Really Old Anri
Really Old Anri
Mar 19
Here’s another great piece from the Leavenworth Nutcracker Museum.
It came in with the jaw pushed in and an old repair on the handle that needed blended in.
Here’s a picture of the piece when it came in:
Here’s a close up of the jaw and handle before the repairs:
Here are pictures of the piece after the jaw was fitted with a new pin and the handle repair blended in better:
This is one of those pieces that you have to know where to stop with the restoration.
The wear and tear I’m leaving alone is this piece’s signature of authenticity. It’s from many years of being used and shouldn’t be fixed. It’s undeniable proof of its age.
The piece came out great, and I am looking forward to getting this piece back to the Leavenworth Nutcracker Museum soon so it can go on display for many to enjoy.
—–Brandon
Anri Nutcrackers!
Anri Nutcrackers!
Mar 09
Got a big box from Arlene Wagner from the Leavenworth Nutcracker Museum.
It’s chock full of Anri nutcrackers in need of repair. Nine to be exact, Awesome!
All 9 Anris received and ready to be repaired
Stay tuned for updates as I cover each one in more detail as I repair them and get them ready to be sent back to Arlene at the museum to be put on display for visitors to enjoy!
—– Brandon
African Mahogany
African Mahogany
Mar 05
Picked up a great piece of African Mahogany at Woodcraft this week.
African Mahogany is beautiful, but is very acidic and requires dust control when working with it.
As you can see from the pictures, Rough sawn 8/4 Mahogany doesn’t sit in my shop for very long before it gets turned into something cool.
Rough sawn 8/4 Mahogany getting cut to length
Greyhound Nutcracker and Skull Nutcracker templates
Greyhound Nutcracker in the process of being cut out on the bandsaw
Stay tuned for updates as I get these pieces together for the Nutcracker Collectors Convention in May.
—– Brandon
Progress
Progress
Feb 27
Still plugging away.
Skull #4 is finally done.
I normally make these out of Black Walnut. I decided to make this one out of Mahogany, and it came out great!
Also made some progress on the new skull screw type nutcracker.
Still a little rough, but getting there.
The weather is supposed to be pretty mild so I plan on spending a lot of time out in the shop this week.
Stay tuned for updates.
—– Brandon
Skulls
Skulls
Feb 21
It’s been a really nice weekend here in Ohio.
It was in the 60’s yesterday; I can get used to that!
Got out in the shop a little and made progress on the skull nutcrackers.
Here’s the screw type skull nutcracker I’m working on. Making something that doesn’t exist is always challenging because you always run into weird issues that take more time than you expect to figure out and overcome.
Skull screw type nutcracker
Here’s the more traditional style which isn’t giving me as much trouble. This is skull #4 of this type so I have most of the kinks worked out in regards to carving these. This one is almost done.
Just waiting on clear coat. Didn’t have any in shop so I have to pick some up on my lunch break tomorrow. No worries, had plenty of other pieces to work on. That’s a good thing!
Traditional style skull nutcracker
Once these two are done I have a few more ideas and am hoping to get a few more cool pieces done and ready for the Nutcracker Collectors Club Convention in May.
Yeah, I really need to figure out how to make clones of myself to help with all this carving and stuff.
Stay tuned!
Missing a Foot
Missing a Foot
Jan 31
This great piece came in from one of the Nutcracker Club members.
This piece had to wait till after the Holidays to come in for repairs because it was on display. The member cleverly hid the missing foot in the display’s snow.
Along with the missing left foot, the pin was sticking out the right side a bit so I removed it and reworked it a little to make it fit flush.
Here are a few pictures of the piece before the new foot (click on the pictures for a larger view):
Here are pictures of the piece with the new foot carved, stained, and painted to match the original:
He’s all fixed up and ready to be displayed with or without snow now.