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Blackhawk Woodcarver Blackhawk Woodcarvers at Kenrock Community Center 3218 11th Street, Rockford, IL., Volume XVI, Issue November, 2009 |
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Blackhawk
Woodcarvers Carving sessions
every Wednesday 8:30-11:00 am
(Visitors always welcome) |
In a Caricature Carving Class
at The Woodcraft Shop in Bettendorf, Iowa, September 25-27,
Mike Shipley shows
Dona Wisner some tips for getting expression in a
caricature face. Most of the carvers at this seminar completed two or more
carvings during the three days.
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Sherry
Shipley and Mike Shipley are standing with
Dona Wisner as she shows the two mountain folk
caricatures she carved and painted during the three-day caricature carving
seminar in September. The Shipleys are from Nora,
Missouri, and teach caricature carving in seminars at various places around the
USA. They specialize in caricatures of mountain folks, Santa Clauses, and bears
... in various poses and costumes.
WORDS OF WARNING: In any organization (almost any) attendance at any meeting will equal about 50% (if they’re lucky) of the paid-up membership. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, It’s just one of those "Laws of Nature." Remember this if you happen to become involved with any responsibility in some organization. Plan accordingly. Our carving Club is not a good example of this, because it is common for us to have MORE THAN half of our members show up. Are we good, or what!
Roger Benedict will be conducting a tour at the Rockford Art Museum, Saturday, November 7, at 10:30 AM. The event is a special exhibit, "EXPECT THE UNEXPECTED" by Hollis Sigler. The more than 60 pieces of her work in this exhibit display intriguing images and colors. The works span 20 years, and cover the last 16 years of her life during which sh was fighting breast cancer. She passed away in 2001.
The exhibit is sponsored by OSF Saint Anthony Medical Center, in partnership with Rockford Art Museum, to provide public education and outreach about breast cancer.
Fee is $3.00. Pay in advance to Roger Benedict.
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Blackhawk
woodcarvers busy on a Wednesday morning. Front-to-back, you see Dave Meyer, Tom
Backer, Rich Anderson, Roger Benedict, and Bob Matthews. In the background,
Gordy Moscinski is discussing something with Elaine Terrell and Ray Olson, while
Tony DeVita carves. Silhouetted against the screen door is Gale Terrell.
DOGGONE ADVERTISING -
For sale-Eight puppies from a German Shepherd and an Alaskan Hussy.
Great Dames for sale.
Dog for sale. Eats anything, especially fond of children.
BUSINESS MEETING MINUTES
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
Gary Lundquist, Secretary
Secretary’s Report - Minutes of the September meeting were read by Secretary Gary Lundquist, and approved as read.
Treasurer’s Report - Report read by Treasurer Pro Tem Bob Hallstrom, and approved as read.
The Petty Cash Report - Shows enough free cash so it can probably pay for the Christmas Breakfast Party. (This is Dona Wisner’s coffee profit.)
Membership Report - Dona Wisner reported no new members this month. Dona circulated a current listing of members, and asked that everyone double-check their information for accuracy. Up-date as necessary, and add your spouse’s name,
Special visitor - Lee Thomas brought his daughter, Anne, in to see what a carving club looks like.
Newsletter Report - Tod Wisner: nothing to report ... read your Newsletter
Club Membership Directory - Done for this year. A few extra copies are still available. ($2.00 US each.)
Library Report - Bernie Budzynski is in Florida.
Web Master Report - No news
OLD BUSINESS
Bob Hallstrom inquired if anyone wanted free car window decals. He also asked about interest in club patches, embroidered shirts, name tags, or aprons.
ANOTHER REQUEST went out for volunteers for two public service opportunities:
One, for a woodcarving presentation to a women’s group at Redeemer Lutheran Church on Thursday, November 5. Get there at 10:30 AM to set up. Then, go out to lunch and be back for the presentation at 1:00PM. Tod & Dona Wisner volunteered to put out their display of "How we learned woodcarving from Gordy Moscinski." We still need a couple of carvers for live demonstrations, as well as some sample carvings to display.
Two: Bethlehem Lutheran Church needs carvers to put on a soap carving class for Scouts. This is a Thursday evening, January 14, 2010, at 6:00PM.
Did you know?
Pirates thought wearing an earring would improve their eyesight.
NEW BUSINESS
The Christmas Party will feature a "Blanket Trade" instead of the usual Sale & Swap that we have had in years past. Gordy Moscinski learned about this at the Gathering of Woodcarvers in Somonauk this year. He says they did this, and had a lot of fun. This is a fun way to swap, earn cash, or just get rid of your unwanted carving items.
Here is how it works:
A blanket is placed in the corner of the room. Everyone sits in a circle around the blanket. The First Person places an item in the center of the blanket. Anyone that would like to have that item will place an item (of their own) on the edge of the blanket. There can be many items around the edges of the blanket. The First Person (with the item in the center of the blanket) then will decide if someone placed an item that he would like to accept in trade, or he can ask all the "traders" to up the stakes for his item. If he wants to (accept a) trade, he will tell the person offering to trade that it will be a "fair trade." They then exchange items. If the First Person does not like any of the items (offered around the edges of the blanket), he can take back his original item. Next, the Second Person places an item in the center of the blanket, and anyone who would like to have that item will place an item of their own on the edge of the blanket.
And so it goes, around the circle, until everyone is satisfied, and no more trades are offered. If someone has more than one item to trade, he must wait for another turn to place his second item in the center of the blanket. All the items should be related to carving or wood burning. A person may use money instead of placing an item for swap. (Bob Hallstrom suggested the blanket be placed on a couple of tables. Getting up and down off the floor isn’t so easy for some of us.)
Bob Hallstrom acknowledged receiving a "Thank you" note from Sharon Knitter in response to the sympathy card we sent to her. (But which she never received. U.S.P.O.?)
A rousing round of applause went out to Lisa Hanus and Tod Wisner for their work on the Membership Directory.
Bob Matthews announced that he would be conducting a bird carving class some time after the first of the year. The subject will be a goldfinch (wild canary), and will cover basic carving, woodburning the feather details, painting, and mounting on a branch. He says this should be fun.
Everyone was reminded of the Capitol Area Carvers’ show and sale coming up on Sunday, October 25. Free admission. Show & sale, no competition.
A nominating committee was recruited to select a slate of officers for 2010. Dona Wisner, Elaine Terrell, and Roger Benedict stepped forward and volunteered to do the work. The slate will be presented to the members for voting at the November business meeting.
Bob Hallstrom, who has served us as our President for the last two years, announced that, because of personal reasons, he will not stand for re-election.
Further, Tod Wisner announced that he is "Retiring from the news publishing business," effective after January 1, 2010. Everything is laid out plainly on computer discs, and Tod will train the new Editor. It’s an easy job, and fun.
Larry Clark reported that Mr. Dale Orr has carving wood available, and would be willing to bring some in to our meeting on a Wednesday ... if enough people expressed serious interest in buying.
Gordy Moscinski reported that a Mr. Guy Wood also sells carving wood, and he is already scheduled to come in to one of our meetings on his way back from Florida to Michigan. Dale Orr will be notified of this.
This is no joke -
Question: If the government can’t even afford Medicare for us old folks, how in the world can they pay for a universal health program?
Answer: Pass a law for health INSURANCE, not health CARE.
THE PROGRAM
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Club member Jim Griparis presented a program on wood finishes at the October meeting. He brought along many examples of his carvings on which he had used different types of finishes. Since he prefers his works to show the natural wood grain, his finishing systems do not have any pigments. He also brought in several; wood-finishing products that he uses, and explained the different applications for each.... which product might work best in what type of application ... and some special considerations involved with different ones.
In the photo, Jim is explaining how he applies French Oil Finish (a mixture including shellac and alcohol). He uses three or four coats of the product, rubbing each in thoroughly, and letting it dry for 30 or 40 minutes between coats. Jim explained this makes a friendly finish that can be easily repaired if it’s scratched or scraped.
For objects that are going to get hard use, Jim will apply three or four coats of gloss urethane to develop a hard, durable coating. He sands between coats with wet/dry sandpaper. The final coat is of satin finish urethane that gets covered with wax. He uses Min-Wax applied with either a cloth or 0000 steel wool.
Special hint: since many solvent-based finishing products will lose their solvency when exposed to air, Jim likes to buy in plastic bottles when possible. He squeezes the air out of the container between uses. This minimizes the reactivity of the product with air, because there isn’t much air in the container to react with!
COMMUNITY SERVICE -
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These
are just a few of the more than 200 Halloween pins that Club members have carved
this year. There are usually about 150 children forced to stay in hospitals over
the holiday, and our Pins For Kids program makes sure each child gets a
hand-carved pin. Besides Halloween, we also give pins for Christmas and Easter.
The Pins For Kids program not only covers those three holidays, we have also taken on the Bereaved Parent program at Rockford Memorial Hospital that meets every November. For that effort, we carve special Little Angel pins.
Community Work Coming Up:
Women’s Club program at Redeemer Lutheran Church, November 5, 2009.
Soap carving session with Scouts at Bethlehem Lutheran Church, January 14, 2010.
SICK BAY REPORT
Franklin Johnson is scheduled to be home from Cor Mariae Center by the end of October. His wife has been at home for some time, now. They will be getting rehab and home help to continue their recovery. While he’s doing quite well, Franklin will not be allowed to drive for quite a while. (ED. If you want a ride to carving Franklin, just call us.)
Karen Matthews (Bob’s wife) is home and recovering from her back surgery. It’s a tough battle,
Lee Thomas’ wife is at home, and recovering.
When the 82-year-old man applied for a passport, he was told he needed a birth certificate. But his birth had never been recorded.
"No problem," says the clerk, " Just bring in a notarized affidavit from the doctor who delivered you."
(Government "Logic")
SHOW & TELL
Bob
Matthews showed this Gold Finch mount with two finches on branches and an
all-metal thistle in the back. (Nice picture, Larry.)
Bob shows his latest finch carving, and explains how he made the thistle parts out of copper.
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John
Skaggs carved a "dozen" Santa Claus ornaments as gifts for his
grandchildren.
Marshall Field, Jr. showed three of his "trademark" endless Celtic figures. He fits each with a tiny screw eye so it can be used as a pendant on a chain around the neck.
Meeting adjourned at 0940.
CLUB ACTIVITY SCHEDULE
Business Meetings & Special Events -
ð November 19 - A talk on heart disease, Nomination of officers, Recognize Club Member of the Year
ð December 16 - Christmas Breakfast Party & Swap Meet, Election of Officers
ð 2010 - January 20 - Quarterly carving project
ð February 17 - ?
ð March 17 - ?
ð April 21 - Quarterly carving project
ð May 19 - ?
ð June 16- ?
June ?? - Club Picnic
ð July 21 - Quarterly carving project
ð August 18 - business meeting
ð August ?? - Club Competition, Show, & Sale
ð September 15 - ?
ð October 20 - Quarterly carving project, Select Nominating Committee
ð November 17 -Announce Club Member of the Year
ð December 15 - Christmas Breakfast Party & Swap Meet, Election of Officers
Daffynition -
HACKSAW - A tools built on the Ouija-board principle of predicting the future. It transforms human energy into a crooked, unpredictable motion. The more you try to influence its course, the more dismal your future becomes.
CARVING CLASSES
This info is copied from other sources. Classes may or may not be filled. Be sure to check for yourself. We have no reasonable way of knowing any details other than those shown.
November 20-22, Bettendorf, IA, Vicki & Phil Bishop teach caricature carving. Phil is a past member of Caricature Carvers of America, and Vicki was just voted in this past year. Your choice among 40 different rough-outs. $195 plus cost of roughout. The Woodcraft Shop, 2724 State Street, 52722. Call for details on motel discounts. 1-800-397-2278.
December 4-6, Bettendorf, IA, Rick Harney will teach deep relief carving of All-American football player Jim Thorpe. From a 26" x 10" plank. $235, includes roughout. The Woodcraft Shop, 2724 State Street, 52722. Call for details on motel discounts. 1-800-397-2278.
December 11-13, Bettendorf, IA, Rick Jensen will teach carving of a Whimsical Cottonwood Bark House in the round. $225 plus $20 to $25 for materials (I think roughouts). Call for more info. The Woodcraft Shop, 2724 State Street, 52722. Call for details on motel discounts. 1-800-397-2278.
SOMETIME
AFTER JANUARY 1, 2010 Bob Matthews will start a
class on bird carving. We will use the male gold finch (wild canary) as our
subject. The class will start with the basic carving of the bird, and go on to
include burning in feather details, painting, and making a suitable mounting for
our finch. In the photo, Bob is showing a sample of what we will be doing.
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CARVING SHOWS
These are shows within 3 to 4 hours one-way drive time of Rockford.
We know of no close ones in the immediate future.
WANT ADS
Free service for individuals, clubs, and vendors (members and non-members ). Items MUST be related to carving. Mail your listing to Blackhawk Woodcarver, PO Box 15488, Loves Park, IL 61132, by third Wednesday of the month for the next month’s Newsletter.
Chuck McClung - has a large variety of different kinds of wood as well as woodworking machinery like lathes and band saws that he wants to sell. (Someone gave me a note on this, I have no further info.)
CIRCULATION STATEMENT: This issue of the Blackhawk Woodcarver is mailed to 76 members, 21 Associate members, 11 Friends of Blackhawk, and 11 to other carving clubs. Total circulation = 119. We send our Newsletter USPO, First Class, for most benefit to all.
