Wendy Cevola - New colors of the Frank mug by Frankoma now available.

Dan thanks you all for the Birthday wishes. Today he received his fourth free birthday desert. Of course I helped him with it.

Hammo Ray Wyland sends you a thank you message. Are you on facebook too?

Wendy

I can be found on Facebook, but I haven’t used it for years and years. I’m over social media; I just think the bad outweighs the good. TC is the place for me!

looks like Dan-0 is not having a good time
Cheer up sir

:)
:)
:)

Our 20th was in February but we postponed the festivities cos we're going to Maui at the end of April to properly celebrate!

hang10tiki I will tell him.

Hammo I will tell him.

Hope Chest, that's great news. I'll let you know when your mugs are done. No idea when that will be but I'm working every day.
Also congratulations on a milestone of great value.

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Progress Report for the Sacramento Crawl mug. On 12/21/18 I decided that the mold was 100% dry and we could pour the first mug.

We figured out the best way to put the mold together.

I made crayon marks on the mold so that it would be easy to put together each time.

To make it really secure and the pieces well locked into place we used four belts.

Each time I pour a mug I carve a line into the side until I get to five and can slash through the first four. This way I can keep track without counting the mugs in the house.

We mixed the slip and poured into the mold. 45 minutes later I came out and topped it off. Otherwise the top of the hut would not be as thick as the rest of the mug. I leave the slip in for two hours. So we aren't trapped at home we get up every morning at 6 am to pour a mug.

Two hours later Dan pours out the slip and

lifts the heavy mold and

put it onto these 2 x 4's so it can continue to drain a bit more. I can open the mold around five hours later.

One down and 75 to go. Wendy

Hope- congratulations
Our 20th is in July

Wendy- you two have more energy than anyone I know
:)

Cheers

hang10tiki I just developed a good work ethic from 34 years in Nuclear Medicine. Dan too being in Radiology. I bet you are right there with us. I love your new skull carving.

================================

SACRAMENTO CRAWL MUG for 2019. Opening the mold for the first cast on 12/22/18.

OK this is going to work out. The mug above has not been fine tuned. Also after doing around 9 and hand craving the front arch I figured out what I wanted to do. That new trick that I figured out on my own will change this mug for the better. Stay tuned! Wendy

---

[ Edited by: danlovestikis 2019-03-12 09:08 ]

Wow
Lookin good in Wendy’s neighborhood

Those are really looking fantastic, Wendy!
I can't wait to see what they'll look like when finished.

Unreal - that thing is HUGE.

hang10tiki I think if someone sets up a village every Christmas they need one of these to make the village complete.

Sandbartender me too! I haven't yet decided how to glaze it. One step at a time.

HopeChest smaller than last years volcano. Maybe a quart and a half. Someday I'll check one.

=================================

SACRAMENTO CRAWL MUG for 2019 is finalized. Here is my new technique and how it turned out and then what I do to each mug when I fine tune it.

I fine tuned the front of this mug and then carved a design around the arch. It took a long time when I also have the rest of the mug to fine tune. So I had to think up a better plan.

My mother had a dental lab and I have all her tools. I decided to alter my mold.

Risky because I only have one shot at getting it right.

The best part is that the design will stand out rather than being carved in.

Here are the steps I did to fine tune each mug. I will do this 76 times and then stop. If I need more mugs they will be done as part of the next Wish List.

So much better and it will be this way for the run of mugs. Those I hand carved will be used for the glaze tests. Her I added texture to the cross beam, the palm trees and then I carved the flagstone design which will change for each mug. Similar but different.

I use a wet paint brush to sand it as I go along. It removes the sharp edges that wouldn't glaze well.

Just how it should be.

Next I tackle the opening at the back of the mug.

I cut off the right amount of clay, cleaned the mold lines and

then I use a spike to cut the opening to the right size and shape.

Then I "wet" sand it.

The lettering didn't hold up and started to fade but clay is there to be manipulated and I just worked harder.

Here's how it looks after fine tuning. I will do the scratches on the entire thatch roof as well.

I thought the stones should have been more pronounced so I actually carved around each stone.

I also carved between each bamboo slat to make them better as well.

Then I used a wire brush to add texture to the bamboo.

I used the wire brush to do the roof and

then I sanded with a wet brush all the appropriate areas.

I fine tuned the last side and

wet sanded it too.

One down and 75 more to go.

Thank you all for the visits and fun comments. I may be gone for a few days. I'm having a minor out patient surgery tomorrow. So I may be sleeping a lot for a day or two. I hope to be back to work super fast. We'll see.

Cheers, Wendy

Love the texture on this one Wendy
Came out great

Hope all goes well tomorrow
Rest up and get well fast

Maybe Dan-0 can get you something sweet to snack on

:)

Whew, that’s a lot of work. You’re going out with a bang with your last Crawl mug.

Hope your surgery goes well and you recover soon. No doubt Dan will take good care of you.

At least you don’t have to worry about snow, too.

Hamo- looks a bit cold

Frankie’s

3 rum scum

3 dots and a dash

Cheers Wendy
Hope all went well with the surgery

The ridges on some of the icicles outside my office today reminded me of the rings on Tiki Bob.

Hamo-
one of those in a drink would make a kool photo
If ya could only make a clean one
:)

Wendy-

I sure hope this was not the cause of any pain

Hi Friends, I'm doing really well. It's only hard because I can't lie on my back or sit leaning back. I sat up straight and worked clay all day. So life is good.

hang10tiki I had Dan buy $50 in scratchers and Panda takeout for my first day. I just scratch a bit at a time so that they last. I'm so glad you like the mug.

Hamo I think the glazing will take more time than the fine tuning. I have to figure it out. Dan's an excellent care giver. He's staying by my side. We just watched The Old Man With A Gun yesterday, then Bohemian Rhapsody today. By the fourth meal of Panda I'm ready to send him out in search of food tomorrow. 71 degrees here today and I couldn't go out to enjoy it. Your photos make me cold.

hang10tiki (=:

hang10tiki Cheers to you too.

Hamo I've never seen icicles in real life, only photos. Bring one here next time you visit.

hang10tiki ah thank you.

Hamo- for the first time I noticed that I always put too many m's in your name when I type it.

hang10tiki (=;

hang10tiki wow I forgot about skinning that palm log. Fun to see it again.

==================================

My mom took my sister and I to the California State Fair each year to watch the potters spinning clay. My sister became a master at the craft. Today she turned 80 years old.

I'm showing her off. She says she's a meter I can go by. If I look this good at 80 I will be really happy.

I'll be posting projects soon. Thank you for the posts and photos and art. Cheers, Wendy

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[ Edited by: danlovestikis 2019-03-17 15:14 ]

So throwing clay runs in the family.
:)
Great pics

I think I have a few pictures of some clay bowls
my mom made when I was a kid, I will look for them.

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Worst sound ever, slurp of an empty tiki mug through my straw!!!

[ Edited by: hang10tiki 2019-03-17 10:42 ]

The dreaded double post got me this time.

[ Edited by: danlovestikis 2019-03-18 19:58 ]

hang10tiki those would be fun to see. I'm almost ready to post your wish.

==================================

SACRAMENTO CRAWL MUG FOR 2019 based on the Lanai on Freeport Blvd.

For 76 days I've dried the molds each night and poured a mug each day.

Molds have to be cleaned after each cast too.

76 times I've cleaned a mug while listening to TV.

One by one they lined up to dry.

When completely dry they were moved into my kiln shed where in 40 degree weather I wore long johns, gloves and a coat with a heater behind me so I could sand and finish off the bottom of each mug.

After they were dusted with an air compressor

we loaded the kiln and

they fired overnight. Then they cooled for another day.

We filled dedicated garbage cans with ice cold water. One for scrubbing in and one for rinsing.

We scrub them inside and out with numb hands.

One whole kiln load held 17 mugs. They were touching

in the kiln so when I glaze the kiln will hole 15 mugs with space between them.

We close up the tops so that we can use the water again.

There were more drying in the house as the project continues.

I plan to get them all done and then I will do glaze tests and then I will glaze them all. Cheers, Wendy

Couldn’t find the pics
But
I texted her and she sent these 2
She still has them out and uses them
:)
Definitely have that 70s look

:)

I can’t wait to see my wish mug

You two are a mug making machine factory
Wow
Can’t imagine all the work put into all those mugs
Amazing

Hope you are feeling ok

Wife saw this cheese spreader thingie at Crate and Barrel
She thought I could do something with it
:)

10 min later

A Fijian hook weapon swizzle
:)

hang10tiki I do see the 70's vibe. I took a potters wheel class in college and the kiln was filled with that style. That's fun to se your mom and my sister were both at it back then. I'm doing well. I sanded an entire kiln load today. I can't lean back but I can sit up straight so that's perfect for working. Thank you.

==================================

Wish List #8 phase four update. I've gotten a lot done and it's time to start posting. This project is for hang10tiki. It has turned out to be one of my personal favorite mugs. It was such a challenge to make but I think he'll be happy in the end.

Here are the first steps. I cast the appropriate sized mug and cleaned it up.

hang10tiki took a mug I'd made for him in the past and photoshopped images onto it to show me what he wanted. It's an Easter Island mug.

First I cut out the images of the three tikis.

I folded a paper so the it was the height of the mug.

Using that paper and the cutout I sketched out an enlarged image. I really should have done this on the computer but I didn't want to use up a lot of ink.

I did each one until

I was happy with the shape but

I will tweak them as I go.

This is why I do the Wish List, it's just fun to make something new. Thank you hang10tiki for this really hard one. Wendy

Wow we were posting at the same time hang10tiki. That is so much fun that Sew Tiki is looking out for you. Good job. Wendy

Yes we were
That’s funny
I think we have posted at the same time a few times
Love the start of my Rapa Nui mug
Can’t wait
Awesome

Jon

You’d think all that work would keep you warm. You’re bundled up, while Dan’s in short sleeves and shorts. He looks like he belongs in Colorado; it got to 40 degrees today, and we all started removing layers.

PS, I hope your lovely sister gets a whole birthday month just like Dan.

Frankie’s

3 rum scum

...-

hang10tiki I better post some more before bedtime.

Hamo that is Dan for sure. I want to visit Colorado one day on a driving trip. I want to drive from city to town to hamlet. Hamo do you live in a Hamlet?

Hamo my sister also married a man who treats her as a queen. Every day she is surrounded by love and fun.

hang10tiki rum to riches sure is right for you! Congratulations on another win.

==========================

More steps for hang10tiki Wish for an Easter Island mug.

I rolled out a flat piece of clay and lay the cutout on top.

I used a spike to cut off the excess clay and then

I painted the mug with some slip to use as a glue and to prevent air from being trapped.

I peeled off the cutout, lay it on the mug and pressed gently from one side to the other. Wow piece of cake...or not.

I did the same process of cutting it out

and peeling off the cutout. But when I went to put it on the mug it was the wrong size. How could that be?

Turned out this clay had more water content and had become elastic. In the seconds it took to lift it to the mug it stretched!

OK, I'll start over but I may as well do the Moai first. Same steps however...

It was not in the right place and I had to scrap it back off.

If I drank alcohol it would be time for a drink. However candy works well and I figured out a fix for the next day.

Clay is fun despite the problems you can run into. Cheers, Wendy

Sorry it causing trouble
You know how those Moais can be

:)

hang10tiki I have as much fun with my failures as with my successes and that' why I post them. Tikis rule my life!

===========================================

Wish List #8 more steps and problem solving for hang10tiki Easter Island mug.

To make this work I flipped the cutout over and pressed it on the clay.

I then cut away the excess and then painted the mug and the bird with slip for glue and removal of air bubbles.

I figured out where the beak needed to end up and then I started at the bottom by lifting the plastic cover and then pressing the bird from the bottom up into place.

Next I peeled off the plastic disc. The bird is in place and the plastic prevented stretching.

This is the tool I use for making clay slabs.

Again I flipped the cutout so that the face will look in the right direction when attached.

I cut away the excess, removed the cutout paper and painted it with slip and onto the mug it went.

All three Easter Island tikis are in place.

It feels good to get to this point. Onward to more steps.

Wendy

Oh my
:)
It’s coming together

hang10tiki here are some more steps for your Wish List #8 Easter Island mug.

To further bind the tikis to the mug I ran some sticky clay all the way around each tiki.

Next I used a wet brush to remove the excess.

Our neighbors cat comes to inspect each step. It does slow me down a bit but it makes for a more precise mug.

Next I took a very sharp knife dipped in water to trim the tikis edges down.

A miracle! I uncovered a deadly trapped air bubble. During firing this little gap could crack or blow up the mug. I'm very careful but sometimes they happen. I hope there are not more in this mug.

Cheers, Wendy

I love that kitty!

Those images in relief look so, so cool. I like how primitive it looks at this stage.

All right
Good eye inspector

Does the cat work for tikis too?
:)

HopeChest I am so in love with our neighbors cats. They don't even know they both have secret lives!

I was hopeful that I could do these tikis on this mug. I think it worked out because it's one of my favorites of all time.

hang10tiki here are the final photos for you to check out with that magnifying glass. I miss Peter Sellers.

=================================

Wish List #8 progress report. The Easter Island mug for hang10tiki is finished being sculpted. I started the sculpting on 2/17/19 and finished on 2/27/17.

I work in small amounts of clay that

I shape with a wet brush. The I let it all dry overnight and then I use tools to carve the clay.

This one needed an ear addition.

The spine was fun to carve.

Then bit by bit I

added and shaped clay over a few days.

The last step was to take the mug and add a background. I took a few different photos of each tiki to show them in the best way.

Hopefully everything I make this Wish List will survive the kiln!
hang10tiki I posted late tonight so you could wake up to your mug.

Cheers to one more wish getting closer. Wendy

Incredible! Just amazing, Wendy!

WOW.

That is fanfreakingtastic.

I love the contrast and detailing Wendy, super cool!

:) :) :)

AWESOME

Sandbartender, HopeChest and CyroTiki I appreciate your messages. They keep me wanting to continue on with doing this art. Thank you all very much.

hang10tiki woo hoo I can check off another wish as having been sculpted. Did you want the green background or something else?

=========================================

My work never ends. Wish List #8 continues with the making of some more Hot Tub Hula Girls. I'm making eleven this phase and so I won't be filling all the wishes yet. I will contact people in the order I received the orders. Here's a quick overview of the work.

I hand carve this on the bottom of each mug. The box will be unglazed and the number will be added here. I am now making numbers 119 to 129.

I have a lot of mold lines to clean on each girl before I start.

I put sticky clay on the bottom of the legs and press her into place. Then I cut the hole in the coconut so that no air is trapped inside the girl when I'm firing.

I then take clay and build up

her hair in the back and

then in the front.

Next I carve the coconut texture into the bowl and

sand it with a wet brush.

Here is a different girl finished.

I made five and then

after a bunch more work

I finish off

another six.

I worked on these from 2/17/19 to 3/7/19. They slowly dry under and out of a plastic sheet to prevent cracking. Another 11 wishes will be filled.

Cheers, Wendy

Green works
Thanks

More hula girls
I wonder how many of those u have made

That's a lot of girls and coconut hot tubs!

You are an unstoppable tiki-machine!

hang10tiki this round if they make it until the end will bring the total to 129. Green is good. All brown tikis or a slate grey moai?

Sandbartender even one is a lot of work. Glazing is the worst part. Sometimes I'm an assembly line and since I've had surgery about 10 days ago I stay at my work table and Dan carries the next project to me.

===================================

Wish List #8 and the Sacramento Crawl mugs have kept me very busy and there is no end in site. Sometimes I have to rest my brain by just making something fun. Also that makes items available for a quick grab by people who read my post here and on facebook. I do not do Instagram.

So here is something I made while resting. This was done 2/25/19 to 3/5/19. I work on many different projects during the day because added on clay has to firm up for the next step.

I cast one of my Ren Clark severed head mugs.

I cleaned it up and then had the eyes swell.

I cut off the open mouth and then

brought new lips together. Now it's time to sew and age the head.

All done and ready to dry.

He should go into a pickle jar! Wendy

All brown for mine please

Love the texture on the severed head

Have you ever done a shrunken severed head?
String in eyes and mouth
I can’t remember
If not, might look great