Nativity Scenes

So apparently, it's December. I'm sure that means the other eleven months of the year have already gone by, but I'm sure there's been an abridgement somewhere. 

The bafflement of my sense of season notwithstanding, December usually gets us thinking about Christmas and all the various things related thereto. Someday I might decide to carve a turkey out of wood, but until then I'll leave Christmas dinner to the professionals. However, there are some areas I might be able to help out with. 

For most of us, the thought of Christmas conjures images of Christmas decorations, and of course one of the most traditional (and for some, essential) decorations is the nativity scene. 

Unfortunately, I don't have pictures of all of my nativity scenes available, but hopefully I can remedy that shortly. I also have a set with 17 pieces which can be arranged however you like. I should also mention that the scenes shown here have been photographed before finish was applied to reduce glare in the pictures.

The top scene is of shepherds kneeling in worship. The text below reads "Good will to men". There is an accompanying scene featuring wise men approaching from the left which reads "Peace on earth". Both can be displayed independently or with others are part of a set.

The middle scene shows Mary and Joseph kneeling over the infant Christ in a manger. There is another Mary and Joseph scene showing the three of them travelling with Mary holding Jesus while riding a donkey.

All told I've done five different scenes as well as the larger moveable set. As pictures become available of the others I will try to update, but I wanted to show some of the scenes I've done before we got too far into the festive season.

All are available for order in a variety of colours. Prices shown are for individual scenes. Bundled scenes will receive discounts. For more info contact me at mapleridgecreations@gmail.com. You can also see some of my work on the St. John's Anglican Church Facebook page here. I thought about donating but since one of my customers told me he was going to, I opted not to.

Dapple Daschund and Cooper Craft Sale

First things first...

Tomorrow and Sunday will see the Cooper and Rimington Women's Institute's Annual Christmas Craft Show.

How to get there:
From Hwy 62 and Hwy 7 in Madoc, head East to Cooper road and turn North (left). After roughly 10 minutes you'll enter the hamlet of Cooper. At the 4 way stop the Women's Institute is on the North East corner (in front of you on the other side of Bannockburn road).

For more info see the ad here http://www.kijiji.ca/v-events/belleville/cooper-craft-sale/1028516964?enableSearchNavigationFlag=true.

Not long ago I posted an article about a stained basset hound puzzle that I made for a customer. If you missed it you can check it out over here Custom Stained Basset Hound Puzzle.

One of the people who saw that post was Liz. Liz, it turns out, wanted a daschund puzzle made for a gift. But not just any daschund, mind you, but a dapple daschund. I'll be honest, at the time I had no idea such a thing existed.

A few google searches, some consultation about the colour and we were off. Below is the dog image just prior to being cut into puzzle pieces.

I didn't take pictures after I cut it so you'll just have to imagine what it looks like as a puzzle. 

Liz should get this soon and hopefully it will be enjoyed by whoever receives it. In the event that they read this blog...try to act surprised anyway...

For those interested, I will be taking custom orders right up until the week before Christmas, so custom puzzles, ride on toys and all sorts of other gift ideas will be available, made to order.

By the end of the weekend I hope to post some nativity scenes, just in time for Christmas decorating.

Freestanding Moose

Looking for a little bit of Canadiana to spruce up the house? It may not be on a coin, but it's hard to get more Canadian than a moose. 

This started out as a custom order for someone who liked a wood duck I have made in the past, but thought that a moose or deer might look good. 

Freestanding Moose $20 unstained, $25 stained

I tried the moose first and since it turned out well I thought I'd post it tonight. The customer was pleased with the results. 

Freestanding Wood Duck $12 unstained, $15 stained

The wood duck that started it all. 

The moose image, unstained and without a base. This can be stained almost any colour or painted. 

If you have an image that you would like to have in your home, whether animal, person or other, contact me at mapleridgecreations@gmail.com for an online consultation and pricing details. 

A Few New Clocks

There's a lot of variation available in making clocks. I have every confidence that I will never run out of ideas for new ones, only time to make them. 

Here's a few of the newest ones:

Hard Maple Clock $55

This is solid hard maple, showing off the rings as well as the bark and features a 2 3/4" clock insert.

Eagle Mini Clock $45

Eagle mini clock made from pine, stained Minwax cherry with a 1 7/16" insert.

Wolf Mini Clock $45

Wolf mini clock made from pine stained Minwax mahogany.

As always, any ideas for your own personalized clock are welcome. Contact me at mapleridgecreations@gmail.com for consultations and pricing. 

Custom Puzzle: Stained Bassett Hound

So a little while ago I was at a show and I was approached by Rob. Really, this is Rob's story...but it could just as easily be yours.

Rob was interested in a puzzle, specifically my puppy puzzle. However, Rob was hoping for a bit more than that. He wanted to know if could maybe stain some colour spots on the puppy to make it look like his basset hound. Seemed like a nice idea, but I told him we could do better...

Rob gave me some specifics on the colours of his basset hound: black on the back with brown head and feet. 

After looking at some images of basset hounds, we moved to create a silhouette pattern and then did the custom stain job. Once the stain was dry I cut the image into puzzle pieces. 

Custom Basset Hound Puzzle $15

Personally I think it came out pretty well. There are no facial features (most notably eyes), but then I don't consider myself that sort of an artist and Rob hadn't expected any.

So how can Rob's story be your story?

If you have (or had) a dog that you would like to have become the basis of a puzzle, let me know. If you send me a picture that's even better. Almost any breed of dog can be done, capturing the particular characteristics that set that breed aside and colouring the puzzle to make it look like your particular dog.

Hope to hear from you soon.

Anchor of Hope and Zella's Christmas Craft Sale

Just a quick note tonight to let everyone know about 2 local sales in Madoc this weekend.

First off, I should mention Zella's Christmas Craft sale. This is a sales venue open Thursday, Friday and Saturday every weekend through the month of November. The sale features a number of local artisans selling Christmas decor, toys, baked goods and lots of one of a kind items that make great ideas for gifts.

The sale is located between Robin's Diner (at the lights in Madoc) and the laundromat and runs from 9am to 2pm Thursday, Friday and Saturday. For those who are curious, Zella is the woman who has organised the Friday Farmer's market in Madoc for the last few years. She's (I think) 91 years young.

The big sale of the weekend (at least  for the Madoc area) is the Boutique of Hope. This is a massive (read: over 100 vendors) sale to be held at Centre hastings Secondary School (CHSS aka the high school) in madoc this Saturday from 9am to 4pm. Proceeds go to the Anchor of Hope Pregnancy and Family Care Centre. See their facebook page here.

As for new things this week: yup. Working on nativity scenes, some special boxes and more. I might get a post up tomorrow with some pics but if I don't you'll have to catch me at a show or send me an email at mapleridgecreations@gmail.com to get your hands on it.

Hope to see you on the weekend.

The Joy of Finishing

It's been a long day in the shop and I'm not done yet, but i thought I'd take a short break for a quick post. 

Just for a bit of fun I thought I'd talk, just for a moment, about finishing. Specifically, why finishing is important. 

All of the pics posted here are of a small freeform carving I did from a piece of ash root a short time ago. Above and below are front and bottom shots after sanding was done but before finish was applied.

At this point it's not a bad looking piece (IMHO) but it's also not particularly eye catching either.

Here (above and below) are shots of the same piece after a couple coats of finish (clear shellac in this case). 

A little bit of finish can really make the grain pop and bring out the colour of the wood. 

I could talk for a long time about selecting finishes, what to use when, etc. etc. but for tonight I just wanted to show off the difference a little finish can make to a piece. 

I will be setting up at Zella's Christmas Craft show tomorrow (located between Robin's Backwoods Cafe and the laundromat in Madoc) and getting ready for the Boutique of Hope sale at CHSS on Saturday. Hope to see you there!