Completing the three gnomes took considerable effort towards the end, after missing the first two deadlines in August and September. And my trip to Japan in October set me back even further. Upon my return, I dealt with a persistent cough that left me too drained to do much.
And when I felt better, I was busy playing golf and pickleball, leaving me little time to focus on the pieces. Eventually, I sat down and added several more layers of varnish before deciding they were good enough to gift the intended recipients. The completion was dated 1st November.
The final picture does not do justice to the gloss varnish that I have painstakingly applied. But the colors are so vibrant, I think I did a good job. Ahem.
I am at the tail-end of completing the three individual gnomes. I missed the deadline I set for myself, which was the end of August. And it is almost the end of September! I’ve got to get going on it.
Last week, I decided to push myself to complete this with love and dedication. I reduced my golf outings to focus on finishing up the pieces. And I must say it has been so fun and therapeutic to work on them.
Working on all three in tandem, seated at my workstation, I fine-tuned the surfaces and eventually applied acrylic paint. It actually took me only one day for the painting process! If I had known that it would take just a day, I would have prioritized this step sooner! Oh well.
I am very pleased with the outcome. The color choices of the pants are at the request of the individual recipients. At this point, it is only a minor touch-up to even the coat of colors. Lastly, a gloss varnish will be applied to the surfaces to complete the project.
Yay, I am a happy camper with my efforts, and I hope the recipients will be equally pleased to have them in their homes.
Excited about carving again after seeing the Three-Gnome piece evolve, I decided to carve more gnomes, but single pieces instead of a trio. I found three wooden blocks from my stash and decided to work on them simultaneously.
On days when it was too hot to be out on the golf course, I alternated between the four pieces for the past several weeks. It wasn’t a daily process, though, and it took time. And since I completed the Three-Gnome piece last week, my focus is now on the three single gnomes.
The task at hand is very exhilarating, especially with the new carving tools that I recently purchased online. When an unassuming block of wood evolves and becomes something creative, done with love and focus, the satisfaction and joy are immensely wonderful.
I hope to complete the three pieces before the end of August!
It has been time-consuming completing the Three-Gnome piece, with more waiting than the actual time spent working on it towards the end. Being patient is essential, as it takes time for the wood putty to dry before sanding the surfaces down. Then, after putting a coat of white acrylic, I wait again for it to dry. And the cycle repeats to ensure a smooth surface overall. The days pass by so quickly with these steps.
I found myself repeating the process twice before being satisfied with the result and applying the final colors of the gnomes. There was a slight hiccup when I discovered the skin tone acrylic color had dried up in the tube! Oh no.
Top: ready to add color; bottom: new Jaune Brilliant (left) vs old Pink Blush (right)
I ended up purchasing a different brand, so now these new gnomes will look different from the others! Then again, after a four-year break of carving gnomes, a darker shade for the nose would not be so drastic-looking, would it? New start, new colors.
With the final step of applying the varnish, this piece will soon be ready! I’m so proud of pushing myself to complete it, albeit four years later. Better late than never.
Top: original piece; bottom: latest piece. Note the color of the noses.
Two months ago, the weather was unbearably hot, and I reduced my outdoor activities, meaning my golf games. Being home, I decided to revive an old and forgotten carving project, rather than spending my time constantly on my iPad playing games. I was playing too much!
It felt good to carve again, as it had been ages since I last used all my carving tools. The piece is not new, but a second take on my Three-Gnomes piece. Slowly but surely, I will complete the piece and not leave it sitting there forgotten.
The Lunar New Year is next week, my goodness! There are a lot of last-minute preparations to usher in the Year of the Tiger. Like shopping for new clothes, for instance!
The last two years, with the pandemic and lockdowns, we were homebound and did not venture out to the malls at all. There were grocery runs to our local grocer nearby, and basically, essentials but not indulgent shopping.
During the MCO phases, online shopping was my go-to if I wanted to buy non-essential things. And even then, it was mostly to buy my miniature sets and carving tools. But no clothes.
So over the weekend, we took the opportunity to go on a shopping spree to buy new clothes as it is the last weekend to shop. With no more restrictions on interstate travel, it will be a traffic nightmare next weekend when city-dwellers begin the exodus for Reunion Dinners with the family and loved ones afar.
I, for one, who usually buy golf clothes, suddenly find myself buying Chinese New Year clothes. I bought not one but two Cheong Sam outfits! It must be the festivity in the air or the sudden freedom to be able to go out and try clothes on.
My two lovely and elegant outfits
For someone who does not wear or buy dresses often, the purchases were an incredible feat by my standards. Well, lockdowns change people and their outlook in life, I suppose. I look forward to wearing the outfits to welcome the Year of the Tiger with good vibes and have a roaring celebration, pun intended.
What is worse than stabbing yourself with felting needles or carving tools? It’s slicing your finger with a blade. Shudder, ouch, and cry!
Yesterday I was at the office cutting some paper with a blade, and the accident happened. It was a bloody moment, literally. Stab pains by both my activity tools pale in comparison to this!
Snoopy to my rescue! 🥰
I am much better today, thank goodness. However, I cannot use my thumb to type on my iPhone as I usually use both hands. I hope this temporary disability is short-lived.
But I will stop the paper cutting for the time being and go about with pure design work on the Mac. As for felting, no stab pains will stop me from continuing this newfound enjoyable activity.
Last two weeks, I took a break from building miniatures and carved instead. I must say, it has turned out good this divergence. However, my tools are very trying. They are not as sharp as before, and it has been a challenge to get things right.
From the initial outline of the Gnome Trio, the outcome has evolved as I progress along. Delicate parts broke off when I exerted too much strength. As such, I had to modify the shape along the way.
The Gnome Trio
But I don’t think one can tell, especially if I don’t have the original picture next to the finished piece. It looks good, and I’m pleased with my efforts.
Over the weekend, I completed the tail-end of some more detailing work. Then I did a little more sanding down before applying a coat of gesso. I’m at the tail-end of adding colors before the final touch of a varnish finish.
Gesso for a white base then the signature red cap for all three!
And voila! The Gnome Trio will be at the front of the house proudly.
At the beginning of this year, I purchased some mini drill bits from my favorite online shopping site, and they arrived several days later. The last bit to make the whale eyes had broken, and these were the replacement. And I used them a fair bit when I was carving my whales then.
But now that my drill has kaput, it will be some time before the bits see any more action. Sigh. The question to ask should I buy a replacement drill or not?
Seeing that lately, I am more into doing DIY miniature projects and not so much carving and woodworking, a new drill may not be necessary yet. We shall see.
So sadly, the mini bits are just sitting there with the rest of the bits, collecting dust.
It’s been a while since I last used my mini drill. Last week, I decided to use it and inadvertently caused a mini double accident.
The DIY cafe was at the tail-end of completion. I had to drill a little hole for the wire from the table to go underneath to connect to the rest of the wires at the other end. But things did not go as planned.
I switched on the drill and tripped the power in the house. Oops. Initially, I thought it was the adapter plug but on further tests, it’s the drill. Sigh. I’ll deal with this another time.
Immediate attention was on the hole to drill. So I had to poke a hole manually with my carving tools. Luckily, the base wood isn’t that hard. I just had to be patient but persistent.
The hole for the wire that caused the accident
I tilted the cafe at an awkward angle to get a comfortable position. And accidentally tilted a wee bit too much, the whole cafe fell off the table! I was horrified.
Clothes pegs are useful gadgets to use!
Thankfully the damages weren’t too bad. Only the back roof truss broke, the bar stool top came off and a flower fell out of place.
With a little creativity, the roof truss was glued and held back in place, while the other two were glued back without issues. As it was last bit of this project, I finished it without further challenges.
Angieneering 
Remarks