Bookmark and Tags

 

Pink Ribbon Bookmark, 2013

 Here is bookmark I made for my sister. The etched brass is a tag for a dog collar.

Pink Ribbon Bookmark, 2013

Here are a two tags I made to dress up my USB Flash Drives. Also, brass dog tags.

Scarab Tag, 2013

Steampunk Glyph, 2013

Green Bay Packer Cigar Box

Green Bay Packer Cigar Box, 2012

4.25" x 6.25" etched brass mounted on a cigar box.

Detailed view of Green Bay Packer Cigar Box, 2012

Buck Cigar Box #2

Buck Cigar Box #2, 2012

 Etched, brass plate mounted to cigar box.

Detailed view of Buck Cigar Box #2, 2012

Chicago Bears Cigar Box

Chicago Bears Cigar Box, 2012

 4.25" x 6.25" etched, brass mounted on cigar box.

Detailed view of Chicago Bears Cigar Box, 2012

Cleveland Browns Cigar Box #2

Cleveland Browns Cigar Box #2, 2012

4" x 6" etched, brass mounted to a cigar box.

Dragon Cigar Box

Dragon Cigar Box, 2012

Etched, brass mounted on a cigar box.

Now that the holidays are over I can finally show what I've been working on for over the past year. I decided to make etched plaques for cigar boxes for all my male friends and family members. Each plaque was personalized for each person's interest and the boxes were lined with fabric.

This one was for my nephew. I'll be posting a new one every 2-3 days here along with a few other items I finished up over the last few months.

U.S. Mail Postage Stamp

U.S. Air Mail Postage Stamp, 2012

5" x 4" etched brass.

"The Kraken" Chest

"The Kraken" Chest, 2012

4" x 5" etched brass on cigar box.

 

Detail view of "The Kraken" Chest, 2012

Update - 09.08.12

Victorian/Steampunk Gumball Machine, 2012

Nothing new to show in etchings. I've been working on pieces for holiday gifts and few personal projects. So after Christmas I will have many new items to show off.

This gumball machine was just a simple repaint of a flea-market find. This is directly inspired from the one done at epbot.com. Yes, there is a hole in the globe on the backside. Found out the globe was cracked when I got it home and a chunk broke off after completing it.

I want to also point out some links on the right side of this page. First, is Laura's Art from the Heart showcasing handmade jewelry and crafts. Then there is my sister's new project: Carousel Accessories' crocheted items can be seen at Deviant Art and Etsy Store.

Finally, almost all of the metal I use is purchased from OnlineMetals.com. They have a great selection and you can order cut-to-size. Please check them out here. (If you happen to use any link on this page and  purchase anything from them , I'll get a few dollars back to help me buy more metal. Hey, copper's not cheap anymore!)

Cleveland Browns Cigar Box

Cleveland Browns Cigar Box #1, 2012

When I originally etched this plate, I was was unhappy with how it had turned out. The etch was shallow and had some areas where the resist had failed and some fine details had etched away. After it had set in a drawer for a few months, I decide to paint it and finish it for myself and place it on the shelf with my other personal pieces. Once I started sanding to remove the excess paint, the insides of the letters we're getting a weathered and worn appearance. At the same time I read an article on how to "age" brass by exposing it to ammonia fumes. So I use this piece as my first test. Once mounted to a cigar box made of rough wood, I have a piece that looks like it's been exposed to many Lake Erie winters.

Close-up of Cleveland Browns Cigar Box #1, 2012

Radio Refinish Project, Part 1

1929 Philco Lowboy Radio

We picked up this Philco Radio at a flea market in April of 2011 for only $20. It is in rough shape. The top veneer is missing and the speaker cover and speaker are totally busted out. A photo of this in it's original condition can be found here. Still, we have it setting in the corner of our kitchen with a cloth covering the top and a plant and few items on top, it's nice piece for the area.

I've always admired the radio restoration project Jake Von Slatt featured on his site where he took an old radio and turned it into a guitar amp. I also recently found where epbot.com restored an radio with new speakers, LED's and an iPod connection.

Motivated, I decided to finally clean up ours. Since the case was in such bad shape, I couldn't see spending the money to get the radio working again. We decided to simply clean up the case, replace the missing knobs and replace the broken speaker cover with a etched, brass plate. This is mainly going to be a decorator piece, but we are going to use it to hold our internet and wi-fi routers.

First I removed the speaker and speaker cover. The speaker cover had clam-shell motif which I traced and worked up a floral pattern which I'll etch and place within the speaker opening. The brass has been ordered and I'll be working on it over the coming months (in-between all my other etching projects).

Dust encrusted vacuum tubes.

Next I removed the tuner assembly. Here is where all the weight of the radio resided. I've stripped the tuner of all vacuum tubes and all electrical component that I could remove. Once cleaned up, I'll replace the assembly so the station dial and knobs can be reassembled. There were 6 vacuum tubes. Once the decades of dust has been removed, they're quite nice. I'm saving these for a future project.

Man of Steel... in brass.

Superman, 2010

This is an early etching I did in 2010. 3.25"x4.25" brass. I've left this on uncoated to let the brass oxidize.

My Toolbox

Toolbox, 2010

My sister made this box for me when I was probably  6 or 7 years old. Made out of plywood and with a dowel handle, painted white and had my name painted in yellow on the side. I remember keeping my Hot Wheels cars in it. Later on I painted in black and used to hold art supplies. When I started etching I want a box to hold paints and finishing items so I decided to strip the paint off and stain the box and added the rope handle.

I etched the plated for the end with a image of a steam ship and the Trident logo on a piece of 4" x 4" brass. I etched it so the image/text would be raised and the background is lower, opposite of how I normally etch. I then lightly ran a polishing wheel over it to even out the finish

Steamship Plate, 2010

Le Poisson Volant

"Le Poisson Volant", 2012

Steampunk-inspired Airship Dedication Plaque. 8" x 10" brass in wooden frame.

"Buck" Cigar Box

"Buck" Cigar Box, 2011

4" x 6" etched, brass plate mounted on a cigar box. This was made for my brother-in-law for Christmas.

Detailed view of box, 2011

Christmas Ornaments

Shoe Ornament #1, 2010

 Two Christmas ornaments I made as gifts.

Shoe Ornament #2, 2010

Clocks

Table Clock, 2010

This was made from a 4"x4" piece of brass I had lying around. Since making this one, I have seen many antique, etched clocks and inspires me into making more clocks in the future.

Wall Clock, found at Biltmore Estate, Asheville, NC.

This clock is in Biltmore Estate. I liked the two metals to give it a contrasting appearance. (Sorry for the poor photo. This was hanging in a roped-off hallway and I had to shoot it with the zoom on my phone at an weird angle.)

I definitely want to try a two-toned one like this with brass and stainless steel.

Antique Wall Clock

This wall clock was hanging in a antique shop. It's hard to make out, but there is a nature scene etched within the center circle.

Odds & Ends #1

Vader's Raiders, 2011

Here are two I recently finished. The above is a 4" x 4" stainless steel plate with a Star Wars/WWII nosecone inspired image. It didn't turn out a clean as I wanted, but it has a nice battle-worn appearance. I'm going to do this one again, only larger and maybe with more Star Wars styled fonts.

The one below was for a friends' son for his karate belt display he received for his birthday.

Name Plaque, 2011

Clockwork Electric Guitar: Part 1

Cipher Guitar neckplate, 2011

Cipher Guitar, 2011

This is the project that started me wanting to etch. In 2007, I found online the works of Jake Von Slatt of The Steampunk Workshop and his "Steampunk Strat".

Inspired, I purchased a used Cipher electric guitar from Craigslist for $25 with intentions of producing my own steampunk guitar... and never did. I moved this guitar from townhouse-to-apartment-to-townhouse until this spring when I dug it out of the attic to finally finished it.

I am making three plates for the guitar: the backplate, which sandwiches the neck to the body, a small keystone-shaped plate for the neck near the tuners and the pickguard which will have a clockwork pattern. Pictured here is the backplate and the neck plate is etched, but needs to be shaped and finished.

The guitar was originally a cream color. I spray painted it flat black with many coats of flat clear coat, then sanded smooth with 400-grit sandpaper. I also painted all of the chrome hardware gold to match the plates.

Note: I etched the date of "2011" into the backplate to date my work and to force me to finish this project this year.

Work in Progress

Airship Plaque work-in-progress, 2011

Two works in progress. The above is a 8"x10" plaque that I prepping to be etched. After I transfer the image, I touch up any holes in the transfer with black, enamel paint. The exposed brass will be etched away.

Below is an etched plate that needs to be drilled, polished and mounted. This is the first plate I've done where I etched away the background and left the details raised above the brass. Usually I etch the image into the brass and then fill in the etch with paint. The fine details are hard to make out at this point, hopefully everything will be clearer once polished.

Steamship, work-in-progress, 2011