Lake Tiki - 8/23/2013 - Red Cedar

Nice work Lake!! I like the Zebra print, too!!

The wave lip is a very nice touch. The Zebra print really works with that piece as well.

Great vintage vibe to your work, I especially like the Ku wall hanging and
your "wave" tiki. The chisel marks and finish give the impression that
they've been around for a long time, and kicked around a little. I mean
that in the best possible way, oh hell, you know what I mean. Right?

great Tikis i love the finishe you give to your work
and the colours are amazing
Aloha
Akuae

Spermy and Johnny, heaps o' thanks to you guys! I could get pretty crazy with the assortment of Velboa furs out there... I've had my eye on the giraffe for a while now...

Conga, thanks much! With this ash the carve comes out so smooth and waxy that I really don't need to sand at all.

Akuae, thanks also! Experimentation and sticking with what works is the way to go. I can't take all the credit though, the natural beauty of wood helps!

Lake I'm glad you got back on the Ku wall-hanging
it looks great! I will have to drop in market and see what
a cherry piece like that goes for?

seek... thanks much! I'm glad to finally find the motivation to finish it up. Like Benz and Tama, I've got a few pieces that just kick around in limbo until I blow the dust off them and finish them up.

Some glamor shots of the custom tiki I just finished... the customer took delivery today. It looks cold out in that fresh snowfall. Poor guy. The sun was out though, and it offered a good light to photograph in.

The A Frame as a lower lip symbolizes the perfect peak that every surfer is searching for. The tapa design symbolizes Hawaii and the gift of surfing that the islands gave to us all.

Love the glam shots, you know I'm loving the lips on
this guy.

Got a session in last Wed Its been a dry spell for me
lately work family etc.

Thanks seek. :) A bit of a warmup this weekend with strong south winds for us. May hit 45 degrees. Hoping to hit the water for some swell Sunday. The lake is making ice right now though with an air temp of 5 degrees. Saw some float ice today in the lineup as I drove by. Hopefully it melts by Sunday with the rain.

Just put this up... carved moulding for the liquor shelves behind the bar at Foundation Tiki Bar here in Milwaukee

I've just received a downpayment on a ton of new carved mouldings for the bar in all different widths and sizes to frame out the inside of the front door and some windows in the front of the bar. Gonna be busy for a while... that's a good thing. :wink:

I finally got some pics of the fish I did for the back booth at Foundation also...

schools of tangs and triggerfish (flash kind of washed them out)

Over view

Beauty. Lake, you must be the busiest carver around!

Nice stuff Lake, good to see that your creations are sprucing up the
Foundation. I like the fish!

Cool stuff Lake, you are a busy man, It is amazing what a little carved trim will do for a place. Lookin good!!!

Nice Lake, It must feel good to see your stuff hanging in
someones place.

My 6/4 has a small hole in the butt, i thought i had
frost bite on my crack. It was like leather and white.
Scared me a little but all was good. Your water temps
are plain crazy!

The Great Polynesian past time. Last week @ the groins, surfer unknown.

Very nice carvings.....

I don't understand the lip. Is it frosty? Nice Humuhumus

Thanks everyone for your kind compliments!

pappythesailor, the variety is fun. Keeps carving fresh and challenging! The owners love the fact that everything comes from a local artist also.

conga, plenty of wall space left to spruce up! I'd like to do a variety of fish again. They look good in a school.

ken, the bar keeps dreaming up more stuff for me to do which is great. Everyone there loves the new trim which has led to me creating more to frame out other areas like the door and windows. Much more space and width to work with so I can do some brand new patterns. I'm really looking forward to getting started on it all.

seek, it has been and continues to be very rewarding! During the holiday party there last month I was vending some tikis and many people came up to me. They wanted to talk about all the new stuff that I've been creating for the walls. Even if a regular patron doesn't know me in person they know of the work I've done, which is pretty cool. Makes me proud that Foundation has committed towards showing my work. Forecast is still looking good for surf here this weekend... that left you posted looks like a screamer!

Meheadhunter, thanks stopping by to check out my stuff!

teaKEY, the lip is a cresting wave. The tiki is for a fellow surfer.

Lake Surfer...The Wizzzard called me today, I pinstripe with the legends of pinstriping and he was checking to see if I was going to join them this year at a local car show in my hometown....Anyway, to make a long story short...we got on the subject of tiki, and the tiki eyeball show in Iowa and your name came up....I have seen your stuff here on TC, and thought it was kind of a cool coincidence that we have both done some events with wizzzard. I'm hoping to be at tiki eyeball this year with some cool tiki mugs I'm working on for the event....Anyway, your carvings are totally cool...keep up the great work!!!!

LOVE the fish Lake! I want some too! I'll give you a call sometime. Please tell me you are kidding about the surfing!
SZ

The fish are just soooo cool. My first carving experience was fish, and yours are top shelf. Hell all your work is. Keep 'em coming.

Dan

Meheadhunter, thanks again for checking in and for your compliments. :)

Scott, thanks for the support! Look forward to talking to you soon and I love what you're doing with TTII! Must be a lot of fun doing the buildout!
Nope, not kidding about the surfing. We take what we can get here... I'm hoping to get to SoCal for some warmer water in the next 2 months.

Bali Dan, thanks for checking out my stuff and for your compliments! I've been dropping in to your thread... keep on carving, you've got a clean style... wish I had your shop!

On the carving bench this week... 84 linear feet or so of carved window and door trim for Foundation. Got all the wood cut and drew up some new patterns, all that's left is the carving. Install is Friday so I'd better get busy. I'll pop in to share some photos!

Nice work, love the details in the surf tiki :D

hewey, thanx much!

More than halfway through the new work for Foundation... door and window trim to be installed on Friday. Trying to keep an orderly process in the studio as I carve and stain the whole batch and still have room to move around. Hope to have things wrapped up by Tuesday so I can start on a new project to premier at Hukilau '08!

"More than half way" That looks like allot of work my friend.
Looking Good!

Thanks much seek!

Raced the snowstorm today and got up to Foundation for the install of the trim. Met up with bar patron Captain Rick, owner of Milwaukee's only dive sailboat charter, The Mai Tai. Captain Rick does window installs in the winter and his help was priceless today. Foundation is in a 1920's building, which presented some challenges. After some math and a few cuts on some boards, everything went up without a hitch.

A few shots...

Meeting Captain Rick back in December at Foundation's Holiday Party has lead to a deal doing some merchandising for him. I'll be carving up idols and keychains in the design of the tiki on his sailboat logo in the next month.

[ Edited by: Lake Surfer 2008-01-10 23:52 ]

Very good work on the windows, the boards seem meant to be at this place. I love the bamboos too.
I'm happy for the deals you've made : that means a lot of new pictures of your nice work to come :wink:

Mahalo,

Benjamin.

Lake, the new Tiki's and trim are looking great, did you do the bamboo bars on the windows too? I love the idea very cool. Hop the new year is treating you well.

Trim looks great around the window Lake. I also like the bars.
Captain Rick sounds like a interesting fellow.

Benjamin, thanks! One of the bartenders was opening up as we finished putting it all up and he loved it. There used to be leopard fur as trim and he was one of the people who hated it most. It had turned pretty ratty over time.

frost, thanks also! The bars were actually the bar manager's idea, but they turned out cool. His dad winters in Florida so he brings a lot of bamboo up in the Spring for us to work with. 2008 has started pretty good, thanks for the well wishes and good luck to you!

seek, thanks! Captain Rick, a great guy and an interesting fellow! A talker though, which isn't a bad thing, but when you have a couple hours to get things hung and then the bar opens, his endless stories made the job a bit longer. :wink: He'll be fun to work with on his business projects though.

Aloha lake!!!!!
Your carvings are looking Great my friend . I like the wave you put on your tiki it looks kool.The trim is really tight in the tiki club that your doing. I'm glad your getting some nice Tiki gigs. Stay warm my friend,and keep carving ,Aloha , Mooney

geez lake, you sure keep busy up there!!
are all those panels done by hand?
great work - the foundation bar looks like a great hangout.
can you explain what temp water you surf in? the sound of ice in the water just doesn't seem believable to me!! mind you i'm a spoilt Aussie who is used to surfing year round without barely a springsuit in winter...
cheers mate, keep it up.

Mooney, thanks so much! The same surf stoke that keeps you going runs strong up here. Surf sessions are few and far between, but that just makes the next one all the more sweeter. Same with the tiki creations, I can't wait to get on to the next new challenge.

harro, thanks... you have to move around a lot and keep busy to stay warm here in the winter. :wink: I've been using a router for large jobs like this, (80 + feet) as it is the most sensible tool, but I find the work is just as physical as hand carving. I still prefer hand carving smaller work such as panels and masks, just a little more control and I guess I'm just a traditionalist.

Foundation is a great project that just keeps getting better. We've got plans well into the future to keep adding work. Within the next few months I'll be working on Two 7 foot poles that will flank the entrance. Those will be a lot of fun to carve and will make the entrance look impressive.

Surfing here... we've been lucky to snare a few Aussies who met their wives here and decided to stay and surf our frigid waters.

This is Grant snagging a few at a reef break here on December 2nd of last year...

Water temps in F: December -March 32 degrees - 36 degrees, April - June 40 degrees - 52 degrees, June - September 52 degrees - 74 degrees, October - December rapidly falling temps from 60 degrees to mid 30's. So gear is important here and your main gear is a 4/3 suit, a 6/5/4 hooded, 5 mil gloves, and 7 mil boots. We have been lucky enough to trunk it in the summers and early fall though.

The bottom of the lake averages 279 feet deep and reaches 925 feet at its deepest part. We can get upwelling at any time of the year depending on winds and that can drop summer temps from 70's to 50's overnight. Lake Michigan is the sixth largest lake in the world, with a surface area of 22,300 square miles. It is 307 miles long and 118 miles wide with 1,660 miles of shoreline

Unbelievable!! A reef break in a LAKE???

Those temps are crazy man... I just googled surfing in lake michigan and saw some footage on youtube... good stuff - true commitment!!

God-dam cold here too!! Arrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr.

is this snow???

MuuM love the cold water surf shot guys.
If and when it does snow at the coast around
here it melt fairly fast.

Snow and cold... just another season here.

I surfed with some friends on Wednesday before temps here plunged to single digits... it was 36 degrees F air and 33 degrees F water. Waves were waist to chest.
It was nice to get a fix again since for the next 2 weeks temps will struggle to reach double digits.

I've had a little break this week from Foundation work as Don is down in Florida with his wife. Gave me a chance to start on work for this summer's festivals.

I'm working on a series of pieces for 2008 that spotlight certain island chains on the South Pacific and their unique styles.

Here's a little peak at one of the many pieces I'm doing that spotlight the Marquesan Islands...

This and many more will make their debut at Hukilau 2008... for now I'm keeping the rest undercover. :wink:

5 above with a windchill of -30 tomorrow... I'm not leaving the house.

[ Edited by: Lake Surfer 2008-01-18 14:58 ]

SWEET left there Lake... pure glass.

love the Marq mask too, beautiful wood.

Thanks harro. :)

That left is just a dream now.. we are fully iced in here on the lakes thanks to 4 straight day of sub zero temps... about time for me to book at flight to SoCal for some wavesliding.

Keeping busy here in the studio though, well stocked and cranking out some brand new designs... love the smell of fresh wood.

After looking at the cold surf shots the Mask looked like
he was very cold also.

Looking good, nice wood supply.

Very nice stock of wood.
The double side tang seems pretty cool too, got more pix ? :wink:

Benjamin.

Seek, that mask looks cold because it really was... I took the shot outside on a day that was 5 degrees F. Nothing better than the sun as a light source though.

More fresh wood stock cut yesterday... time to get down to work!

Benjamin, good eye :wink: I'll get some pics soon...

[ Edited by: Lake Surfer 2008-01-23 08:51 ]

Aloha Lake!!!
It looks like you've got a nice stack of wood and work ahead of you . Your mask looks pretty cool my friend, and I'm stoked for you that you got some SURF in. I'ts all good no matter what the temp because the soulful stoke runs deep,Keep carvin looking fwd to what your gonna post next,ALOHA, YOUR FRIEND Mooney P.S ( I know about cold I grew up in MiChIgAN!!!stay warm, Mooney

Hey Lake did you catch the feature on Surfline about surfing Lake Michigan? Well, actually they pretty much just took it from the Chicago Trib but good piece nonetheless.

On 2008-01-24 08:33, Surf tiki wrote:
Hey Lake did you catch the feature on Surfline about surfing Lake Michigan? Well, actually they pretty much just took it from the Chicago Trib but good piece nonetheless.

Surftiki,

Yes, I saw it... there's been a lot media coverage recently. Always happens in the winter, because yea, surfing here is pretty crazy in the winter. I'm not big on the media coverage or coverage at all especially from the local media because the local media doesn't get surfing period. Always start the article with "dude" or "hang loose..." the typical sterotype slang. I know the guys who submitted the Surfline article, they're young and exciteable and love getting their pictures taken. I was disappointed by the wave and surfing photos, it does get better then photographed and there are not pictures then because eveyone is surfing when it is better. Plus, when 2 foot Lake Michigan is wedged inbetween epic California and Pipeline.... well... you just know the guys on Surfermag forum are gonna light us up. :wink:

We're just like everyone else though, we've got soul surfers and we've got guys who want to be in the spotlight all the time.

Doing a whole lot of nothing lately... we're socked in with ice and have been in single digit temps for 2 weeks.

Mooney, thanks so much. Any sign of 'ol Johnny Fox down in your parts this winter? He's a Michigan boy. It is fricken cold here this winter, and snowy. I need to plan a trip to one of the coasts and get some waves and feel the sand between my toes.

A goal of mine this year is to start working color into my work and add to the layers already going on in the piece. Carving, burning, staining and now color to add extra richness and depth to the piece.

I've had my eye on the logo tiki from The Luau for some time now. I loved the colors in it and the time weathered look that it had. I did two wall hangings based on this logo.
15 inches high x 6 inches wide, hand carved and hand painted. These will be available in the Marketplace if anyone is interested in purchasing them. These were fun and I'm looking forward to another painted piece.

Nice Lake, The lines and colors are playing tricks
on me, the white lines are pulling it out nicely.

Excellent work Lake, the color is perfect. Nice vintage look. I'm
sure some very cool stuff will come out of that pile that you showed
us earlier.