Sarah's magpie - Finished! + WIP photos

[Sarah]

this is just a rough sketch but it's easier to see what I was trying to say

[jim_mex]

Ok Sarah, admit it! - you're just trying to find me more work. i have to admit though that that is a real nice idea and one i'll give serious thought. Thank's!

Ok - I reckon i have two hours to finish shaping the lower wing, glue it in place, get a couple of coats of rapid drying poly on and take some photos before the sun disappears. A tough timetable but i tend to work a bit like a load of grapes in a Californian winery - I produce my best results under pressure !!!! LOL!

Stay tuned!

[Sarah]

Yeah Jim it's true am just getting too big a kick out of you being my wood slave *blush*

Sarah

[Forester21]

Sarah - I think your suggestion for the frame would be perfect!!
Jim - I've been lurking awhile on this thread - guess it's time to say "Great Job!"
T

[jim_mex]

Finished !

Well at least good enough to post! Still lacking a very smooth rub down and the final top coat plus a backer - I hate making them! - but Sarah's magpie is pretty much done.

I've decided to take Sarah up on her frame idea but I need put this off for a couple of weeks so until then 'Maggie' will stay in limbo.

To finish the WIP photos in this thread here's a shot of the last piece I made, the eye, which I turned from a piece of 1/2" diam dowel on my drill press. A neat tip here - I rough turned the dowel almost down to its final size by using my Dremel and that typhoon burr I mentioned earlier in the thread, revolving it with very light pressure against the spin of the drill press this is a neat way to accurately turn very small cylindrical items. A quick finish with fine sandpaper gave the size and shape I wanted



So, here we are, a final photo and a flashshow showing different views of the shaping. I didn't quite have the right natural light for this main shot but I kinda like my Maggie caught by the late afternoon Mexican winter sun. The top coat hasn't fully cured yet and tomorrow I'll give it a final rub down with brown paper and give a final thin top coat but I've finished on schedule and I'm well pleased



Click here to see the Flash slideshow of the finished views


To conclude....

I want to give a big thank you to Sarah for providing me with her wonderful design which inspired me to tackle this project and which i feel has pushed me at least another couple of rungs up the intarsia progress ladder.

I owe a big debt of thanks to Janette especially, but also to all the other wonderful intarsia and segmentation artists on this forum who got me hooked on this artform through their fantastic work.

And finally but in no way least of all, I want to give another big thank you to all you members who have written such nice comments in this and previous posts about my work and my contribution to this group of segmentation and intarsia addicts. You guys have pushed me to achieve this level of work for which I am truly grateful.

And for all those who are still undecided about trying intarsia, please give it a go with this thought in mind. 'If you reach for the skies, who knows what heights you can soar to!'

[wood-n-things]

Fantastic....applause...applause...

[Wood Dog]

Outstanding.......

[Cutting Cathy]

Jim, you never cease to amaze me!! I am in awe of your talent and your willingness to share your help, tips and secrets with us!! The magpie is magnificent!!

Opps excuse me I had to go advanced to increase the font size!!

Now where was I??? Yes, the magpie... it's incredible!! I wish I could just sit and watch how you do it!! I'm such a visual person, but for now all your great WIP pictures are a tremendous help!!

Looking forward to seeing this framed!!!

[Sarah]

Oh Jim that's beautiful
Been alot of superlatives thrown around in this thread and you deserve them all, right now tho am kinda speachless.
I hope you share the warm glow of pride I have when I see what you've achieved.
Well done

Sarah x

[Janette]

Your magpie came out marvelous!! I'm so happy that I played a small part in "hooking" you in with the froggie challenge. Now you're doing a better job than me recruiting more intarsiaholics You're a natural. I'm planning on taking your idea of the lollipop sanders and making a few of those myself. You're a great addition to the intarisa family!