Craft Council AGM Weekend

A going away vest!

This past weekend was the Craft Council of Newfoundland and Labrador's Annual General Meeting and get together weekend in St. John's.  There were studio tours on Friday, a day long board meeting and presentations on Saturday and the members Annual General Meeting on Sunday.  This was my last AGM for a while as I stepped off of all of the committees that I was on.  Its a great organization, but I need a bit of a break to focus on other areas for a couple years.

'Robot Contemplates Flight' Mug from Blue Dragon Clay

Maaike at the Clay Studio Fundraiser

We paused Saturday's board meeting to attend a Graduation Exhibit at the Anna Templeton Centre and a Clay Studio fundraiser at the A1C Gallery.  At the fundraiser, I picked up a Robot mug from Maaike Charron from Blue Dragon Clay.   I especially like how big and light the mug is.  For Lori, I picked up a ceramic chimp.  The traditional gift for 9 years is pottery and since she was on the road during our anniversary last week it seemed like I should bring something home.  Unfortunately, I didn't get the name of the maker - but hopefully someone who sees this can fill us in.

Ceramic chimp on the wall

Photo Credits: Tim Rast

Wednesday's Blog Post... Finally

Newfoundland Chert points and Endblades

Getting something up on the blog is the last thing I have to do today before I can call the workday done.  I've been working the past couple of days on a secret project that's pretty much done now.  Its a fun piece that I'll be able to talk about in a couple months time after its been delivered.  In the meantime there's still jewelry to be made and this weekend is the Annual General Meeting of the Craft Council of Newfoundland and Labrador.  Its being held in St. John's this year and it will probably be my last CCNL AGM for a while.  Archaeological and Elfshot work has been preventing me from dedicating the volunteer time that committee work requires so I'm going to take a break.  I'm sure I'll be back once I get my work-life back under control.

These pieces will likely end up in a shop in Gros Morne.

Photo Credits: Tim Rast

New Craft Council of Newfoundland and Labrador Website

The Craft Council of Newfoundland and Labrador has launched its brand new website: check it out!

Photo Credit: Screen Grab from http://www.craftcouncil.nl.ca/

Fox Bones and CCNL Membership

removing the gristle

I'm still working on cleaning the fox bones and sketching the blueprints that I started on Friday.  I spent the morning at the Craft Council, signing cheques and delivering the flintknapping kits to the shop. If you are a member of the Craft Council of Newfoundland and Labrador, its time to pay your annual membership fee.  The dues are automatically deducted if you supply the shop on consignment, if not, you should get a reminder in the mail shortly.

If you're not a member, why not join?- there are lots of opportunities to help you develop your craft business in the Province.  When I was starting out, I got funding to purchase equipment and supplies, attend craft fairs and conferences, develop marketing materials, and deliver workshops and demonstrations across the Province.

Drying fox bones and claws

I promise, I washed my hands before I signed the CCNL shop cheques.  Besides, the fox bones are getting much cleaner.  After I pulled the bones out of the boiling pot, I soaked them in water saturated with dish liquid for about 24 hours, which helped drive off a lot of the grease.  I manually picked through them to remove the bigger chunks of meat and gristle.  After that I rinsed off the remaining soapy water and put them in a water and borax solution overnight.  This time the water stayed clear, so I think a lot of the grease is out of them now.  I'll dry them out and see if some of the remaining gristle will flake off.  There's not much on the bones any more and the gristle expands many times when it is wet, so I want to see what they look like dry before I decide how to proceed with them.  Most likely I'll put them back in a borax solution for a few days.

Photo Credits:
1: Lori White
2: CCNL Website
3: Tim Rast

Blueprints, bones, and beer bottles

Sketching artifact blueprints

The Beer Bottle to Arrowhead flintknapping kits are all done and I'll take them in to the Craft Council Shop the next time I'm up to Devon House.  In the meantime, I have a big pot of fox feet boiling in the backyard and while it steams away, I've been working on blueprints for the next few sets of reproductions.  I have a few hafted pieces to make for Terra Nova National Park before the end of their fiscal year and a bunch of Central Arctic reproductions to do ASAP for the same client that ordered the drum before Christmas.

Boiling and a skiff of snow

I picked up the fox bones before Christmas from some very helpful folks in the Provincial Wildlife Division.  I'm boiling them up in the backyard to remove the little bit of gristle and fur still clinging to them.  They came from nuisance animals that the division had to trap and test for disease.  There's more than enough there for the necklace that I need to make from them, which takes a lot of pressure off - its as good as done.  I'm also hopeful that the Wildlife guys will be able to provide some of the other caribou bones that I'm looking for.  Although, I could still really use help with the caribou metatarsal or metacarpal, if anyone has any extra caribou feet hanging around.

Beer Bottle to Arrowhead flintknapping kits - available from the Craft Council shop at Devon House, soon...

 Photo Credits: Tim Rast

Back to Business

Points to notch

I just got home from a Craft Council of Newfoundland and Labrador board meeting.  I'm currently the Treasurer and board representative for the Human Resources committee.  We try to have board meetings every two months.  At the moment we have 19 board members, which is a lot of people to coordinate with, but we managed to get a quorum this morning and had some good discussions about finances (we're in pretty good shape) and the upcoming Craft Fair (still a few spaces available in the second half of the fair if you haven't booked yet).

Hurricane rations

This afternoon, I'm back to work in the workshop.  I missed a day of work on Wednesday from the effects of Hurricane Igor.  We didn't have any property damage, but I was without power for 24 hours.  The clock stopped at 3:14 on Tuesday afternoon and when I went to set the time after the power came on Wednesday afternoon it was reading the correct time, so it must have started up again at 3:14 on Wednesday.  My phone and internet came on a few hours after that and my e-mail and website (www.elfshotgallery.com) came back online yesterday evening.  I lost a bit of food in the fridge, but the freezer seems fine.  I only had to prepare one meal over a propane torch, but it was kind of fun and since Lori is still out of town I might have another wiener roast in the fireplace this evening.

Obsidian, Fibre Optic and Recycled Glass

I'm working on a wholesale order of jewelry that I need to ship as early as possible next week.  I have all the blanks made and I'll get them notched this afternoon.  I'll take a bit of time to assemble them into necklaces and earrings on the weekend since I missed a day of work on Wednesday.  I usually try to keep to a 9 to 5 work schedule with Elfshot, just so it doesn't get overwhelming.  Its easy to always be at work when you are self-employed.  I'll make an exception this weekend, because the assembly can be done indoors with the TV on and I can sleep better when I'm making progress on an order.

Photo Credit: Tim Rast

New Routines

Iqaluit Airport

I'm home now and taking a little bit of a breather before starting on fall work.  I have a couple little jobs lined up for September, as well as a trip to Alberta.  Tomorrow morning I have a Craft Council executive meeting, so I need to get caught up on all the news there. 

One corner of my messy office

Coming back from the field is a good opportunity to set up new routines.  All the old ruts and routines are forgotten and the days and weeks seem wide open.  I'd like to get back into running and my office could really use a good clean up.  I've put up a picture of the mess as an incentive to clean this place up and post an "After" picture later on.  Its a good time to clean -- I don't feel nearly as attached to all my piles of office debris as I did 6 weeks ago.

Photo Credits: Tim Rast

Craft; A Provincial Resource

A Stone's Throw Glass Shop

Craft Producers are one of Newfoundland and Labrador's most valuable renewable resources.

That's the message that Brenda Stratton, the outgoing chair of the Craft Council of Newfoundland and Labrador (CCNL), shared with members this past weekend in Corner Brook.

CCNL Volunteers and members at the AGM

The Craft Council held its Annual General Meeting and get together in Corner Brook, with representatives from across Newfoundland and Labrador in attendance.  We had a dozen or so board members for the the epic board meeting that began at 9 am on Saturday and ended at twenty to midnight that night.  However, we did stop for Studio tours during the afternoon.   On Sunday, we were joined by a dozen more west coast craft producers for various parts of the General Meeting and slide shows.

Mike Fantuz

During the drive out from St.John's on Friday, we stopped for lunch in Gander at Mike Fantuz' house and he gave us a tour of his home and his growing private art collection.  In this photo, Mike is explaining two of his paintings, and the story behind a found art window frame.

Linda Yates

We also stopped by King's Point Pottery, the home, shop and studio of Linda Yates and David Hayashida.  The studio is a converted garage that belonged to Linda's father.  I've admired David and Linda's work for years and this was my first visit to their home - I liked it so much that I stopped in for another night on the drive home.  David is a rock enthusiast and we spent a bit of time talking and hunting for rocks.

David explaining the Humpback Skeleton

They've also assembled a 50 foot long humpback whale skeleton.   The Humpback Whale Pavilion is within walking distance of the the studio and its spectacular.  We had a sneak peak at this remarkable effort and fascinating display that officially opens this summer.

Urve Manuel in her studio

On Saturday, we toured studios along the north shore of Humber Arm, across the water from the city of Corner Brook.  Urve Manuel has a home and studio built into the side of a hill in the community of Gillams.  Much of it she's built herself around her vision and her business, A Stone's Throw Glass.  The newest space is the studio itself, which she was partially able to finish with a Studio Start-up grant from the Craft Council.  Urve is a glass worker, who is experimenting and creating amazing pieces right now, but she also has a clear goal for the future that she is working towards.

Urve's Work

Craig Strang in his studio

Like most of the people we met, every brick and board in Craig Strang's home and studio, Meadows Point Pottery, has a story.  Much of his studio was recycled or repurposed and he's not done building his home and kiln space yet.

Niki Hollahan

Niki Hollahan is a knitter in the summer and Ski Patroller at Marble Mountain in the winter.  Like Niki, her products and studio, Knix Hand Knits are bright and colourful.  Every studio that we visited was a reflection of the owner's personality.  When you visit a producer in their work space you can see how much of a person's personality goes into creating their work and their studio.

Sharing experience

We visited producers at many different stages in their careers and each one was inspiring.  They were inspiring, not only because of what they have already accomplished, but because of everything that they will accomplish in the future.

You can plan your own trip to Newfoundland and Labrador's craft studios by checking out the Craft Council's online Studio Guide.

Photo Credits: Tim Rast

Away on Craft Business

I'm heading out to Corner Brook today for the Craft Council of Newfoundland and Labrador's Annual General Meeting.  This blog used to have a lot more to do with craft than it has recently.  Going into the AGM, I'm the St. John's representative for the Craft Council.  Over the past couple of weeks, I've been asking craft producers in the St. John's area to send me their latest news and photos.

Marnie Parsons at Running the Goat has a new website that's full of suprises.  According to the website; Running the Goat Books & Broadsides is a micro press that specializes in books, chapbooks, broadsides and poemphlets by Newfoundlanders and Newfoundland-based writers. Most, but not all, of our publications are letterpress printed, using moveable lead type, and sewn by hand.

This one isn't really a St. John's update, but Elias Semigak also has a new website.  Elias creates some of the most sought after soapstone carvings in the Province.  You can get a taste of his work and his life on his site: Stone Artworks by Inuit Carver.  

Photo Credits:
Screen captures from the linked websites

Some days are just not that exciting...

Finished Fibre Optic Spiral Earrings

I'm still plugging away on spring wholesale orders.  All of those fibre optic points in the macaw mosaic last Friday have been wired and most of them have been carded and some of them have been packaged and are ready to ship.  I can count the remaining wholesale orders on one hand now, which is nice.

Unfinished obsidian and chert in the workshop

I'm not sure what today will be like.  Either I'll make a dedicated push in the workshop and get all the flintknapping done for the orders that need to be done by June 1st, or I'll tie up some loose ends and finish some of the small jobs that are distracting me from the last big order.  My work schedule is a little out of sync with the world right now, which tends to happen this time of year or when deadlines are looming.  I seem to be working afternoons and evenings and weekends, with mornings and one or two weekdays being my down time.

Unfinished fibre optic jewelry in the basement

The main goal right now is to get the last of the orders with a June 1st delivery deadline finished up and shipped by the start of next week.  I'd like to spend a few days next week working on the L'Anse aux Meadows reproductions before heading to Corner Brook for the Craft Council of Newfoundland and Labrador's Annual General Meeting.  I'm glad that it will be on the west coast of the Island this year because it gives me a chance to collect rock along the way.

Photo Credits: Tim Rast

The Other Christmas Tree Harvest

The start of the week has been about gathering materials, preparing for workshops, and getting ready to start some new projects. I'm also on the Human Resources committee at the Craft Council and we had a half day meeting yesterday morning at Devon House. It was a happy one without any big fires to put out.

In St. John's, this is the time of year that people are turfing their old Christmas trees onto the sidewalks in front of their house. Interesting fact: Old Christmas trees make great harpoon shafts. So I dragged a few home, cut off their branches and put the trunks in my workshop to continue drying. Compared to other poles of a similar size, the old Christmas trees don't tend to split. The month or two that they have been up in someone's house have dried them out slowly enough that they are pretty much stable by the time they hit the sidewalk. I have a big pile of branches in front of the house, but it occured to me in the middle of the night that I can save the thicker ones to use as handles in the hafting workshop coming up in Calgary.

Which was a much nicer middle-of-the-night realization than Monday night when I woke up and realized that I didn't have any empty beer bottles in the house for Thursday's Beer Bottle to Arrowhead workshop (space still available, RSVP on Facebook or by e-mail). Of course, the beer bottles aren't really a problem to find, but at 3 am, everything seems like a much bigger problem.

Other than that, I finished up the pressure flakers and assembled the knapping kits for the Beer Bottle workshop and my schedule is clear now to start work on a pretty cool secret project. I'll post about it when its done, but its something that I've never made before using one of my favourite materials. Its a gift and I can't say anymore until after its delivered.

Photo Credits:
First, Lori White
2nd & 3rd, Tim Rast

Photo Captions:
First: "Nothing Officer..."
Second: Finished flintknapping kits for workshop
Third: Making the pressure flakers.

Innovation, Trade and Thule Harpoons

Today is another workshop day for the Thule harpoons. I decided to make two after all. Not only is it faster to work on two harpoons side by side, but it frees me up to experiment a little. There is a lot of variability in Thule harpoons, so there are a couple of different things that I'd like to try out.

Earlier in the week, I dropped off some product at the Confederation Building to be photographed. Its not easy being a craft producer anywhere, but in Newfoundland and Labrador we are fortunate to have the support of both the member driven Craft Council of Newfoundland and Labrador (CCNL) as well as the Provincial Craft Sector in the Department for Innovation Trade and Rural Development (INTRD). The two organizations work together continually, but there are things that a government body can do that a not-for-profit organization can do and vice-versa. For example, helping craft producers with wholesaling their product is primarily an INTRD enterprise. They are the folks behind the Crafts of Character branding program and organize the Provincial Craft Wholesale Show every spring.

The photos are being done for craft producers in anticipation of the spring wholesale show Buyer's Guide. I've also signed up for help from Gloria Hickey in writing an artist statement and product description. Both the photography and writing are being provided to me, and dozens of other craft producers, at no charge through INTRD. I'm looking forward to getting an injection of professional photography and writing into Elfshot's promotional material.

If you are interested in promoting or expanding your craft business in Newfoundland and Labrador, the first step should be to become a member of the Craft Council of Newfoundland and Labrador and register as a craft producer with INTRD. Both organizations are invaluable to craft in the province and not everyone realizes that they are two separate entities. If you are a member of one and not the other, you are only getting half the package.

Photo Credits:
First: Tim Rast
Second: Erick Walsh
Third: Crafts of Character and Craft Council of Newfoundland and Labrador Logos

Photo Captions:
First: Some of the bits and pieces that go into making Thule harpoons
Second: Photography done by Erick Walsh for a .pdf portfolio, several years ago. Partially funded by INTRD.
Third: Two different logos, two different entities.

Only Three Days Left!

So far, the Fine Craft and Design Fair at the Arts and Culture Centre in St. John's has been fantastic! I'm loving the new venue and there were actually artisans in the first fair who enjoyed themselves so much during the first 5 days that they signed up to do it all over again at this week's fair!

The fair is Open 10AM to 10PM on Friday and Saturday and 10AM to 6PM on Sunday. Free Parking and Admission.

Don't forget the Flintknapping demonstration - Saturday, November 14th, 10AM to 12 Noon. Hope to see you there!

Photo Credits: Tim Rast

Photo Captions:

All: The Elfshot Booth (#512) at the 2009 Fine Craft and Design Fair

Fair and Ballistic Gel Seal Anticipation Builds!

I needed to pick up some shelves and other display items for my craft fair booth yesterday and had a chance to briefly stop by the Fine Craft and Design Fair to check out the show and my booth space. This was my first time visiting the fair in the Arts and Culture Centre and I'm really excited now about joining the fair this week. The place was hopping! At 10 days, the fair is twice as long as it has ever been and the layout and auxiliary events create a big festive atmosphere. The Craft Fair fits into the space so well, that its almost like a new mall dedicated to craft has sprung up in the middle of St. John's. The show is closed Monday and Tuesday to switch over booths and re-opens on Wednesday November 11th at 4:00pm with a new set of craft producers.

But of course, the inside of my head still looks something like this:

(You can make make your own Wordle at Wordle.Net!)

I spent more time working on the ballistics gel seal model. The current version is the 3 layer pop bottle seal. There is a rawhide skin layer, the smooshy fat layer and the sinew laced meat layer. I cut the top end off the two litre pop bottle and used it for a funnel so that I could cut a relatively small hole in the bottom to fill it from. I stretched a wet rawhide skin from a soaked chew toy for dogs over the top, like a drum skin. I flipped it over and filled it up upside down. The initial gelatin pour seeped through the wet rawhide. It was kind of messy, but in the end it helped keep the rawhide rubbery and more skin like when the gelatin set. I used 5 packs of Knox gelatin for 700 ml of water for the fat layer. I did that twice, so 10 packs for 1400 ml of water would be the same thing. For the meat layer I used 7 packs for 700 ml of water and poured it in 3 stages. Between each stage I let it gel slightly and sprinkled soaked sinew strips into the mix. That gives me about 4 inches of "fat" and 2 inches of "meat".

That's as far as I've got. I'll know later today if they work and what changes need to be made.

Photo Credits:
Top, Tim Rast
Second, Wordle.Net
Third & Fourth, Tim Rast

Photo Captions:
Top, Earrings ready for the 2009 Fine Craft and Design Fair, St. John's
Second, Wordle created using the text from the past week's blog posts
Third, Filling the ballistic gel seal. If you expand the photo you can see the sinew in the "meat" layer.
Fourth, Ready to test!

Craft Fair Update

Its been a hectic week of preparation for my run in the Fine Craft and Design Fair at the Arts and Culture Centre in St. John's next week. I've ran into a couple of people who said that they thought the fair was this week. It is, but I won't be there until next week. It runs for 5 days this week and 5 days next week, for a total of 10 days. There are a dozen or more exhibitors attending for the full 10 days and 60 or so exhibitors attending either the first 5 days (Nov 4-8) or the last 5 days (Nov 11-15). You can see the full list of craft producers and the days they'll be attending here.

Elfshot will be there for November 11-15th, and I'll be demonstrating flintknapping on Saturday November 14th for two hours starting at 10AM.

The reason for the move to the Arts and Culture Centre is the Convention Centre downtown kept raising their prices on us. Every year we had to pay more and it was impossible for the Craft Council to break even on the event. There is no comparable sized venue in St. John's. We needed a place with room for 70-100 booths. We picked the Arts and Culture Centre, for a lot of reasons, but the smaller floor space meant that we needed to create two back to back fairs to fit in all the booth holders.

There are some really big benefits to the Arts and Culture Centre for everyone. One is the parking - there are hundreds of free parking spaces, which was a big issue for a lot of people at the downtown location. Since its a public space and so much cheaper for us to rent than the Convention Centre, the admission is free. You can come as often as you want and it won't cost you anything. Although, if you are in the Christmas Spirit, the Craft Council of Newfoundland and Labrador has partnered with the CBC and the Community Food Sharing Association and there will be locations for donating non-perishable food items or cash at the door.

Photo Credits:
Top: Tim Rast
Middle: From the Arts and Culture Centre Website
Bottom: Tim Rast

Photo Captions:
Top: Lost Stone Obsidian Necklace and Earrings ready for the show!
Middle: The Arts and Culture Centre in St. John's
Bottom: More Lost Stone Obsidian