Lighthouse Residential Sign Completed

Lighthouse Residential Sign Completed

May 28

The residential sign Brandon has been working on is completed and ready to go to it’s home.  Here are some progress pictures and the completed sign:

The sign is midnight blue, the lettering is gold leafed and the lighthouse has been hand painted.  The owners should enjoy their sign for many years to come.

Now Brandon is on to new projects. Creating some nutcrackers and whatever else comes along….

****Blog News!**** This will now be Brandon’s blog and I now have my own blog.   We both have different audiences and it’s just awkward sometimes to do both in one blog.  Sometimes there will be some overlap as we work on many projects together.  Check it out by hitting the above link.

TA-DA! The Horse Nutcracker Is Completed!

TA-DA! The Horse Nutcracker Is Completed!

May 16

There is no other way to say this except, this is an awesome nutcracker! The amount of detail of this nutcracker is astounding.  Brandon has completely outdone himself on this one.  I know the collectors who had it commissioned are completely thrilled with it.    I was, however, quite sad to see it leave our home but I know that it is going where it will be appreciated for the work that went into creating it and for the work of art that it is.

So without any further ado here are some pictures of the completed Stylized Horse Figural Nutcracker!

Brandon will have a 360 display of the horse on our web site in a few days.  Make sure to stop over at our web site and check it out.

Now that this project is completed there are numerous projects Brandon will be working on and finishing.  So make sure to come back and check to see the new projects.

 

Spring Update!!

Spring Update!!

Mar 23

It is time for an update!  First off I have to say this has been a great March.  This is the first real spring we have had since we moved here in 2001.  Every year it has snowed until at least the end of April and has gone directly into summer.  This year we are getting sunshine and springlike temperatures.  Beautiful!

Brandon is working on a couple of projects. He is working on a commission nutcracker for a collector.  The collector had a picture of a carved meerschaum pipe he wanted turned into a nutcracker. Brandon designed the stylized horse figural nutcracker for him and has been working on that.  Here are some progress pictures…

This nutcracker has a lot of detail with the reigns and mane and is going to be a spectacular piece when completed.  I will be posting more pictures as it nears completion.

Brandon is also working on a custom hand carved residential sign. The sign has a nautical style with a lighthouse.  The sign will be painted and the lettering will be gold leafed.  Here is a photo of the sign is it’s early stage….

I have been painting.  I just completed the Bat Wing Mantle Clock II (the sequel).  Brandon carved the wings and added them to the mantle clock.  It is painted black and a moody gray blue shade.  It has a couple spooky scenes like the haunted mansion on the front and the witch riding by the crescent moon on the top surface.  This clock makes quite a statement and is perfect for Halloween.

The Bat Wing Mantle Clock II is currently listed on eBay and will close next Sunday.

I am now painting a few spring items and also a different style clock too. I will post pictures of those next time.

Melissa

Feburary Already?

Feburary Already?

Feb 10

It’s been a long time since our last post.    January was a long, unbelievably cold, extremely snowy month.  It was so cold that Brandon was unable to work out in the workshop very often.  Once it’s below 20 degrees it gets almost impossible to heat his workshop and you can’t carve with numb fingers.    Now that the weather is much warmer he’ll be in his workshop much more.

I spent the month of January trying to get our house in some sort of order after the holidays.  I then decided the wallpaper in the kitchen had been there long enough.  We moved into this house 8 years ago and every room had  wallpaper of some sort.  The kitchen was the last room to have wallpaper.  It wasn’t awful, but I just wanted it gone.  So it was on to the wonderful job of removing wallpaper, fixing walls, painting, and installing new lighting.  It’s all done and I believe it’s a great improvement!

Since that’s done, it’s back to more artful projects.  I have painted a few Valentine’s Day items:

Next on my agenda is painting a few clocks that have been patiently waiting to be painted.  Also, this next month is a busy month with family birthdays (5 birthdays in 2 weeks including our son’s).  I will be busy getting a party planned.

Brandon is currently working on a commission nutcracker.  It is a very beautiful, impressive piece and we will post pictures of it when it is completed.  Then he’s on to his next project, a nautical sign for a home.

Until next time,

Melissa

Nutcrackers Listed, Christmas Decorating, New Items!!!

Nutcrackers Listed, Christmas Decorating, New Items!!!

Dec 04

This week we’ve listed a Bear Figural Nutcracker and the Gazing Hound Nutcracker on Ebay.  Brandon is designing new and unique nutcrackers and has been busy working in his workshop.  He bought new dust collection system and has been busy making room for it and installing it.  It is a lot bigger than what he was using before and should make the workshop much cleaner requiring less time for clean-up and more time for just working.

Last weekend we stared putting up some of our outdoor decorations for Christmas.  It’s been hard getting them out this year due to all the snow we’ve been getting.  We have more to do and when they are completed I will post a video of them or pictures.

Almost all the inside decorating is done.  Our trees are all decorated but throughout the season I will keep adding things we make or discover.  We have plans to make a gingerbread house and make live wreaths and planters for outside.   The son and I make them with greenery from around our yard.  They are a favorite of mine and he just thinks it’s fun to go “pick’n” in the field and woods around our home.

New Items Coming this week:  We added Hand Carved Wine Caddies and hand painted wine glasses to the web site.  You can purchase them directly from Ardoria.com through PayPal.

Also, Coming Soon our son is creating gift baskets full of bath goodies he creates, he has a great time making them and he wants to contribute to our website, too.

Keep checking the blog and website for upcoming new items……

Our cat, Molly, is getting into the Christmas spirit too!  She is quite a spunky feisty girl.  I was really surprised that she allowed me to put these on her and I still have all my fingers!

Until next time,

Melissa

Gazing Hound Figural Nutcracker Listed

Gazing Hound Figural Nutcracker Listed

Nov 23

It’s been a scattered week so the blog post got delayed, but better late than never.

We listed the Gazing Hound nutcracker on ebay and it ends today at noon.  It is a really neat piece.  We have the proto-type and I just love it!  He is very sleek and elegant.  The pictures for him on the listing do a good job showing his detail but he is even more awesome in person.

Brandon is busy designing some new unique figural nutcrackers.  Exciting things happening with them.  Since launching our website and selling on ebay we have met wonderful people who collect nutcrackers and they have shared with us some really good information.  We are rather new to this and as they have been collectors for many years they are helping us discover what’s out there.  There is so much to learn and it is all quite fascinating.

I have been busy trying to meet my goal of getting my Christmas shopping done by Thanksgiving.  I’m almost done!! Yay. Thanks to the the By Hand Fine Art and Craft Festival at the IX Center last weekend I am pretty close to done.  It is a wonderful event with very talented artists.  We attend each year and are never disappointed.  They do shows in Columbus, Cleveland and Cincinnati.  If you get the opportunity to attend go.  The Cleveland show this year was even free admission due to the Fabulous Food Show running in conjunction with the art show.  Can’t beat that.

Along with shopping I’ve been painting Christmas items and we started decorating the house for the Holiday Season!  Every year it seems to take longer.  I get very nostalgic when decorating, everything has a story.  We have quite the mish-mash of items.  I sometimes think it would be nice to decorate with a “theme” but we just can’t do it.  It wouldn’t feel like Christmas without all our old favorites so it ends up an eclectic mix.

It’s been quite a snowy week here in the snow belt of Northeast Ohio.  I think we are going to get a break from it, which would be o.k with me.  We have well over a foot of snow on the ground and our new snow blower is officially broken in and we know it works.  Now we don’t need snow until Christmas!

Have a wonderful Thanksgiving,

Melissa