Make Cool Stuff Carving IVORY! (Part Deux) (law, legal)

[SityData]

Lets talk about drilling and insets..!



Before you drill the holes in the bracelet pieces; FIRST you must put the insets in. If you drill first and then put the insets in. You will encounter problems when you drill through the inset. It can pop out, just from the vibration of the dremel. But if it is inset first properly and dried. THEN drill through both materials at once and you will hardly ever pop out an inset.

This is based on a lot of experience.
We are just about half way through our last case of boxes we purchased.

3,800 bracelets & counting. I order another two cases and when those are finished the magic number is 4,000!

That is a lot of bracelets .... It has taken those boys.. 8 years to reach that number!!

They enjoy working.. together having fun. Its the greatest way to spend a day @ home working for yourself and not have to put up with a 'system' that only allows you to live from paycheck to paycheck.

We are just about out of Ivory - tonight we purchase some new material.

[SityData]

The secrets to successful insets is practice. Children catch on very quicky. It just takes time to experieince how that tool works in your hand. There is no other way around practice; it teaches you and practice does indeed make ... better! Each one will be better than the one before.

Yes it can become frustrating learning but... .. adjust your technique. You will succeed.



The two insets on the far left - show gaps that have been filled with dust. Add super glue and sand one more time and the insets (dust) will fill in the gaps totally invisible when finished and polished.


One step at a time; first learn how to make the simple shapes; then learn the other portions one at a time. When you describe your difficulties then I can provide additional information. The knots being too big can only happen if you do not stretch that cord to tighten those knots to the extreme maximum before you add the super glue to prevent them from ever coming loose.

Elastic cord over many years of use will loose its elasticity; it is a quick fix to restring a that same bracelet with new cord free of charge to any of our customers.


Keep doing the same simple steps.. .. Production = inventory!

Inventory = Kash!

[SityData]

This is the stuff that brings in the high prices because it is so rare and so difficult to find.

Here are some samples of gorgeous fossil ivory. It has to be seen in person to appreciate the colors and look and feel of this rare substance.

The colors are the result of hundreds or thousands of years of being bashed around in the ocean waters absorbing the minerals.



The pieces above are from a female walrus - See the core ? it is very small. That is the one indicator. The other two bracelets below, are from male walrus!







People will pay an arm & a leg for this material; it is literally more valuable than gold.

[SityData]

Baleen etchings; on bracelet pieces. This is being made special order for a person here in Anchorage; A native who requested this type of bracelet.





Another fine day; finally ends here in Anchorage.


Is it possible to sell 50 bracelets in one week @ 200 each?? That is easily done in any of the larger villages !!

[SityData]

Today .. more of the same!! More new work will be shown soon, I'm facing a 6 hour deadline and I have to bake bread this morning also!



Baleen/Ivory combination is the most popular style tourists seek out in Kotzebue. NorthWest Arctic Borough in Kotzebue; Not to be confused with North Slope Borough of Barrow.









I have lots of good information for you .. all you have to do is copy what you see in the photos.

One person can only do so much in a day.. 3 people or more can do so much more when working together as a team effort. THEN it is extremely easy to accomplish what I have claimed !! This isn't rocket science; it is basic simple common sense.

Pre-fab and make hundreds of pieces. then make hundreds more and do it again & again.

[SityData]

Baking the bread was just part of the fun. Bombing the fragrant aroma of fresh bread into the hallways here @ Castle Apartments; Everyone is wondering;??? Where is that delicious smell coming from? But our efforts to surprise w/ shock & awe were foiled... 'drat'!



The bread came out of the oven @ 2:30 this afternoon just as the phone rang! We're going down to Girdwood to go sking... We'll be over later tonight!! Shucks & a half ! I sure wanted to surprise them. The last time they were here; our place stunk to high heaven of smoke and the smell of fresh ivory dust. Gag, choke!




4 dozen biscuits and 2 loaves of bread was our yield today from 5 pounds of flour! If you ever tasted 'toast' made from home made bread - you would never ever try regular toast ever again. Two entirely different textures and taste sensations!




Well they will have some nice bracelets & fresh bread & biscuits to take home tonight; I sure hope he brings a 'deck of cards'. All I need is 15 minutes to guarantee them each.. ... a night of no sleep!! How did he do that ? He didn't.. you put the cards where you wanted to.. he never touched them... that is impossible!

[SityData]

Look what Santa brought!!

These are new; NOT MADE by us. One of our 'many' new students sent me this photo of his new work. His very first work(s) using mastodon & baleen.

Great job!! These were made thousands of miles from our location here in Alaska.

One person is on the way - to a very rewarding hobby!!

So far; I know of at least 5 people that are following this thread and making kewl stuff @ home.




Get busy - post your work in here. What problems are you having? All this and more will be discussed in here in hopes of getting many more people involved!!

2012 is going to be a very GREAT year - get busy and have fun!!

[SityData]

Polishing Techniques & Problems:

It's been brought to my attention by more than one person, difficulties in polishing and or achieveing that brilliant glass like shine. Its the shine that sells and unless you can achieve this brilliant glass like shine; your items will not be anywhere near as attractive or appealing. Dull; boring;

Polishing Compounds (http://shorinternational.com/PolishCompounds.htm - broken link) such as Fabuluster (our favorite) Zam, Dialux-Blue; Diamond XXX; are very hard. Blue Magic (the best) is expensive and a liquid ammonia based, that is the only compound on the market capable of removing sratches from titanium. It produces exceptional results with baleen. So does crest toothpaste according to some elders in Barrow that used this method of polishing baleen eons ago in the 50's or earlier.

So;.. .. .. .. you have a dremel tool, a fordham or other rotary type tool with a cotton felt wheel attached to polish your work.

Start it up... now merely 'dip' the felt wheel into that tube or onto the block of compound for a split second; AND... ... already you have put too much compound on that felt wheel.

If you are making a bracelet then it is no problem. Just distribute the polish along / among several pieces @ once to remove most of the polish. Spread the polish to other pieces. Now you can polish

If you are working individual pieces of ear-rings then you have to get some of that polish onto other pieces or.. you are going to be polishing that one piece for over an hour just trying to get all of that polish removed.

The military teaches you how to take dull black leather (shoes) and turn that dull leather into Patent leather that shines so well you can literally use that as a mirror to shave. The same exact ingredients are used.

Polish, water, cotton! That is the correct way to shine 'anything', be it shoes, ivory, baleen, or an automobile.

Next: unless you sand that ivory throughly; you will not get that brilliant shine.

You first shapped out your pieces using 80 - 120 - 200 grit sandpaper(s).

It is very important to use 400 - 800 - 1200 - 1600 to remove any scratches and then... only then will you turn these pieces into GLASS like objects with a very hard durable shine with very little effort or polish to achieve that "final look". Always wipe excess (invisible) polish or residue off with cotton (t-shirt) drenched in Rubbing Alcohol. Not only does it remove the residue and polish but also any oil deposits from your skin.

I hope that some of this additional information is helpful to some that are struggling to achieve that glass like shine.

Don't be afraid to 'build' up the shine in layers!! At some point in time that shine will POP and you will instantly recognize it.

[wildchild_to]

I guy I know in SW AK, has sets of tusks that are 5ft high and 8in in Dia. They look like matched sets. And walrus skulls with the tusks still on it. It is so kewl..

[SityData]

So... you have decided to give it a go and learn to carve. You have seen plenty of photos to give you a good idea on where to begin and what to make.

A few additional suggestions:

Make some simple 'crosses' These are a very important part of your inventory. Lots of people will purchase these as pendants oR broaches to pin on the outside of a jacket or worn around the neck on a chain.

Make them out of Ivory / balleen and combine the two different materials together in a creative manner. YOu can make them as simple or as complex as you want. Google 'cross' click on the left part of the page when it opens and choose IMAGES.

That page will provide you with many new ideas.

Rings; for your finger! People love ivory rings. BUT a word of caution.

You will have to make two rings; to find out the correct way to make them.

Make a simple ring using a dremel tool. It is easy to accomplish. Now when it is all finished and polished. Drop it from the height of your head and let it fall to a wooden floor. It will crack and break!

Now take the time to make a new one. No electrical tools used at all. Files & sandpaper are the only tools that are used.

When you have the second ring finished and polised. Drop it from the same height - It will bounce right back up for you to catch!

It will not crack or break; BECAUSE when you use a dremel tool. (native explanation) all the molecules are re-arranged and cannot hold the ivory together. Vibration weakens the ivory.

This only applies when making finger rings. They won't last unless you do it the right way!!