The Whirligigs of Summer- Part 5

~ The Whirligigs of Summer ~

Part V

I just can't help it but when someone brings an item that I haven't seen before I get excited about the whirligig.  In this case it was the tin mold that sits below the enameled coffee pot.  The larger cake pan that the spoons are attached to is pretty interesting as well with its' star like shape.

The little copper Buda bells and rope molds on this gig I definitely hadn't seen before.  The flower petal bowl at the center adds a lot to the look of this whirligig.

The Whirligigs of Summer- Part 4

~ The Whirligigs of Summer ~

Part IV

The two whirligigs shown here are good examples of a color pallet.  Yellow, black and red is a striking choice.  Outdoors they will begin to rust and the colors will fade and soften.  But for now they will spin in the wind showing off their boldness. Brenda, the creator of the whirligig at the top is a super talented Steampunk artist and we used to carry her extraordinary jewelry in our shop. Her friend that created the gum ball machine topped gig below was also an artist and art teacher.  It was great getting the chance to hang out with these cool women and making 2 very cool whirligigs.

The Whirligigs of Summer- Part 3

~ The Whirligigs of Summer ~

Part III (revised)

A record was set in July for the longest distance traveled to take the whirligig workshop at Hutch.  Karen and Frank drove all the way from Southern California just to make whirligigs.  That is amazing!  Karen had been wanting to take the workshop for a couple of years and it finally worked out.  I loved it, and I'm pretty sure they did too.

The Whirligigs of Summer- Part 2

~ The Whirligigs of Summer ~

Part II

The June whirligigs were pretty special.  This is one of my favorites to date and has a story that's a workshop first. The couple that made it are from Gig Harbor, which in itself it pretty funny. They ran a half marathon that morning in Seattle, then drove up to La Conner and built this Whirligig finishing in almost record time (2:30pm). That's fast. They were a super fun couple and they produced a super fun whirligig.  I could use that kind of energy. I'm assuming that this whirligig spins on their Dahlia farm in Gig Harbor now.

The Whirligigs of Summer- Part 1

~The Whirligigs of Summer~

Part I

Tom, Sharon, & Al.

I've been accumulating a bunch of great photos over the past couple of months, due to the great work by the many participants in our whirligig workshops.  Tom, Sharon and Al created their gigs in May and it was a lot of fun as I recall.

This is a good example of how you can use both new and old items together on the same gig.  Eventually being outdoors, everything will look weathered and old.

Old flatware is pretty labor intensive to drill.  A tip is to try to bend the handle using a couple of fingers with gentle pressure.  If it doesn't flex it will probably take a while to drill through.  Also, some materials that are plastics or composites can be brittle when drilling.  I believe the purple plates on the gig above were bamboo and had the tendency to crack.

Sharon had a challenge with her Stainless Mugs.  We can't drill through stainless so it's on my "Don't Bring" list, but we made it work by creating metal straps that wrapped around the handles and attached to the lid of the red tin.  Everyone needs to have one challenge during the process.

Cardboard Frame Making Workshop

~ Cardboard Frame Workshop ~

This frame was made by cutting almost all triangles.  The finished frame has a very art deco/arts and crafts look.

When I started this one I was thinking about spring and things sprouting and blooming.

This workshop combines the smart idea of repurposing used cardboard (which everyone has lying around) and the fun activity of making a one of a kind creation.  What's not to love?  You can bring a specific photo, print, or artwork, or make a standard frame opening o swap out images in the future.  That's all you need to bring.  Well, bring your creativity and imagination.  I supply all the materials.

This is a 2 hour class and the cost is $25.  The first class is this Friday and I'm getting excited.  Look for the unique frames in a future blog post. 

Another whirligig in the world.

~Another whirligig in the world.~

This was great!  I rarely get to see a whirligig that was made here at hutch in a workshop after it leaves and finds it's place in the world.  These 2 pictures were emailed to me recently.  This is Hope standing next to her whirligig that was made during a workshop taken with both her mom and dad.  I think she found the perfect spot for it.  Even better would be to see it a year from now when the copper gets a beautiful patina.  

Thank you Hope for sharing!