Work @ home - make big bucks - carving IVORY! (Anchorage: gated, food)

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Recall that last piece of Ivory we purchased ? Yes the one we are using to create all of these recent bracelets.

The pointed end is saved; (for figurines). The wide back end is hollow for a bit. Let me show the end of that piece and what we did with it.


There is no right way or wrong way to use up ivory; anything you can think of - will be appropriate !! I am merely show & telling what we do and how we do it.



Learning how to make use of ALL of the pieces of ivory - comes with practice, There is nothing hard about these simple steps; each one is a bit time consuming; time flies.



Templates; circles, ovals, hearts, stars, rectangles, trapezoids Or make your own. Go to Google > type in "simple shapes". Then on the left side click on the LINK: Images. Get some 'ideas'!!



Tiny insets will be made for bracelets. You have seen them many times; The process begins here. Keep repeating the same simple steps - you will succeed in becoming very proficient in making perfect bracelets.


















You... are only as good, as the tools you use. You are only as good as the 'templates' you have and use.

The whole idea is to use your cash to purchase new materials, tools, and ivory. It won't take long for you to build up your stock; and have a very large inventory of EVERYTHING!!

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Three per day - that is our pay - every day.

Tommorrow's bracelets being prepared -


one inset per piece.

Plain - no insets.

two insets per piece.



These are already sold. Native Hospital - Almost every bracelet we have sold to the hospital gift shop are gone. The bracelets that remain are the sole property of those 5 carvers that work downtown on 4th ave. Plain bracelets with beads. DO NOT COPY that style of bracelets - YOU WON'T SELL SQUAT!!

This bottom image is much darker just to show the two different insets in the bottom bracelet.



Mixing up the last of our scrap pieces of fossil ivory to create a symetrical design of the fossil ivory inset pieces.



There are: Ivory bracelets in all gift shops all over Anchorage; Walk around & look. Guess what you won't find. OURS!! They are gone that quick.

Since May we have been steadily been making 3 per day - every day.

90 per month - June is almost over and we have kept up with 3 per day. A few days we have had more. I am about to order my 3rd Case of bracelet boxes. 100 per case.


When are you going to order yours ??

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The END of another GREAT week.

I only have two items to show you; the rest are the same fossil brown ivory we have been working with and you have seen enough of those.

Today however is something a bit different; A beleen bracelet with huge insets that lend well to the overall design of this unique bracelet.

Absolute perfect insets - The MARK of QUALITY.




Today @ the Native hospital gift shop; The boys had to wait; for more than 1/2 hour - just to get into the gift shop. It was overcrowded with more than 50 people. Some were there to sell their crafts and the majority were "tourists"!.

Just as the boys approached the worker in the gift shop, the customer in front of us - a woman - purchased four items from the gift shop - FOUR of our past bracelets were just sold. As we stepped up the gift shop purchased 3 more plus the mask. The worker announced.. .. "We have sold TEN of your bracelets today; You came just in time; We need more!!!

As she picked up this bracelet and tried it on she exclaimed Oh!! I didn't see the baleen. I thought this was an all IVORY bracelet!!




Masks are very popular; it doesn't matter what they look like - they sell very fast. Purchase the blank discs for $25 dollars and sell them for $150 or much higher depending on the detail.

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The ivory baleen bracelet with large white ivory oval insets.
there is very little baleen on the front of these bracelet pieces. You can easily see the ivory insets are almost as large as the pieces they are inset into. The sides are wafer thin.








A new reverseable bracelet; plain fossil and plain baleen.







Another new piece of IVORY - 3 pounds for $160. This same tusk would cost $750 dollars @ Alaska Fur Exchange !!!

Notice: the 'tag' at the far right of the tusk. These tags are put on by Fish & Game - this is the mark to indicate this is a legal sale of RAW white walrus IVORY.

Tags are only required for Raw White walrus ivory - OR - white beach washed ivory (which is legal for anyone to own & possess).

Tags are NOT REQUIRED or necessary for FOSSIL IVORY - MASTODON IVORY - or MAMMOTH IVORY. There are NO RESTRICTIONS.

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When we purchased this last tusk, (pictured above). The owner who sold us this ivory tusk, requested two bracelets made just from the shape of the ivory.

Each slice of the tusk = 2 pieces of the bracelet.

Each slice must be cut in two pieces.

Each slice must be marked to keep the pieces in order

Each slice must be angled @ precisely 18 degrees



This type of bracelet is the easiest to make & produce. We normally do not make this type. The only time we make this type is when people request them.



THIS TYPE : of bracelet only takes perhaps two hours max to complete. Start to finish all done in two hours or less.

Here in these images you can see or discern why it is so important to keep the pieces numbered or marked so that each one is the opposite of the other.





Getting the exact angle (18 degrees) is essential for the bracelet to LOCK into the proper position to maintain its roundish - shape.

I believe that is called a "Decagon"

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I will not have anything new to post until Friday when we purchase a new piece of fossil ivory.

I sure hope this piece has spectacular colors; Everything we have made this week is identical to all you have seen on this last page.

I will be back - Friday (early afternoon)

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Friday afternoon and as promised here is the new piece of fossil ivory we purchased today.




Step one: cut it open @ each end to reveal the colors / patterns.



Start cutting up the tusk into 1/4" slices. Draw the shape of the template you are using for the bracelet pieces (main)
Once a week we clean all tools, dust. Especiallly the 12" sander and the vertical band saw. When we open that up the dust build up is beyond excessive. It takes a good hour to clean all that excess dust out and clean the entire insides up.



This is the moment .. we hold our breath and hope for good colors / patterns or lines. All too often it us just white inside. Colors that you cannot see (yet) can be darkend by soaking the pieces in baby oil, mineral oil... probably anytype of oil. We have never tried other 'oils' yet.

As you can see.. we have good color(s) in some areas. These will be sliced up and soaked over night and tommorrow I will have finished bracelets to display.




Fossil ivory bracelets with Ivory insets & Ivory bracelets with fossil insets

Exact opposites are going to be made in 'sets' - w/ matching ear-rings.

http://youtu.be/_Z2T_qE2XnE

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These are the slices of this new tusk. Some have color as you viewed in the previous post - But; In the middle of the tusk - it appears to be all white-ish.




These faint hues of color will be come quite pronounced and much darker once we soak these slices in baby oil over night.



We need new blades.. (on order). Fossil ivory will dull any blade very quickly.

When you use a coping saw by hand to make your slices. You will notice instantly the difference between cutting white ivory & fossil ivory.

White ivory is 'soft'. The newer it is... the softer it is when slicing by hand.


The difference between the pieces soaked in oil is easily discernable; the difference presents quite the contrast.



Here the difference range is quite impressive to say the least.




Here is what we have sliced up so far; and placed into the baby oil overnight.




These bracelets will soon prove to be some of the nicest we have made so far, due to the striking contrast as you will soon see shortly.

These are the pieces we soaked over-night. they are all still quite wet when placed upon this towel. Now we begin to create the pieces for the next batch of bracelets - about 30 of them using this ivory. We will mix it with white ivory & other fossil scraps we have sorted out for use as insets.




Here we have the hollow end of the tusk. for about 3" deep into the tusk this portion is not useable. But it is for something much different which will be shown later. The hollow part of every tusk is saved. It serves many different purposes.


The hollow end is not thick enough for ear-rings or bracelet insets. but turned upside down or right side up - what can you 'imagine'?

Can you use your imagination and figure out a (saleable) use for this portion??

5 - T's = take the time to think!



Currently I am running a few hours behind schedule. I was hoping to have two finished bracelets to display - they will soon be available. One of which will be mailed. BFFB

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The person we purchased this tusk from. Immedately ordered 3 bracelts. I want three of them from this piece he said; once the sale was made. Those three bracelets will return all the money we spent for this tusk and we have enough material to easily make 30 more!

Needless to say: these colors and lines are truely spectacular. Without any doubt the best piece of Ivory we have purchased in many many years time!!

http://majikimaje.com/Ivory/800/whole slices.jpg (broken link)


http://majikimaje.com/Ivory/800/whole slices2.jpg (broken link)

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just checking in to see if the thread has been reviewed and approved! yayyyy it isn't locked or removed!