GoreMade Pizza

Ketchup

The astute observer will notice that I have not updated this site in over 80 weeks. It's not "social" media if no one sees it, so I have been utilizing Instagram and Facebook because that's where the audience is. The fact that they are quicker and easier is a bonus.

Much of the progress that I've made between then and now can be attributed to GoreMade Pizza. I finished the first of what would be 11 tables, the bar, and the trim work around the windows and doors way back in April 2015. It's been a long road.

Not a square table, just instagram

I think I actually used a plastic miter box for the first couple of tables...painful memories of inaccurate angles. An old, borrowed chop-saw that died after table #3 changed my whole approach.

By table #4, I was a math addict.

During the remodel of the GoreMade Pizza building I was able to salvage enough material for an additional table. That was a little over 6 months ago.

At the moment, the blogger editor is testing my patience. Let's fast forward!
(now I remember why I gravitated to instagram) 2.5 months out.

...and 2.5 weeks.

I could continue blah blah blogging, but I'd rather point you to where the info already is. If you kept reading past the facebook link above, that's ok. You can follow my splinter filled handiwork at https://www.facebook.com/remadusa/
And, even though the instagram account reads bortmasphoto, it encompasses all of my interests these days.

It's time to get back to work. Too much sitting makes me loony.

Red Herring

Suddenly, something's a little fishy about this design. Sometimes I start with an orientation in mind, in this case a landscape. Along the way, there arrives a point where it starts to look better as a portrait (or vice versa).  The turquoise is a mix of three blues that just may have to be used again, probably with an ebony under stain and a hint of metallic.

Because of the abstraction, I'm not sure this qualifies as a visual pun, but it is what it is, a herringbone design in red. Some of the bricks had a tiny amount of red and yellow already on them, so I painted the rest to match. The turquoise is a mix of three blues that just may have to be used again, probably with an ebony under stain and a hint of metallic.

The main body panel is 12" on the short side, with the breakout pieces adding an extra ten inches to that dimension. 

22"x38.25"

Instagram

Canvas Prints

Starburst

Again, I started with a 2" slab of plywood as my surface. The overall stretch is 42"x49". There is a little bit of distortion in this photo.

Instagram

Canvas Prints

radial

Sweetheart Table

French Knot

I jumped into this one with a bit of ambition. There were going to be two knots, with a splash of movement to connect them. The measurements came back a bit too table sized. Trimming happens in all kinds of places.

Better still, At this size it remains a table for two.


At 20.5"x29.75" this is made from salvaged lath and pallet wood

Weave

A long time ago, in a camp far far away, I earned a merit badge in weaving. The final test was to create a mat from cat tail reeds that could support your weight for some number of seconds. Two other boys would grab opposite sides, and you would sit on it and pray that this would not be an embarrassing situation.

This shot clips the fact that the long pieces that stick out continue to their natural ends. The block is 14" tall by 19" wide, and the pattern is mounted to a slab of 2" plywood. I didn't even know it came that thick. You can see a concept brewing off in the corner.

Instagram

I hear it looks good on canvas.

a different kind of landscape

Herringbone

Instagram shot!

Familiar Structure

Someone told me once that, "repetition is the foundation of clarity." It was an eye opener then, and as it turns out, it really is an eye opener.

The human eye loves patterns. So, as an homage to some of the repetitive decorations that have stood the test of time I decided to try my hand at some of those proven patterns. First up, herringbone.

Dealing with a standardized piece made the assembly go fairly smooth. It was making so many of the same that was the exercise. It turned out to be the good reminder to pay attention to posture. 

At 48"x19" the ends have been left in a state so that the pattern could continue. Just another building block to be snapped into place, or was this ripped from some doomed site? A different form of architectural salvage, made from architectural salvage. 

With a bit of polyurethane it could make a nice bar top, finished at the edges of course. As for now, I like the idea of making another one... or two.

Process

I really like the soft, natural tones of this lath. I always cringe just before committing to color. Here's a look into the layering process.

Knowing that most of the paint will just get sanded off, I'm pretty loose about where it lands. After the sanding, it was oiled. Then I took a small brush of ebony stain into the recessed triangles.

I thought it was done, but the can of wax is whispering.

My First Table

This took longer than it should have. I was attaching the last side board, when it split. I waited for weeks for the right type of pallet to fit that spot.  71.5" x 24.25"

Just before oiling... (and rotated, apparently)

I could have stopped here. It's like straw!

 Instagram

Canvas Prints