Garden Make-out Bench

Between March and September of 2009, I wrote a few blog posts under the Parson Studio Group banner, before I launched Creatures of Prometheus as my main blogging platform. Since the old PSG web site is now being completely re-branded and re-designed, and the old blog will go away when my new website launches, I will be occasionally re-releasing some of those posts here over the coming months. 

This post originally appeared on the Parson Studio Group blog on September 23, 2009.

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I was recently approached by a collector who bought 2 of my pieces last November, when I participated in the Arroyo Artists' Collective fall show.  Said individual indicated that he was going to a wedding and wanted a piece he could give as a gift, and wanted to know what I had in stock.  As it turns out, he also prefers my furniture unfinished, that is to say without any paint or coating.  He would rather let it rust naturally.

Since I didn't have anything that wasn't already powder coated, I seized the opportunity to make a new piece and innovate a little bit.  (Especially since I had the idea for this all worked out in my mind, and had been wanting to try it.)

I had these two steel tube remnants that were already cut to this shape when I got them:

And I had the idea to do a bench like this:

So it was a pretty simple matter to weld the center seam and add legs.

The biggest question I had was whether or not it would need a fifth leg at the apex, which it did.  I thought it probably would, but wasn't sure.  I also thought that if it were needed, the fifth leg might bother me.  As it turns out, it doesn't bother me at all.

I did, however, put myself through a major aesthetic inquiry to make sure I was satisfied with this style of leg for this object.  I actually debated myself and agonized over it for the better part of an afternoon.  I almost changed them to boomerangs at the last minute, but that will be another bench for another day.

The last step was to add the chrome feet.

When I first sat on it, I realized that the size and angle of the bench give it a really intimate feel.  If you share it with someone else, you aren't just sitting next to them, you are actually slightly facing them, and at pretty close range, with your legs more or less sharing the same space.  With the right companion, it pretty much lends itself to (if not downright encourages) putting your arm around them, and getting in close for a little smoochin'.  Especially if you find yourselves sitting under a shady tree, in a partly-concealed corner of a secret garden somewhere (as opposed to the concrete driveway in front of my shop, where these shots were taken.)

So, I think it is the perfect wedding gift!  Cheers to the newlyweds!

Summer of Bikes, 2011

Among the things I'm most excited about right now is my Summer Bike Project.

Years ago, I built a bike, when I was in architecture school.  It was for a summer object making class, and it was the first time I made anything substantive out of steel.  They picked my bike for the postcard advertising the exhibition. (I hasten to point out whenever I show it that I did not design the postcard itself, just the bike.)

Here are some closeup details.  I was especially happy with how the chain-drive steering turned out.

The steering wheel:

The seat itself came from a kid's trike:

We did a lot of scavenging that summer.  Most of the bearings and other components were cut off of junk bikes we found or bought cheap from thrift stores.

For my bike(s) this summer, I have found some good resources online for bearings and other components, and I don't plan on doing any bike-part-scavenging.  The website I'm looking at the most, as I work through my designs, is BicycleDesigner.com.  They seem to have just about everything in the way of bike parts, and lots of helpful diagrams.  I'll also hit up some local bike shops once I'm closer to starting, and see what they have in stock for components.  It's always good to have relationships with helpful local experts when you have technical questions about a project.  Also, returning/exchanging parts that don't turn out to be quite the right thing is waaaay easier when you're dealing locally.

The new designs I'm working on have a pretty clear relationship to my original bike: I'm keeping the smaller rear wheel and chain-drive steering concepts for now (although for one of the bikes I'm sketching, I'm attempting to simplify things by using conventional steering.)  Things are still developing, but I should have some pics to show in the next few days.

Also, I'm in talks with a couple of friends in an attempt to persuade them to make bikes along with me, and then put together some kind of exhibition at the end of the summer.

Stay tuned!

Summer Welding Projects

This week is our finals week at school, which means Summer is finally upon me!  I'm looking forward to spending a lot of time in the shop this summer, and have been excitedly prioritizing my welding projects.

The list* looks something like this, thus far:

1. Finish the glider I started last summer.  It was well underway when the Tennessee House completely took over my life for pretty much the rest of the year.

2. Handrail for my cousin Ed's stairs.  He asked me to put something together for him a while ago.  This will be relatively simple and quick once I have my shop back up and running.

3. Rack for my dumbbell set.  Another easy, utilitarian project.  It's good to have a few simple things to work on in between, and along with, the complicated ones.

4. New bicycle.  Yes!   A new bike for summer.  I'm already sketching and researching parts for this, and getting very very excited about it.  Watch for a whole post on this topic.

5. Experiment with making metal bowls on my lathe.  If this sounds complicated and weird, well...  I saw a video online ages ago where someone had put a metal plate on their lathe and was using their welder to build up metal bowls.  Think of a potter with a wheel, only instead of starting with a lump of clay, you start with a flat metal plate and build up the thickness as it spins.  This will be extremely experimental, and I'm not sure how it will go.  I've been wanting to try it for a long time.

In addition to these, I have one special commission already in the works, and am talking to a potential new client this Friday about some welding she needs done.

It's going to be a busy, fun summer!


*Subject to change, of course!

Wire Glass Shelves

This shelving unit came into existence gradually, over the past few months.  It was one of those projects that took longer than it needed to, mainly because I was in and out of town so much, and didn't have a lot of time to spend in the shop. 

I whipped it up from some steel channel stock I had on hand, along with three nifty pieces of wire glass that I had salvaged from a house that was under renovation.  The glass pieces had been sitting around my garage for far too long, and were frequently being moved from here to there, or from there to here, to get them out of the way of something else I was working on or doing.  Finally, one day I just decided to get them out of my way once and for all.

Tennessee House Update: Railings Installed!

Last week the railings were delivered back to the site, having finally been powder coated.  The powder coating was an ordeal unto itself.

The powder coating shop I took them to, back in October, was 25 miles away in another town.  The proprietor of that establishment (if you can call it that) left them sitting in his shop untouched, shut the door, disconnected the phone, and ceased operations one day, without warning.  There they sat, languishing, for several weeks.  Finally, Bob the Builder (our contractor) realized what had happened, interviewed the neighboring business owners, tracked him down, and got the unfinished railings back.  Three cheers for Bob the Builder!

A couple weeks ago, we found a reputable shop further away, in Maryville, Tennessee, and they seem to have done a good job, at least from what I can tell by these pictures:

This morning, I got a teaser photo from Ms. Client of the railings installed:

Makes me very excited to go see them in person!

Heading for Home

Today I packed up my little car, and P + T and I headed for home.

It was pretty emotional for me.  The last few days had been a bit of a flurry of activity.  I was welding like mad, and got some nice little 'extras' made that will give a little extra bit of a custom edge to the house.

Ms. Client, aka Farmer Jo, has a collection of horse shoes that she has found on the property over the several years they have lived there.  I cut one in half and made her a pair of coat hooks out of it.

Tennessee House Railings

First, I apologize for not blogging in a while.

The last few weeks have been frustrating in a lot of ways.  

I haven't been able to devote all the time to the project that I have wanted to, partially for exciting reasons that nonetheless took me away from my work here.  And, partially because I've had to put out various fires and deal with things that just come up that required my attention, as happens in life.

The main thing house-related that has been occupying me has been the steel railings for the mezzanine.  All the interior railings have been fabricated and were delivered to the powder coating shop today.

Here's how they all came together:

You may recall that I had built a prototype and reviewed it with the owners.

Day 29: A Meeting of the Minds

Well, people, I really have to apologize for not posting all week.

It seemed like little got done this week, although there were some important things that did get done.  But, there were also things that I felt should have gotten done, but didn't, and not for any apparent (and meaningful) reason.

And, I have to be honest and say that I'm feeling a little burnt out.  I've been away from my 'normal' life for about a month, and working nonstop on the house for over 3 weeks, without any real break, and it's beginning to wear on me, just a little bit.

There is some relief in sight, because we are getting to a point where we are close to drywall going on, and some other more mundane things, that will give me a break from the constant attention the project has demanded.   I might even take the dogs and go away for a few days, just for a little change of scene.

What got done this week?  Let's see.

Monday was a holiday, but the framing crew worked anyway.  They worked on exterior siding and miscellaneous things inside.  I believe the electricians were here also.

Tuesday should have been the day the roofer came to start on the 2 roof decks, but he decided to extend his camping trip a day.  *SIGH*  This was also the last day for the full-time framing crew, and since the roof wasn't on those roof deck areas, because the roofer was still camping, the framer peopleguys couldn't install the doors there.

Because the doors weren't on, I had to scramble when it rained to put some plastic sheeting up, for some protection on the openings.  By myself.  In the rain.  But everything was ok in the end.  Mostly.

Wednesday the roofers started.  The tapered foam they use to build up the slope on the plywood surface, so the water drains away correctly, turned out to not slope at the pitch they told me, but is twice as steep.  Thus, all the work I had done over the weekend, to calculate the height of the sloping roof surface at the door threshold, and figure out all the corresponding details, was meaningless. *HEAVY SIGH*

I don't have a huge reservoir of confidence in these guys at this point.  The product they are installing is a great roofing system, when installed correctly.  I just hope they can get get the job done.  I guarantee you that I will be blasting it with a garden hose the day after they finish.  If this thing is going to leak, I want to know about it now, not next spring or summer.

The framers are peopleguys, and the roofers are clearly not.

Wednesday was also the day the electrical inspector showed up.  I left when he got here.  I don't do well with government inspectors.  (That's really an understatement.  For more information, read Atlas Shrugged.)

Yesterday, the roofers came back and worked on the roof over the front door.  They stayed late, and yet, somehow, still didn't finish it.

Also, the steel brackets for the timber beams showed up, having been powder coated.

You could scratch the finish off them with your finger nail.  The worst powder coating job I have ever seen.  But, since they are installed up high, and not where they can be reached and touched, we decided to install them anyway.

I can touch up the paint manually.  If they were going to be installed outside in the weather, or inside where they would be handled (like the mezzanine railings) they would be rejected.

Ms. Client chimed in on those, and affirmed that in all her years at her old job, in automotive parts quality control, where she dealt with a lot of powder coating, she had never encountered powder coating that flaked off like that, and that that would have definitely been rejected.

We plan on putting the powder coating company on notice that if this happens again with the upcoming railings (which will be subject to handling and touching, as well as have some outdoor components) they will be rejected.

This morning, the electricians were back, finishing up a few things they needed to finish up.  They left early, and Dave, the genius framing crew boss peopleguy, came over and installed the steel brackets.  I helped, and it was a great way to end the week.

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The real excitement this week is in what went on last night and will be happening here tomorrow.

Last night I went down to Atlanta and gave a talk on the house and my design work for the Atlanta Objectivist Society (aka ATLOS).

It was really fun, the audience was very attentive, and they asked great questions.  It was also really fun that Jenn, aka Rational Jenn, one of the group's organizers, brought her son Ryan.  To get the complete picture of how clever and brilliant this little guy is, you should just read her blog.  Suffice it to say that if Jenn should ever fall short in her stated quest to take over the world, I have absolutely no doubt but that Ryan will carry on and finish the job for her.  So it was a treat to have him at the lecture.

Tomorrow, the group is converging here, right here at the house construction site, for a picnic, tour, and pony rides.  How great is that!?

And, there's even a bit of a special event on top of the special event.  I get to host the first in-real-life meeting of two of my Objectivist blogging friends, Trey and Jenn.  So, it will be a meeting of the minds, and I'm going to open a bottle of wine or two for the occasion!

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Farmer Jo has been working on cleaning up her barn, and getting things ready for pony rides.  It's actually a horse (named Lacy) that the kids will be riding, not a pony per se.  I may even go for a ride myself!

Todd was trying to help out in the barn but kept getting distracted by Bonjo the Donkey in the next stall. That dog is utterly obsessed with the donkeys.  Lucky for him, he keeps getting shocked by the electric fence, or he would end up getting kicked into the next county.

In other news, if you click to embiggen this pic, you can see a gang of wild turkeys about to rumble with a bunch of cows:

The herd and flock actually formed into rows all by themselves as the two groups of animals approached each other.  It was pretty interesting to watch.  I don't believe there was any bloodshead.

And now, for my grand finale, I present Paul and Todd, performing feats of cuteness, high upon the grand mezzanine:

I can't wait until I don't have to look at that awful green foam ceiling any more!

Day 13: I Somehow Missed a Day, and Today Had a Sad Ending

I thought today's post was going to be for Days 11 & 12.  Then I looked at the calendar, and the old posts in this series, and realized that today was Day 13.  Not sure where I missed the extra day.  I'm know that more extensive analysis could reveal the answer to this mystery, but I really can't be bothered.

Let's just move on, shall we?

This morning started off well.  I went in search of steel to weld, and gas with which to weld it.  I brought my entire welding rig all the way from California, except the gas.  Transporting compressed gas in your enclosed car across 7 states = not a good idea.  The gas isn't flammable, but still, you don't really want to mess with it in that way.

After a little mishap with Google Maps on my iPhone - not the first misdirection by my Googley Friend on this trip - I found myself at Seaton Metals in Athens (Tennessee, not Georgia (much less Greece)).

I was pretty happy with the place.  They had new material, lots of cool salvage, it was all organized, and there was none of the Town Dump feel of that place I visited a few days ago in Knoxville.

This building is a defunct (judging by the vines growing on the door) kiln, such as you would use to dry lumber.  Let me explain why buildings like that excite me.

Imagine that the inside of that kiln were your living room, only it wasn't really a kiln, it was a house.  Then imagine that the giant door, sliding out to the right in the picture, were a steel frame with glass in it, instead of a giant concrete & steel thing on rollers.  Imagine if your house could just slide open to overlook a beautiful view (not a lousy yard full of rusty metal bits of defunct stuff).

What if, instead of living in a house, you lived in a garden pavilion with sliding walls?  Why doesn't everyone live this way already?  Am I missing something?

I don't know what these buildings are/were, but they're very industrial and cool looking.

When I see something like this pile of purlins, all I can think is, "What's wrong with you people?!  You could make a building out of those!  What are you waiting around for?!?!?"

And then, I realize that these people are in the business of selling stuff, not making buildings.  Oh well.

I got parts with which to make chair and table legs, in order to make furniture out of the big wooden beam cut-offs left behind by the framing crew.

This piece of woven metal mesh would have been the perfect material to make a fireplace screen out of, if there had been enough.  Sadly, there wasn't.

I am going to remember that wire mesh though, and I bet it makes it into the house somehow.

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There was also very sad news at the farm today.  Ms. Client, aka Farmer Jo, had to put down one of her animals.

Stella Divine was a mule who was rescued (from a dreadful equine end-of-life-scenario that need not be elaborated here) about 4 years ago by Jo, and brought here to live.  She captivated everyone who met her, and was a real character around the place.

She was laid to rest this evening, next to a grove of trees at the far end of the meadow where she spent her last days.  The excavation peopleguy who dug the foundations for the house was kind enough to come over, with his backhoe, after his workday ended, and help bury her.  The whole thing was very sad.

Goodbye, Stella Divine.  You will be missed.

Day 9: A Somewhat Slow Saturday

This morning Paul and Todd went to the vet for their lyme disease vaccinations.  The vet is about 45 minutes drive from here.  Mr. Client drove as he had to pick up his puppy, BeBop, a cute little Boston Terrier (aka little monster) who suffered a broken leg last week, the night I was in Atlanta.  She had to undergo surgery a couple days ago, and was just now coming home.

The veterinary facility we went to is very impressive.  It is out in the country, and they have the capacity to do surgeries on horses and such, right there on the premises.  Unfortunately, it was pouring down rain, so I couldn't really take any pictures.

They had some nifty benches in the waiting room, though, and I took some pictures of those.  The cool thing about the benches was that the seats are mounted on springs, so they bounced and rocked a little; a feature that I might just have to incorporate into an upcoming creation.

In other news, yesterday morning the farrier came and gave the horses pedicures.  The distinguishing characteristic about Ms. Client's horses is that they are all curly horses, and apparently curlies have extremely tough feet, and thus no need for shoes.  So, the farrier just trims and shapes their feet, cleaning them up, but doesn't put shoes on them.  Just when I went out to take photos of the farrier in action, my phone rang and I was tied up just long enough for them to finish without me.  I think they still have to come back for a couple of horses that didn't get farried (or whatever you call it that the farrier does when he's not really putting shoes on them) so I may get my pics yet.

After the farrier left, the farm dogs got a special treat:  they got to eat the trimmings.  Doesn't that just sound... um... just delicious?  So, Paul and Todd got to try the horses feet trimmings treats.

Todd snarfed his down really quickly.  He is aways a fast eater.

"Oh that was yummy! Can I have another?!"

Paul took his time.

"OmNomNom this is good!"

"Any more of those things around here?"

We keep getting intermittent showers and things are starting to get muddy.

This evening I took it upon myself to staple some plastic sheeting over a few of the larger window openings on the South side of the house, in an effort to help keep the rain out.  The roofs are on, and most of the house is wrapped in Tyvek (the white sheeting you see on the house in the pictures.)   This keeps out most of the rain, but the South side didn't get wrapped, and enough water has been coming in that I wanted to do something about it before Bob the Builder comes back on Monday.

The windows I covered are the large ones visible in this pic, taken this afternoon, before I covered them:

And then it was evening.  At night, the noise outside is cacophonous.  If you think it's quiet out in the country, think again.  It seems like most of the noise is from the frogs, but there are some rather loud crickets and other bugs as well.  The last couple of nights, there has been a frog at the window.  The light inside attracts bugs, and then the frog climbs up, sticks himself on the window glass, and eats from the buffet.

This coming week will probably continue to be on the slow side for the construction progress - at least at the beginning of the week.  By the end of the week, the specialty timbers that we dealt with yesterday will be delivered, and the framer will be back on the job.  Helping install that wood is the main thing I'm here for.  Then doors, windows and exterior siding, which will finally keep out the weather (and critters) allow them to start finishing up the interior.

So, I need to make the most of the coming week to finalize some of the interior design elements, such as the kitchen, fireplace, and bathrooms.  I'm excited about all of these things, and looking forward to this part of the process.

And, I need to get my welding shop up and running.  Then I can start making cool furniture for the place, utilizing some timber scraps and bits that I rescued and brought in out of the rain and mud this afternoon.  Perhaps even a bench on springs!  That's something I'm very, very excited about.

Day 8: Big Update

Things are going slightly better digitally.  Still only have internet on my Mac but some of the other image issues have either been solved or have workarounds.

The other day, before it rained, I got to climb up onto the roof deck above the sunroom, and check out what the view will be like from up there.  It's actually remarkably similar from what it is in the room below, but it's just more exciting to be on the roof looking at it.  That's why I love roof decks.

Plus, it will be an awesome stargazing spot, and what could be more romantic?

Here are a couple of pictures where I marked up how they relate to the views above:

Also, while I was up there, I got to get an idea what the Great Room will be like from the mezzanine, even though it's full of scaffolding and stuff and it's a little hard to read:

But that was on one of my recent, frustrated blogless days.  Today I had a different kind of fun: I got to play The Enforcer.

Our local timber supplier, which is a very important item on this house, sent over a beam that was completely substandard.  Before I arrived on the scene here, it got installed.  Bob the Builder is on board with changing it out, even though it means that a lot of temporary supports will have to be put in place to hold up a whole corner of the upper part of the walls and roof while it is done.  But, Mr. Client is the one signing the checks, and once he told me it was unacceptable to him, my work was cut out for me.

(I have to say, I really appreciate how Bob is stepping up and taking responsibility for making sure things are done right, and correcting them if it's pointed out to him that they aren't.)

Here is the beam, in all its ugliness:

It's pretty bad.  That is way too many, and too large of, knots in the wood.

The rest of the timbers to construct the mezzanine are all cut, kiln dried, and ready to be delivered to the site, but we are having them hold off, until Dave the framer gets back into town next week and we can start installing.

Today, I took the opportunity to travel a few towns over and show these photos to the guy we had been working with at the lumber mill, and explain that this beam need a replacement, because it was not 'appearance grade' in the least.  He actually defended it somewhat(!?)  but ultimately fell back on the 'but the client isn't happy and he needs to be happy' as his justification for replacing it.  Damn straight, the client needs to be happy - so jump to it and cut us a new beam, STAT!

The other purpose of my visit to the lumber mill, given the problem with this beam, was to check out the stuff we had there, waiting to be delivered, and make sure there weren't any other issues with that material, since we still have a week until its delivered.

There were issues with that material.

2 beams will need to be replaced, and a 3rd needs additional planing because it was not the required smoothness.   I hope they can see, at this point, that we are serious about quality.  If not, they'll be hearing from me again.

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Yesterday Mr. Client and I explored Knoxville a little bit, and checked out some potential steel suppliers for my furniture and welding projects.

The first place we went was Triple-S Steel.  I was in heaven.  I felt right at home.  It was a giant steel warehouse building full of ... wait for it ... STEEL!  I talked steel with the Triple-S Steel peopleguys and it more than overcame all my digital frustration.  I felt my sense of life quickly restored as I soaked up all the steely goodness like a sponge.

We had parked on the other side of the building, and as we drove away, I felt even more sympathetic towards the Triple-S Steel peopleguys, when I saw their message to the President.  I definitely want to buy some metal from them.

The next place we went was as different from Triple-S as you could get, yet still be selling steel.  It was a 'salvage' company, but in reality, it seemed more like the Town Dump with a makeshift yard sale going on within the premises.  As weird and slightly upsetting as it was, I will be going back, because they had a few interesting things that I want to transform into furniture.

These two corrugated panels could make a roof for a doghouse for P + T;

The second piece from the left (not counting the pipe-like thing towards the back) is actually a piece of railroad rail.  I would love to make something out of that.  Mr. Client is into that idea, too.

The scale is a little hard to read with this one.  The holes in those pieces are about 1 1/2" in diameter.  I think there is enough material for 2 chairs there.  That would be 2 really playful, cute chairs with big ol' holes.

I have no idea what this next one even is.  It kind of breaks my heart in a weird way though.  Someone spent some real effort engineering this thing, figuring it out, designing it for a specific purpose.  It looks like it held part of a machine axle in place.  I feel like I could write a whole blog post just on this thing.

And yet, I suppose it had a useful life, and served its purpose.  Now it is obsolete, and it's sitting here in this junkyard, and there's nothing really wrong with that, is there?  I wonder how many of them were produced?  Hundreds?  Thousands?  Where were they cast, and by whom?  What role did they play in improving peoples' lives?  This piece rests on a whole body of knowledge developed over hundreds of years.  I think I might have to get it and return it to useful service in some way.

These ones are even weirder than the one above.  All the same questions apply, but they almost have characteristics of dead bodies.  Sorry to get morbid here.  There was a ton (actually many, many tons) of this kind of thing laying around at this salvage place.

And then there was a moment of verdant life amid the desolation.  These plants remind me of a type of papyrus that is grown ornamentally around L.A., but which also can easily just sprout up voluntarily in your yard.  Without knowing what it is, I would guess they're related.

And then, as I was leaving, I recognized something that really made me smile.  Not just a smile, but a big grin.  It was somebody's 'learning to weld' sample piece.

Here, they first welded those parallel lines as a way to practice making a bead on the metal, and getting used to the way the welder feels in their hands.  Then they welded that piece of angle in the upper right-hand corner.  I've taught enough people to weld that I can easily recognize this for what it is.

It makes me smile because it represents the passing down of a skill that I value.  It marks the continuation of my craft from one person to the next.  This is how knowledge grows and human achievement is advanced.

And now that person is out there making his own welded creations.  I wonder who it is?  What are they making now?  Are they still alive?  Who did they teach or inspire during their lifetime?

Who will you teach or inspire during your lifetime?  What will you teach them or inspire them towards?

All worthy questions, I think.

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Tomorrow morning I'm up early for a visit to the vet with Paul and Todd, for some shots.  Can't have them getting lyme disease while we're here.  They've been quite busy learning about life around horses and donkeys, and I hope to update you on all that over the weekend.