Each time we finish off a new feature we swing open the big magic shop doors and roll it outside. The shop is almost always full of other projects in progress with still more waiting their turn to be started when a little working space is freed up. The Harvest Barn Donuts sign was finished today. It’s a beauty and it is hard to believe the tree isn’t real wood but rather hand sculpted concrete. ‘Farmer Jack’ the scare crow character will be perched on top when the sign arrives at Vala’s farm in Gretna, Nebraska in about three weeks. This portion of the sign will barely squeak into the semi trailer as it is only one inch shorter than the ceiling of the van.
One more day of sculpting.
Mixing sculpting epoxy is a very tough job. I know this to be true for I’ve personally mixed thousands of pounds through the years. I often get asked what our secret is to mix so much epoxy each year. My answer is simple… Hire a student. This summer’s hire is Sidney, my nephew’s oldest son. It turns out he is the most prolific mixer of sculpting epoxy we have ever employed. Sidney mixed more than fifty pounds of sculpt today which is pretty impressive! He did other projects as well as he mixes faster than I can apply it. He’s a clever dude and invented a new method that works well for him. The two part epoxy is the consistency of plasticine and needs to be mixed in equal parts. It is rolled together by hand until it is thoroughly mixed. While we could use a machine for the task the reality is that the machine would have to be cleaned after each batch and that would be more work and take longer than mixing by hand. Once mixed the epoxy is applied by hand as well. The longer it sits unused the harder it gets so there is no point in mixing a whole lot at once. The Vala’s sign was routed from Precision Board and then I am sculpting a thin layer of epoxy over it to work out the details. One more day should finish this project and ready it for paint. To get a sense of scale the sign measures a whopping eight and a half feet tall and is about ten inches thick at its thickest point.
Family tradition
While I absolutely love to create wonderful whimsical creations in the shop, I truly love to do things with my family, from the youngest to the oldest. Each day is so precious and goes by so quickly.
Each morning as I come out of our room into the house I can hear Henry , getting ready for his busy day. No matter what he might be involved with, when he sees me he immediately exclaims TRACTOR! (pronounced in his unique 1.5 year old dialect) He then bids a cheerful goodbye to whomever he might be interacting with and makes a beeline (at a full run) to the mud room and finds my shoes and two of my hats. One hat is for me, the other for his head. We then go find the lawn tractor and head out of the yard, down the street to the bakery. On the way we take the time to pick some weeds to feed the neighbour’s goats. It is our tradition to buy a fresh baked muffin for Grandma. Henry insists on paying the clerk serving us (with grampa’s money) tossing a few coins in the tip jar and then carrying Grandma’s muffin all the way home and to her bedside. We tiptoe quietly for she’s most often still asleep. With that chore done he bids me a cheerful goodbye as I head off to work in the backyard shop. We go for another tractor ride at lunch and again after work of course, and feed the neighbour’s goats some more weeds each time.
I learned so long ago when our kids were small that it is so important to take the time do things with them for they are young for such a short time. No matter how wrapped up I get in my creations I’ve learned to take time regularly to do ‘ordinary’ things with those I love. I’ve learned that my work will always be there and I can always go back to it later if I need to. The kids grow up too fast and are too soon gone.
