I want a pet elephant

Hate and love these

These 16 brackets are for one table and its about 3 hours of work just for this part.  I love when they are on, but hate making them sometimes.

Occasional table finished and being crated for delivery

This is done.  It is about 75 long.  being crated for delivery this week.

New scrap metal find

Picked this up from the scrap yard.  Soon this will be chopped up and made into ???

New work

This is first part of a long coffee table and a little kitchen island for a custom order.  They are obviously not close to done, but I can already see what they are going to look like, and I am really happy with the dimensions.

Things I like

sleek little kitchen cart

This is a really neat little kitchen cart I did for a client.  The metal has a silver look patina to it.  I used rubber casters on it to roll smoother and it just seemed to go with it better. The wood in my opinion looks super good.  It took several steps to get it the way I wanted, but I love it.  This is 32 high and 14 deep and 36 long.  I think I am going to start offering more things like this.  I really like the look of it.  Its a little bit of a departure from the things I normally do, but I really like it.

I want to live in this place and drive this

I know they seem like the odd couple, but these go together for me.  I want this to be the entrance to my house, and this is my daily transportation.

I like these pictures.

The sheetmetal picture is strange.  I don't always get art like this.  Where there is a giant empty room with something like this.  I still don't full get it, but for some reason I really love it.  Maybe I am close to getting it, or maybe there is nothing to get. 

Some custom orders.

Shipped 6 orders today and took a couple pictures of a pair of tables I finished and shipped off and another piece I am working on.  The console table is not finished and is waiting on casters.

New things coming up

I have so many cool things I am working on, and will take some pictures soon to at least show some of the early work on a couple pieces.  I have about 5 really cool pieces that are going to be really nice.  It is going to be keeping me busy the next couple weeks, but I love every minute of it.  In the meantime, I am really starting to like white rooms with little bits of color, and while I would not want to live in a big city like out the window of this place, it does not take away how cool it is.

Working

I do have lots of work to do.  Have about 12 client projects to get done within next month and more on the list after that.  Things are going good.  Some of the clients are really coming up with great ideas.  I am going to try and do better at taking pics of the things I complete and work on.  At the end of the day I am just wiped out and usually forget my camera, but I will work on it.  Some of the things I have coming up are going to be really amazing, so I will get them on here.

Good one

You have brains in your head.
You have feet in your shoes.
You can steer yourself in any direction you choose.
You're on your own.
And you know what you know.
You are the guy who'll decide where to go.
~Dr. Seuss

Read this

Confidence comes not from always being right but from not fearing to be wrong.  ~Peter T. Mcintyre

like this

Make the most of yourself, for that is all there is of you.  ~Ralph Waldo Emerson

like this

If you hear a voice within you say "you cannot paint," then by all means paint, and that voice will be silenced.  ~Vincent Van Gogh

I like this

It's not who you are that holds you back, it's who you think you're not.  ~Author Unknown

Little rant

I have to rant about something today.  I have seen furniture from people being sold that is literally just made from plumbing pipe and wood from the hardware store.  Please people! Do not buy these things from people.  The people selling them are laughing to themselves, saying "I can not believe it is this easy to make  and people actually buy this."  If you want something made from plumbing pipe, go to the hardware store and buy it yourself, because it can be done by anyone, and you don't need to pay someone else to do it.  If you need help, just email me, but please do not pay these people your hard earned money for literally something a child could put together.  If you don't believe me, go buy some of the pipe and fittings and just start piecing it together, in all different directions, and I am sure you can come up with something.  I am not trying to put a damper on any ones business, but if this is what you do, I don't think you can call that a business.  I think this is just ripping people off.  I guess the good thing about it, is you would have some plumbing parts if your pipes burst in your house.  Also, lately I have seen a lot of pieces that have a very interesting similarity to some of mine being sold.  I can't really do anything about this.  Some of them I am sure are just a coincidence, because there are only so many ideas out there and sometimes they are bound to look similar.  Some are clearly exact copies or trying to be.  I can only say, if you buy those things from someone else, who copied their design, then I hope you are happy with what you decided.  I know I will be happy either way, and I have been doing this a long time, and will continue when all these copycat designers fade away.  Everything I do, is made to last, and no expense is spared from beginning until the end when it is shipped.

Crated all day

My day on Friday was spent crating finished pieces off to their new homes.

Some pictures Iike

I put pictures up of the things I like, just because of really appreciate a lot of different forms of art, and look to these things for ideas and to get me going.

New Etsy listing

Put a new coffee table on casters on Etsy today.  It is 100% reused material. 

reposted some things on Etsy

Listed some things on Etsy I have made before and would like to do again, and will be done with a new piece today and if I can take some good pics will be posting it today or tomorrow.

Nate Berkus? His show called me

This is what my last two days entailed and what I learned. I received an email from NBC and the Nate Berkus show on Thursday and it said please call us asap.  I called and they said they were doing a segment on small business owners and wanted me on with some of my furniture. The stress started when they said you will fly out next Tuesday and we tape on Wednesday.  The trouble was not flying to New York that soon, but that I only had a few pieces of furniture actually completed and after talking to them, that was not exactly what they wanted.  They went over my furniture with me and we settled on a couple pieces I said I could build and ship the next day, but I have to get busy now.  It was settled and I was stressed but it was still under control and I was going to get it done.  It started going bad when they called about 13 times after that and sent at least as many emails and several phone calls were with more than one person on the phone at one time.  They changed their mind on the pieces they wanted and wanted shipping quotes on getting my things there immediately. I started and stopped cutting metal and building for the next several hours trying to do what I thought they wanted, and after several hours of this, I had a horrible headache and nothing to show for it in the terms of furniture that I was supposed to ship the next day and no later. The day was almost gone and what I had told them I could do at the start of the day was going to get done and I was positive I could do it and ship it.  I knew I would have to compromise on the quality and my standards a bit just to get things done and that was stuck in my head the whole night before and the whole day through the stress. Finally I looked at the clock and turned my phone off and just took a look around and a deep breath and said "this is not going to happen, and it is not worth it".  I contacted them and said I can not do this.  I pass.  I am flattered to be considered, and appreciate it, but I am done. They said they were disappointed, and I just said that is was just not realistic or worth me compromising my standards to slap things together just to put them on tv and the stress that was coming with all of it.  As soon as it was over, I felt so much better and enjoyed the rest of my day, and got back to work on the list of projects I have to do for customers who have commissioned me for custom work already. Anyway the whole point of me  writing this is, that I learned is that you should never compromise who you are or what you do, just to make people happy.  Be yourself, no matter what.  It is the most simple advice ever given and has been said millions of times, but it has been said that many times because it is the best advice there is.  The people I dealt with from the show were very nice, but they were very stressed themselves and explained that to me, and that was just their normal day.  I do not think they were asking to much from me on purpose, I just think that is what is expected of them every day, and I feel sorry for them a bit, and I don't blame them for stressing me out.  It is there environment, and they are under a lot of pressure.  I know they moved on as soon as I said I can not do it, and they went to another person on their list, and they never thought one thing of it, and will forget I exist.  No problem.  I am happy.

I have had an insane day!

Lesson I learned today, is stay true to yourself.  When the time is right I will give details of my crazy stressful day

Another custom media cabinet

Finished with the fabrication of another custom media cabinet.  These are an unbelievable amount of work, but it was a lot better this time with this specific one, because I used my new welding table.  Yeah!  Still have to do all the patina work on this and then take good pics, and it will look amazing.  After that, have about 12 projects to get to.  So next up

My brand new truck

This is my new truck.  It is a young 1949 GMC with an inline 6 that sounds kind of like a sewing machine.  I drove it yesterday and a hubcap flew off.  I also learned that if you are going around top speed, which is about 45 that it is a death wish, because if you hit a pothole or bump it tries its best to take you into oncoming traffic.  There is very little suspension and no air conditioning, and no radio, and no emergency brake and no wipers, no turn signals.  ITS WONDERFUL.  Its going to be a love hate relationship, but my old truck which was a lot newer had its problems too, and I could never do anything to it, because it was all computer controlled.  I was at the mercy of a computer if I broke down on the side of the road.  That is worse to me, and not worth it in my opinion.  I think technology is great in some ways, but I don't think everything should be made so advanced that it takes a scientist to work on it.  This leaves people helpless.  I think this is the ultimate business strategy of a lot of big business these days.  If we are helpless with their product then we are at their mercy.  Think about this next time you go to Home Depot or Lowes or even Ace Hardware.  You can not go anywhere in the store without feeling stocked.  They see you from 100 yards away and basically yell, "Are you having trouble with anything?"  Some people see this as just customer service and maybe I am crazy, but it literally makes me cringe and sometimes just leave the store.  Not because they are trying to help, but there are several times when one of us are clearly debating on buying something or reading a package or just walking fast or having a conversation between us, and we get interrupted from way across the store from an employee yelling, "Are you having trouble with anything?".  To me this is crazy.  We actually like going to look and learn things on our own at these places and want to fend for ourselves. It is literally a DIY store.  It even says on the outside of Home Depot.  DIY store.   Apparently the strategy team decided that the only way to keep people coming back is to not let them think for themselves as soon as they walk in the store.  Bug them at the most inconvenient time and do not under any circumstance let anyone think for themselves, and if you do, then that means they don't need us, and we will go out of business.  WOW!  I feel better.  Had to rant.  Anyway, here is my new truck.

Busy

I am so busy and its great, but stressful too.  I have realized I am very bad at taking pictures of things I build.  I probably take pics of about half of what I build. Sometimes, I am just so busy and forget to take pictures and ship the piece, and its too late.  I am working on it, and will try and get better.  One thing for example is a rolling shelf unit I made out of reclaimed wood and fabricated an axle for the cast iron wheels.  Well, someone came by the shop and offered to buy it, so it left and I never took pics of it.  One day I will get better at it. Also, if anyone ever has any ideas for a cool build let me know.  rljstn@yahoo.com

Things I like

Some things I like, and use for inspiration.