me a loonie??? LOL Just checking. Would hate to agree with you if you didn't mean me. HAHA

Dale

First of all, I don't know who Jon is.
Second of all, do you know any bigger loonies than GROG & MDM?

Oops, mis-read thread post. :) Sorry 'bout that.

As for bigger loonies than MDM & Grog? Hmmmm.

Dale

On 2013-04-21 16:37, Big Kahuna wrote:
... do you know any bigger loonies than GROG & MDM?

Hey, I resemble that remark! :lol:

That Grog
Always thinking

Jon

GROG Dan thanks you for reminding me about wall thickness on the molds. I'll try. This will be doozy even with thin walls.
I've used the photo trick a few times, like with Kinny's portrait. I agree it's one of the best ways to get it right. I did plan this one to be huge. If it weren't it would be like 100 other tiki mugs.

You sure did an excellent job on the monkey mug. He has a great expression on his face.

WaikikianMoeKele I hope you are feeling better. I can warm little bits of that hard clay with a heat lamp and then shape it with a tool. So this works well for shaping.

Big Kahuna Dan likes to think of himself as the looniest of the loonies.

littlegiles its fun to see a face forming. Soon he'll be a real tiki.

Big Kahuna see below for proof that Jon is hang10tiki.

littlegiles how about little lost tiki? Check out photos of him and Big Toe.

MadDogMike in a good way.

hang10tiki in a very good way.

We had a party for Dan's sisters family on Saturday. It was fun that the kids showed up with their bowls from Christmas. Especially because I'd made them matching mugs.

I made deviled eggs. The reason I'm showing you these is because last night I caught Dan with a couple of "deviled egg" sandwiches from the leftovers.

He said, "boy were these easy to make". I don't think I would have thought of this. Have any of you ever done this with left over deviled eggs?

Progress Report:

I worked on the heads all day yesterday and into the night. I started by brushing the teeth to smear the black glaze.

Next I painted the teeth leaving lots of decay. Then I painted the white slash on the eyes.

I did all 22 heads.

Now it was time to start on the pink parts. First the hair.

Next the lips, tongue and the runs from the top of the mug.

At 6 PM I had completed these steps on 6 mugs.

After dinner I moved into the family room to watch The Great Race with Dan and decided to continue glazing. Do I look sleepy and tired? I continued working until late last night and I think I got another 6 glazed.

I'll be back at it today. I'm going as fast as I can and they still take forever. One day they will be done.

Cheers, Wendy

That mug is TALL!! Looking good, can't wait to see how it progresses.

I learn something new from oyu all the time.

Dan has a great idea. I love egg salad and that is really all that is. I will keep that in mind next time I make deviled eggs.

I don't think you look tired or sleepy at all. You always glow in your photos. :)

The heads are really coming along nicely. So many steps and you are doing them all great.

Dale

GROG' mother would take the deviled eggs and mash them up with a fork, and make a spread you can put on the bread with a knife.

Awesome pics as always Wendy! What cone did you fire the deviled eggs to?

zerostreet, ha ha ha!

Well, maybe instead of a cookie a deviled egg can come w/ a mug purchase? Sure, that box might start to smell a bit,

Wendy, once again, thanks for the photos. I thoroughly enjoy watching to watch the details, including the building of the nose out of smaller pieces, rather than shaping a bigger blob. Quite helpful.

Grog, I agree w/ Jon, definitely a good idea....

I came home today to find a box sitting at my front door. WOOHOO!! All the way from The Dan & Wendy Show. :)

I am truly a very happy camper. I'm pretty sure this wont hang around my neck, but I have a great place to put it in my office.

Thanks again Wendy and as promised here is a beautiful piece of art next to one questionable owner.

Dale

My wonderful man likes egg salad but does NOT like deviled eggs (apparently a problem with too much congealed egg white). So I always change leftover deviled eggs to egg salad. & he likes his ham salad & his potato salad & his pasta salad & his broccoli salad. i.e., he's big into mayo/salad dressing mixed with other stuff.
btw, I LOVE deviled eggs & shrimp deviled eggs & all kinds of other delicious stuff mixed in with deviled eggs!

ALL of the pinks on the severed heads are awe-inspiring! Drooling to have mine in my hot little hands.

& Wendy, yes, I am steadily healing, thanks in big part to the friendly nebulizer! (it IS a wonder!)
~kele

Dan-0 that's a great idea
Except that now I want a sandwich.

You two are the hardest working Tiki couple around

Jon

I have done it, Dan-o! And on toast! I think it'd be weird on regular bread. It's just like egg salad!

Dan, next time you make the sandwich, throw on a little dill. It's outstanding!

I'm really digging the Crawl Mug. One of my favorite mugs is Al's, and I like it because it's such a tall, substantial mug, despite being poured a little thin. This one is going to be great. Looking forward to what's going to be on the back. I try not to buy mugs from events I don't go to, but that is looking stellar!

LoriLovesTiki thank you. There is a lot of repetition here but new people start watching and its new for them. That's why I show all my days even when they look like the past week. I'm so happy everyone sticks around.

littlegiles ahh that was sweet.

GROG Dan said he lets his teeth do the mashing. I like moms.

zerostreet actually I bought Eggland's Best in a bag so I didn't have to boil them. Super fast and easy. Otherwise cone 00001?

TikiAno I fine tune sculpts with tiny bits of clay. It sure is easy work compared to wood carving. Have you seen the new issue of Tiki Magazine? 4WD sure is a great carver of traditional tikis. We are lucky that McTiki, hang10tiki and Cy do the hard work.

littlegiles I love the photo. When the winners post it encourages me to have more contests.

WaikikianMoeKele I'm glad to hear you are becoming better. Your man sounds like my man, they just love to eat. I see the end of glazing the heads coming nearer.

These were on one of the first Wish Lists.

Dan said looky here Wendy I'm posing for another one of your mugs!

hang10tiki I hope you got your sandwich.

Hale Tiki it's going to be huge. I find that fun but once again more materials and more work. hang10tiki I guess we just can't stop working hard.

Thank you all for your comments. They made my day a good one.

Progress Report:

I did another long day and night. After I rejoiced at putting the pink glaze on all 22 mugs I remembered that I had two more layers of pink to add. 2nd and 3rd layers go faster because the boarders and placement have been established. So I did them all yesterday.

Then I started adding the messy black glaze to the faces. I'll always wonder why they were made that way. Maybe the artist had worked in a coal mine. The black is going on over three layers of flesh colored glaze.

Once it is on I use brushes and wet paper towels to work it in and blend it with the flesh glaze.

Four down 18 to go.

Thank you for hanging in with me while I finish this project. I'm sure glad I stopped at 30. Any I make from this point on will be altered versions like how I change the Bob's.

I'm back to work, cheers, Wendy

[ Edited by: danlovestikis 2013-04-23 08:11 ]

ALTERED HEADS!? WOOHOOO! That means more fun and crazy things to look forward to.

Love seeing the progress you have made. I'm really looking forward to what the "altered" heads will look like. You always have such fun with those. My brain started running crazy just thinking of things I could imagine you doing. A swarm of spiders crawling out of the head? Perhaps a clown head? Being one of those crazy people with a fear of clowns, a severed clown head strikes me as vastly entertaining. Haha!

I know you will have a blast letting your imagination run wild.

The picture of Dan is great. You gotta love someone who is willing to do about anything to inspire you. I know you have already done a Bob with a sombrero so perhaps the next Bob will be a beer bottle Bob with a cute lime lid? :)
Dale

[ Edited by: littlegiles 2013-04-23 10:18 ]

Hale Tiki I just let you all tell me what to do when I open wish lists. However I am making a few on spec Bob's starting today.

littlegiles so far I did the shrunken head, a Maori, a snake going in the ear and out the mouth. You've got some good ideas. Spiders are more creepy than snakes.

Dan ran into his best friend again.

Progress Report:

I worked until 9 PM last night and got the black finished on all 22 heads. Almost done 6 to go.

Today is bloody Wednesday as I run it from the open neck. I also need to clean off glaze from the bottom rim.

22 with the black glaze all done with this step.

Tiki Bob.

I did a Bob Woody. I needed a break from glazing. He'll join Rum Barrel Bob on the shelf.

That's it for now. Thank you for stopping by and for he comments. Cheers, Wendy

Hah! Love Dan's face in that photo.

The rum barrel Bob is great. Looking forward to see it done, and the wood grain Bob is great too! Love em.

Woody Bob's looking great! I'm glad he has a home already, or I'd be asking ...
Cheers!
e.

Looks like the Severed Head on ebay got a bid.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Severed-Head-Tiki-Mug-Ren-Clark-Tribute-by-Wendy-Cevola-/190828738324?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item2c6e477714

That's funny that you are making Bob's still in the middle of two other projects! You are a hard worker. It seems like you and Dan have a lot of fun together.

I was google imaging tiki stuff to complete my menu for my home bar, and I saw LOTS of pictures of Dan! He is famous too!!! I also saw Grog and MDM and BTD. Mostly Dan though. Pretty cool to google tiki and see Dan!

Dan-o looks like he's having a good time
SH mugs lookin good, I can't wait to get mine
Wood Bob looks great, awesome texture

Jon
:)

If he wants to be "The Most Interesting Dan in the World" he needs to look more mature, more experienced. Like his friend.

Grog, nice one! :) "The most interesting Dan in the world," awesome.

Wendy, I just picked up the new Tiki Magazine yesterday at Trader Mort's (after Tiki Tuesday at the Bali Hai) here in SD. I haven't read through it yet, but I now I will skip to that article (rather than going, as usual, cover to cover). Yes, clay is easier to work with than wood, just needs more tools, higher heat, and some other stuff. I love how all artists working within the same general theme can connect and support each other here. It's pretty amazing stuff, and I'm proud (& thankful) to be accepted amongst those w/ a whole lot more talent and experience.

Okay, off my soap box/ rum crate. Btw, I love Woody Bob!

Thanks for all!

The Bob's are looking great!!!

I know Dan likes to hang out with severed heads and here's hoping the most interesting man in the world will not be detached from his any time soon.

I'm making a few Bob's and when they are finished I'll offer them here first.

Hale Tiki I love Dan's face too. I'm having fun taking breaks from glazing and playing with clay.

ebtiki I think you have more of my Bob's than anyone on the planet. I'm glad you still like them.

lunavideogames I never think to Google. I'll have to go search for Dan. As GROG would tell you glazing is hard work. When I need a break I work on a Bob or the Sacramento Crawl mug. Tikis are our lives.

hang10tiki Caliente is just around the corner and I'll bring your head there. I'm glad you like the Bob. You are right up there with ebTiki when it comes to collecting my Bob's.

GROG you are a wonderful wizzzard. I love to hear my man laugh and you give me that joy. Thank you. We just realized that Dan's other friend is interesting looking too. This is Roge who makes the chunk lamps. He is making one for us right now with the new full bodied Moai. I'll post it when I have photos.

TikiAno the love of tiki (and Dan) connects us all in the very best way. Tiki events are places where we all get our hugs. I hope everyone will come and give me one this summer.

VampiressRN what a horrible thought. In case no one noticed, Dan loves Mexican food best and that's why we keep running into the most interesting man in the world. We saw him again! He should drink from a tiki mug.

Progress Report:

The blood is running.

I got 15 done yesterday.

These heads travel in and out over and over again. I put them in the wind to dry.

Then I started loading the kiln. I got 15 into this load. Even though I cleaned the bottom edge I like to put them on stilts in case any glaze runs down.

Full Load and I fired last night.

Today I will finish the last 7 and if the kiln is cool I'll fire them tomorrow night. Meanwhile I'll work on another Bob or the crawl mug.

I'm always tiki busy and that's how I like it. Cheers, Wendy

WOOHOO!! Nothing better than a kiln full of severed heads....wait...that just doesn't sound right does it? HAHA

Great job Wendy.

I think you should take in a print out of a Bob mug next time you go eat there and have Dan's friend hold it so it looks better. The beer bottle is nice and all, but surely Dan's coolest friend would drink from a tiki mug. :)

Dale

You two are haulin' butt bustin' out them severed heads!

GROG had same idea as you Wendy, to do a Bob with a bark texture on a BOB other than Palm tree bark, but you beat GROG to it, just like when MP beat GROG to Sufferin' Bob. GROG got to start sculpting GROG ideas before everybody else does them before GROG.

It's good you are able to fill your kiln and get to fire. GROG got several people wanting Bob shots. It hard to fill kiln when doing small shot glasses and salt and pepper shakers.

GROG glad GROG make Dan laugh. You two have fun.