A-A's Finished Projects (Kauai Pics Page 9)

aaron - hypnotiki turned out awesome. I'd love to see him side by side with sams painting!

That is BAD ASS!
sorry. Had to say it. The top photo is showing VERY cool grain. I really like seeing how different woods, in different places,... just can have the coolest grain patterns. Sam must be stoked.

Mahalo Rodeotiki, Sam, Hewey, Polynesiac & Surfintiki. All of you guys (and Sam obviously!) Keep me inspired to come up with new stuff. Thanks for all the positive feedback! :)

Polynesiac, here you go. Painting and carving side-by-side.

This one's a mix of Sam & Leroy, so we'll try that comparision again after I carve the Hypnotiki "exact" replica mask a couple of tikis down the road.

Cheers!

A-A

"Ah, good taste! What a dreadful thing! Taste is the enemy of creativeness."
-Pablo Picasso

[ Edited by: Aaron's Akua 2006-09-04 21:31 ]

Aaron, what an Incredible carving. I know you And Sam are very proud. The spalsh of color on the chin, the ultra crisp detail, the super clean lines. You have to be careful,, you don't want to give tiki carvers a good name, now do you? What else can I say but lets get goin on the next one times a wasting!

Damn great work Aaron! I sure would like to be able to do such fine work. Maybe I will try to do some for myself!

AA
Wow, what a great carving.

Mahalo Guys! Freakstick (Chris), Tiki carving lessons are gratis, especially if you live nearby. Ben, sorry i forgot to reply way back - you know your comments are much appreciated. Moondance, Mahalo! I love the primo "practice" carvings you've been doing here. They look like the real deal to me.

A-A

Man that is still so sweet. I keep lookin at, just so clean.

Hey Mr. Hewey big mahalos and big congrats on your 1,000th Post! I hope to have something new up here soon.

Tiki No. 9 added to the first post, first page of this topic.

**Cheers!

A-A**

"Ah, good taste! What a dreadful thing! Taste is the enemy of creativeness."
-Pablo Picasso

[ Edited by: Aaron's Akua 2006-09-04 21:33 ]

AA,

Wow, what a wonderful project. I would like to see a string of just pics showing this one from start to completion. Your multi color stain job/aging work looks great. I still think your neighbor is missing out. The detailing on this carving is absolutely superb. The shot from behind really shows the effort you put into the hair braids. This one is top notch all around.

What's next?

-Gman

Excellent, excellent, excellent!!! Very impressive, my friend. I have yet to see anything out of you that isn't. You are definitely talented, and yes, I'm jealous! :wink:

That headdress is way out. Especially the drooping halo effect. I like the cracking and chipping that occurred. It gave it instant age and credibility. Top shelf carving. The separate staining and color really gives the pop that a lot of the ancient carvings lack in my opinion.
Other that that I guess I like it.

Next?

WOW!!! that turned out AWESOME aaron!!! you gotta be proud of that one. i think i drooled a bit looking at it. keep up the great work!

ooooooh yeah! I enjoyed watching you on this one. The stain thing has so many possibilities, and you got to experiment with this one. Top notch again AA.

Loco Bueno. Step aside and give the new pimp some corner...that's a perfect 10. The tri-color stain just works on this piece.

YOWZA! That's amazing! And only No. 9? I don't think I'll be able to get my head around anything that complex unitll maybe No. 50!

What size/type tool did you use for the decorative stars and boxes on his head-dress? Very clean cuts!

Hey A, It is a real beauty! You had us waiting for this one to be completed but it was definitely worth the wait. Hope you are keeping him in a place of honor. Thanks for sharing!
What's next??

Aarons, you deserve every bit of praise ten fold that you get for this Lono. I remember when you were starting it that you were afraid you were going to mess it up. Seems like you didn't want to post pic's for fear something would go wrong and you wouldn't finish it. You stepped up to the plate and look what you have accomplished! A Tiki to be Very proud of to say the least. I'm proud of your work too!. You have come a Loong way and every step has been great.
Next piece.....

Aaron - I've enjoyed watching your progress pics of the lono. at every post I wondered "how could it get any better?" This one is one FINE carving - and the crack just adds to the whole piece.
I especially like the different stain you used in the name on the base and your signiture. It gives it an art deco feeling. Very well done, my friend

Great Gobs of Gravied giblets!!!! Ku has return! Arron...That is friggin amazing!! Unbelievable detail on that bad daddy. AWESOME!!!

Chongolio

Wow! The stain adds a whole new dimension! Awesome job!

If that doesnt inspire ya , I dont know what would. In fact I am inspired to feed all my carving tools to the wood chipper.

Beautiful work AA. The stain looks amazing.
Just wondering if you had any trouble with the different shades bleeding into each other and how did you avoid it?

Thanks for sharing.

Aaron
That carving is incredible as it is. Then you went over the top with that creative staining work. You must be very proud of yourself. Now you need to put the Lono in a great spot in the house. You know lighting on it and all.
Moon

Kick ass.

Hold on tight to that one. Keep it in a place of honor. So much mana in it.

You raised the bar...

hopefully they get easier for you after this one! :wink:

Way to push the limits... the headress is insane!

[ Edited by: Lake Surfer 2005-11-21 22:33 ]

Aaron- That Lono came out "F"in GREAT!!!! Excuse me but I got go back and stare at those pic's longer!!! Great Job!!!
later,
Spermy

God Damn Arron!
I go to work and I come back with you havin 20 replys on your latest "child".
I don't know if I can afford it, but I would love to own it, if it is up for sale.
Please let me know and CONGRATS on finding your Tiki Niche!

great details , I love it...

Whoa dude - that is so sweet. The details and quality of execution are awesome by themselves, but the different colour stains just really set it off. Love it, absolutely love it.

AA - Great documentation and even better turnout of the piece. That's definitely hot. Love the detail and the finishing. Big Aloha to that Lono.

btw - 82nd Airborne per chance?

Thanks for the big response – I’m overwhelmed. I reposted some new pics that I took this a.m. in the morning light. The first ones were taken at high noon in the parking lot at work, and came out pretty poorly. I will respond to each and every one of you tonight. My lunch break today was spent working furiously on my mug design entry for the contest. Mahalo!

AA the new pics are much better,a true masterpiece!!!!

Big time mahalos for whoever is responsible for the "Cool & Currents" thing. That was a pleasant surprise - there's a first time for everything!

Mahalo to GMAN, Finkdaddy, Palmcitytiki, Tiki5-0, Surfintiki, BK, Silverline, 8 FT., Benzart, Polynesiac, Chongolio, Doubravski, Rodeo, Moondance, Lake Surfer, Spermy, Unga Bunga, Kirby, Hewey, Mankoa, and Capo for the comps, comps, and more comps. You guys are too much!

On 2005-11-21 15:31, GMAN wrote:
What's next?

On 2005-11-21 16:05, PalmCityTiki wrote:
Next?

On 2005-11-21 20:33, 8FT Tiki wrote:
What's next??

On 2005-11-21 20:48, Benzart wrote:
Next piece.....

Well to be honest, I'm still working that out. I'm thinking another Hawaiian piece - that's where my head's at right now, having just got back from vacation. I think it will be either Ku or Kanaloa, haven't decided which yet.

This Lono carving was traditional in the form mostly. But the steroid torso, tied back braids, and 2-tone color scheme were all very non-traditional. The detailing mostly came straight out of my head. I can tell you that it's heavily influenced by all of you TC artists. If you look closely you will see a heavy dose of Benzart, some Leroy, and a touch of Sam thrown in for good measure. Hanging out in the Creating Forum has infected my artistic psyche in a very postive way.

So the next carving will be something along the same lines, but I will try to mix it up a bit more.

On 2005-11-21 20:26, SilverLine wrote:
What size/type tool did you use for the decorative stars and boxes on his head-dress? Very clean cuts!

Silverline, I used a Foredom 1/8 hp flexshaft motor with the Wecheer reciprocating chisel handpiece. The chisel bit was a Flexshaft 70 deg. "V" parting tool that came in a kit to fit the Wecheer.

On 2005-11-21 21:50, rodeotiki wrote:
Just wondering if you had any trouble with the different shades bleeding into each other and how did you avoid it?

Rodeo, I thought about that a lot when I first tried the 2-tone stain thing. But it works out really well with this method of applying the ebony stain first, then sanding it down for the second coat. As long a you cut in some nice "border" lines with the "v" tool, the ebony will create dark areas between the two colors so that they don't butt right up against one another. And if the first color crosses over the lines, you can always scuff it off with a sanding sleeve after it dries before the next color gets applied. Really though, it's no big deal if the color bleeds a little bit. No one will notice with all the antiqueing effect.

On 2005-11-21 23:22, Unga Bunga wrote:
God Damn Arron!
I go to work and I come back with you havin 20 replys on your latest "child".
I don't know if I can afford it, but I would love to own it, if it is up for sale.
Please let me know and CONGRATS on finding your Tiki Niche!

Kevin, this one is for my place, and my wife has made up her mind. I could sell it to you, but then I'd have to carve lots of tikis just to keep up with the alimony and child support. I've got a small list going, which includes carving one house tiki in between every customer tiki. You'd be somewhere around 19 or 20. I can put you on and let you know when the time comes, then you can tell me if you're still interested. PM me if you don't mind the wait.

On 2005-11-22 05:42, ManoKoa wrote:
btw - 82nd Airborne per chance?

Manakoa, you lost me there! But I've never been in the service.

Well, thanks again. You guys made my week.

I had to take down the old photos on page 4. Tikis should never be exposed to harsh sunlight - that's why they hang out in tiki bars I guess. Hope you all like the newer photos that I put up in their place. They were taken in my backyard in the morning light.

A-A

"Ah, good taste! What a dreadful thing! Taste is the enemy of creativeness."
-Pablo Picasso

[ Edited by: Aaron's Akua 2005-11-22 23:03 ]

Aaron that is a great Tiki, now you've got the Hawaiian Bug I reckon you should go for the full set.
Keep up the good work

AA - The 82nd airborne logo fits your nick's acronym perfectly:

[storytime w/ trivial info by Mano]
The only reason I recognize this logo is because I was in the Marine Corps (Hoo-Rah!) and we got to train with some of them on The Big Island. As the least funded of the military branches, we had to use Army facilities for training when I was stationed in HI so we saw a lot of "All Americans" on the ranges. A lot of the soldiers from Schofield, the Army base on Oahu sported the 25th infantry insignia:

That's a taro leaf under the lightning bolt to indicate where the unit is based out of. So if for any reason, you see that logo, you know what unit they're from.
[/end storytime w/ trivial info by Mano]

Congrats as well on the family addition. May that Lono live long and prosperous and have many handsome brothers/ sisters. Keep up the mana - - -

"day old poi and I like some now!"

On 2005-11-22 22:59, Aaron's Akua wrote:
Silverline, I used a Foredom 1/8 hp flexshaft motor with the Wecheer reciprocating chisel handpiece. The chisel bit was a Flexshaft 70 deg. "V" parting tool that came in a kit to fit the Wecheer.

Thanks for the info AA! I found a kit just poking around on the internet for $150. Looks like a fine addition to the Xmas list!

aloha Aaron!!!!!!

Super cool lono my friend, keep em coming and posting !!!!!!!!!
Aloha, Mooney

Manokoa, That 82nd Airborne Logo has an uncanny resemblance to my latest sig. I just tried drafting something up that was a bit on the art deco side, and that's what came out. Thanks for the trivia! I have yet to see the military side of Hawaii. Maybe we'll go to Oahu next trip and see the Pearl Harbor stuff.

Silverline, Good luck with the flexshaft. I think you will like it. Just make sure the model you're looking at has some decent power. PM me on that if you like.

Mooney, Thanks - much appreciated!

Tiki No. 10 (White Pine)
"Coon-Tang"

Like you've never seen one of these before...

Y'all enjoy!

A-A

"Ah, good taste! What a dreadful thing! Taste is the enemy of creativeness."
-Pablo Picasso

[ Edited by: Aaron's Akua 2006-09-04 21:41 ]

excellent symmetry and consistency in your ellipses.

Aaron your carving skills amaze me, you nail everything you do right square on the head.
I've really enjoyed each of the projects you've done.

Like you've never seen one of these before...

Y'all enjoy!

A-A

Dude-
I have seen one of these before but not quite like this one!!! It looks great and it and it is not like any other I have seen!!! I love the stain and the finish!! Thank you for sharing.
Later,
Spermy

Thanks Monkeyman, Tikiwahine and Spermy. I've not been carving as much as I'd like lately. This one was a fun piece though. Started in Tenessee, brough back to So-Cal. Tiki Diablo started it & gave it to me at Coon-Tiki, Polypop & I chiseled on it at Spermy & Whalerider's, Kirby tried out the recip carver on it, and my 4 year old helped me finish it. I will try to scrounge up some more carving time soon. You know how it is...

"Coon-Tang" ... Now that's funny.

A little on the AA thing. The guy who brought the tables to Coon Tiki was in that Army unit, but referred to it as the Electric Strawberries, due to the insignia. A very decorated unit and well known as it is the one depicted in Platoon. He was stationed in Hawaii for a few years.

Wow, Aaron-your work is so clean and precise. Makes me want to tighten up my own skills a bit but that's more about time/practice than anything else I suppose. The Lono--gee, I don't know what to say-I can only gasp with delight, that guy is absolutley awesome! The others are grand as well, but I'm a sucker for the detailed work.

Good talking w/you the other day-let me know If I can lend a hand on your Carolina venture.
Brad

Looks like you ended up with one of the better pieces of wood I see and you finished it accordingly. Very Well done, Just as I expected from you, though I did see you finishing it sooner. But thatz OK because he really came out nice and Clean with cool detail!

Mahalo, Swanky, surf-n-turf, & Ben!

Surf-n-turf, thanks for all of the good local info. It looks like we will be taking a trip out to your neck of the woods end of August. Will keep you posted.

A-A

You are a very precise carver. It adds a lot.
JP