June 2009 – Ornamento

The Soul of a Tree

Last week, we made the trek to the Nakashima Studio in New Hope, Pennsylvania. My in-laws made this trek in 1959 with Shari and my husband in tow. They put a deposit on a slab coffee table and hanging wall cabinet, and were nervous about spending so much money. Who in his right mind would spend $300.00 on furniture with knot holes in it and cracks fixed with inlaid butterfly shaped pieces of wood that didn’t even match?

The furniture was delivered to their suburban home a few months later and they enjoyed it for the next 48 years. That furniture saw a lot of parties and family celebrations. When Milton died, the guest book for the memorial ceremony sat on the cabinet for guests to sign.

When Vicky died, the furniture passed to Shari who enjoyed it every day of the short time she had left. Shari longed to make one last trip to the Nakashima Studio but was too sick. At her memorial ceremony we set a beautiful wooden box holding her ashes on the coffee table along with her glasses.

Last week, as I was walking on the gravel paths that lead from one studio building to the next, I realized that trees tell a story. You can read history in trees if you know how. Nakashima understood the soul of trees; he did not alter or mask a tree’s spirit with detailed carving, paint or heavy hardware. Instead, he engaged in a dialog with it, and listened-really listened-to each whorl, knot and wormhole. George Nakashima’s work is a reminder that imperfection has its own beauty. If we could take those principles and apply them to each other, we would understand that our imperfections are what make us remarkable. And beautiful.

Nak032

We gave the furniture to family members who we hope will enjoy it for the next 48 years.

More Metal Etching Experiments

Last week I said that I would post some pictures of my etching experiments. Here they are.

This is a piece of brass etched with the Edinburgh etch solution. I copied the image onto a transparency and ironed it on to the metal before etching.

This is copper etched with ferric chloride. I drew the design with a Sharpie marker.

These are pieces of a brass charger plate I cut up. I stamped the image on the left with a rubber stamp and Stayz on Ink

This is a black and white image I reproduced onto a sheet of label backing with a laser printer then ironed on to copper. I used Edinburgh etch solution.

Here, I inked a rubber stamp with a black Sharpie pen and etched the copper with ferric chloride.

I made this resist pattern with a silk screen and thick acrylic paint. It worked well, but I found it difficult to get a paint that would not bead up on the metal.

Try making findings, components and texture sheets for polymer clay.

Come See My Etchings

My latest passion (aside from my husband) is metal etching. I am so obsessed that I even cut up some brass charger plates (flea market finds) and am etching and making jewelry from the brass. I’m using copper too.

I started my etching explorations with ferric chloride, which you can buy as PCB Etchant at Radio Shack. Rumors abound that Radio Shack no longer sells this. It’s not true. Much to my delight, however, I found you can purchase ferric chloride for half the price at Dick Blick.

Ferric chloride is not acid, but you don’t want to get it on your hands, clothes or in your eyes. I wear gloves and eye protection when I use it, and I work in a well ventilated room.

After scouring or sanding your metal to make sure it is free of tarnish, dirt and fingerprint oil, you put an image on it that will resist the ferric chloride. In othe words, the ferric chloride will eat away whatever you did not cover with etchant resist. Sharpie permanent markers provide an effective resist as well as Stayz On Ink which enables you to use your favorite rubber stamps. Sharp black and white images work best. Another method is to photocopy or laser print your images onto transparency film sheets and iron the image onto the cleaned metal. Transparency film is expensive. I have had success with the backing for a sheet of labels made to be printed with a computer. If you work in an office, ask people to save these for you instead of throwing them away. I print the image on the side of the sheet where the labels were and iron it onto the metal, image side down.

After you prepare your metal and fill a glass or plastic container with a couple of inches of ferric chloride, you cover the back of the metal with packing tape and suspend it, design side down, into the solution. Why? The etchant eats the metal and metal fragments flake away. If the metal was right side up, the fragments would sit on the metal and interfere with the etching process.

When you remove your piece from the solution, neutralize it with baking soda or ammonia, rinse well with water and clean off the resist. The time you have to etch depends on how strong your solution is (e.g. how many times you’ve used it). Ferric chloride, which is a salt and not an acid, is considered a slow etchant, so your etching time might run from 30 minutes to several hours. You need to check your metal from time to time until you know what to expect.

You can reuse the etchant until it’s too weak to perform. Then you must dispose of it. Don’t pour it down the drain. It contains metal fragments and you don’t want to add them to the water supply. Contact your local government authority for instructions on how to dispose of hazardous materials.

I learned of a great alternative to ferric chloride works faster and eliminates those pesky metal fragments. It’s called the Edinburgh Etch and it’s composed of ferric chloride and citric acid. Citric acid is a natural substance found in citrus fruit and many soft drinks (It’s not just the sugar that rots your teeth.) I have seen many complicated formulas and equations for mixing ferric chloride and citric acid. I mix 4 parts ferric chloride to one part citric acid. The citric acid is composed of 3 parts water and one part citric acid by volume. Translated, this means 1 cup ferric chloride (16 oz), added to a mixture of 4 oz citric acid. You mix the citric acid by adding 1 oz powder by volume to 3 oz water. Increase this formula to get more etchant solution. You can buy citric acid on ebay. For more information on metal etching, go to Makers Gallery, Ganoksin, etsymetal and DIY Network.

Next week I’ll post some pictures of my etched metal.

Bob’s Koi Pond

Bob’s urban garden is up and running! He added a few banana trees, a palm, and lots of flowers and vines. A new crop of turtles have have moved into the Koi pond, but they are frustratingly camera shy.

Bob kept Koi fish in the pond all winter-even when there was snow on the ground. A heater kept them from freezing, but they weren’t very lively. This spring he added a lot of minnows and for a couple of weeks, they all swam around happily. But there wasn’t enough oxygen for the big guys, so they are now swimming in the great hereafter. The little guys have taken over and will be big guys this time next year.

The lotus blossom sprang up unexpectedly one day. I got curious about lotus blossoms and found this interesting link. Enjoy the slide show.

An Unexpected Paradise