Sorry about the delay in tying up my experience at the conference. I have a hard time balancing my time when Silage cutting time comes around. 270 loads down 100 to go.
In my last report I wrote about the different seminars. They were all really great. The lighting in most of the rooms was kind of odd, so my pictures are a little off.
Here is the sample of a block front table top that Al carved for us. It was amaziing, he did it in no time. I didn't think that I would like carving. I was surprised I like it.
Here is a version of that table that was done by an attendee
Steve Latta's inlay work is cool, just plain cool. I would even think about using a dremel tool in order to do this stuff. But I would have to see if I could do it with hand tools first though.
I didn't get any shots from the third instructor Alf Sharp, but I got a shot of a chair that he pulled from his wife's dining room while she wasn't looking.
The banquet on the last night was pretty cool. Folks showed their stuff. A lot of people seemed to focus on the New England block front furniture and just highly formal northern furniture in general. I kinda bumped my head and add a couple of pictures of my chests. I felt sort of out of my league. But I know that many of the folks there make pieces that aren't way over the top, they just don't show their work. I thought that maybe I would start a trend.
The last day was a wind up type of day. Each of the three presenters took time showing either their stuff or their research and dropping hints at what they want us to go home with.
Al Breed: He showed some of the pieces that he carved. he showed pictures of his classes. He pointed out how he has grown since he moved his studio from being isolated in the woods to a warehouse that he shares with other crafts people. The interaction with other people and the collaboration with other crafts people have helped him a lot. He said something about using a CNC machine in his neighbors studio to route out the waste in a pie crust table. Heresy I say pure T heresy! All those wasted electrons!!!
Steve Latta: Is working on his masters and presented some of his work. He showed that there were a number of craftsmen in the country at one time specializing in specifically making decorative veneer items (banding, ovals, leg inserts). He showed evidence of one family specializing in this and how their products appeared on furniture in different places as the members of the family moved around the eastern seaboard.
Part of the big deal about this is that collectors have been attributing pieces of furniture to different cabinetmakers based on their decorative veneer. That system doesn't work when everyone in town has been going to down to Joe's House of ill veneer to get their monthly veneer fix.
Alf Sharp: His hair actually looks like the puppet/tv character's hair. He said that he had his first. I don't believe him.
He showed two sets of pictures. The first set were that pictures of commissions that were phenomenal. He tried to be all humble and stuff, but he showed one piece that he had to have been paid big money for. I mean big money. It was a chest of drawers that was from Rhoade Island or somewhere way up north.
The second set of pics were what he calls "stuff that keeps the doors open". I liked these pieces a lot more. They seemed like pieces that "normal" people could make. Many of the pieces were regional to the Tenn area and just seemed to be a whole lot more fun.
The last thing that happened was that a group of folks from North Carolina decided to form a regional chapter of the organization. I didn't get all of the details, but I think that they are planning to meet in October. Some of the topics to be covered in that meeting are veneer work, shaping a cabriole leg, and shellac finishes. I'll post more information when it come in.
Thats it folks,
Jerome
Mebane, NC
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