Replies

1. 
   oldusty | Jun 04, 2009 05:21pm | #1

      Samson ,

               Those are very cool looking ,very fluid and they sure look ergonomically correct to fit your grip .

      They are more like little sculptures

                  thanks for sharing

                             regards   dusty

1. 
   Samson | Jun 04, 2009 05:28pm | #2

   Dusty, you're kind. 

   To clarify, the collage is several pictures of the same effort from different angles.  Indeed, I would be hard pressed to make duplicates - even similar ones would likely end up different enough to be recogniably distinct because the organic curves and grain, etc.  would be very difficult to duplicate precisely - kind of like the curves on complex turnings (or so I understand).

   Thanks.

1. 
   oldusty | Jun 04, 2009 05:31pm | #3

     So , maybe this is better if you only need one of em ?

                 dusty

1. 
   Samson | Jun 04, 2009 05:34pm | #4

   Even with multiples, I'm happy to have each be a little different, yet similar enought to go together.  The beauty of non-mass production.  ;-)

   I may even try to make them intentionally different, but complementary and consistent style wise.

2. 
   SARGEgrinder47 | Jun 04, 2009 05:40pm | #5

   I really like the design. I have doubts they would fit in with older styles but would look great on modern (don't personally care for) or Danish wish I really used to like at one time. As far as duplication... with the style of pieces they would compliment.. why would you have to duplicate to the tee? Why not allow them freedom to be a different from one to another much as you can hand cutting DT's. A signature sop to speak.

   Sarge..

    

1. 
   Samson | Jun 04, 2009 05:50pm | #6

   Thanks for the input, Sarge.  I tend to make eclectic stuff - following my nose and satisfying myself rather than being true to any established styles. 

1. 
   SARGEgrinder47 | Jun 04, 2009 06:19pm | #7

   Back in my pipe smoking days.. I saw a few briar burl pipes fashioned in a similar way and was drawn to the unique shape that seemed to mold into your hand so to speak. So again.. I do find those shapes pleasing to look at and to acutually touch for whatever reason. I just like the shape and that's all I need to know. ">)

   Sarge..

   Edited 6/4/2009 11:21 am ET by SARGEgrinder47

3. 
   joinerswork | Jun 05, 2009 01:15am | #8

   Sam,

   I like the one top center in the collage; it looks just like a real hand!

   heh hehe

   Ray

1. 
   Samson | Jun 05, 2009 01:33am | #9

   I'm gonna make one for you that looks like one finger.  ;-)

1. 
   RalphBarker | Jun 14, 2009 06:23pm | #48

   Although the intended (in jest) finger is obvious, how about an extended index finger, connected to the appropriate electronic sound device? You could market them as "Grandpa Pulls" and make a fortune! ;-)Seriously, I like the concept and design, particularly if used on cabinets of irregular shape, as are often used in more fanciful desert abodes.

4. 
   danmart | Jun 05, 2009 02:12am | #10

   S

   Seeing that pull would make me want to go up to it and give it a pull and see how it feels. It's unique enough to grab you attention right off the bat. I like it.

   d

1. 
   Samson | Jun 05, 2009 06:00am | #13

   Thanks, Dan, Slash, and Shoe.  I'll be making some more before I settle, but I really appreciate the encouragement.

5. 
   slashdev | Jun 05, 2009 02:25am | #11

   Complexity in a modern piece...  Tasty!

   ---------------

   /dev

1. 
   Shoemaker1 | Jun 05, 2009 04:44am | #12

   Nice looking work.I have made a few pulls intergrated into the door stiles, and wooden hinges. no good pics though.
   Looks like people are going to just reach for it.

6. 
   Lataxe | Jun 05, 2009 04:48pm | #14

   S,

   Dude, those pulls are radical!  (This seems the appropriate vernacuar somehow).

   When I first caught sight, my first reaction was: organic - pleasingly ornate yet paradoxically simple.  Then the ladywife happened by and named them "wooden slime mold"!  Well, I know what she means.  They do look as though they might morph their way off the furniture to another spot, perhaps under one's bed.

   So, the concept is very attractive as is the idea of having several perhaps very different shapes albeit in a similar genus.  But that dang woman has put a bad association into my head so you'll just have to rough off the "slime" aspect for me now.  :-)

   ****

   How did the shape suggest itself?  Was it a form you had visualised to some degree before you started or did something about the wood and the process of shaping it dictate the form in some way? 

   Another question: On a piece that is otherwise quite regulated (especially one that is plain/linear/modern) does a series of irregular shapes like this clash; or somehow enhance because of their contrast with the regularity they adorn?  Is there some "trick" to integrate the two very different aspects, I wonder?

   Lataxe, happily filing another Sean prompt away for future use.

1. 
   Samson | Jun 05, 2009 05:05pm | #15

   Thanks for the feedback, David.   I tend to like to think of this one as eroded and shaped sandstone - like the gulleys arches and pillars one finds in the great Southwest of the U.S. (Grand Canyon and such).  But slime mold is possible too.

   I wasn't prepared to use premade shaker type pulls, and then started thinking about forming my own.  I thought about contrasting wood, and maybe gluing up various shapes of various color woods and on and on.  I then took some sculpting clay from my daughter's stash and just grabbed a chunk like I would naturally reach for a knob.  This rough act started my shaping as I tried to mimic the result, at least broadly speaking in terms of the hollows and such.

   As far as harmonizing , I think the shape echos some of the curl in the panels.  For example, look at some of the bubbling shapes here, especially in the two smaller panels:

    View Image

   Stay radical, Dude.

1. 
   saschafer | Jun 05, 2009 05:53pm | #17

   One thing that can happen if you go too far in devising a shape that "naturally fits the hand" is that you end up with something that only fits your hand, and in only one particular way. I prefer a pull that has enough curvature that it's obvious where you're supposed to grab on to it, but not so much that the pull restricts you, where you have to grab it in exactly the right way or it doesn't work.

   -Steve

    

1. 
   Samson | Jun 05, 2009 05:58pm | #18

   Yeah, this one is not that specialized.  I had my wife and daughter try it.  While it feels "coolest" grabbed as I am in the picture, there are plenty of other ways to comfortabley pull it.  The bulb at the top is actually quite viable as a small knob - with all the universality that brings.  Similarly the hole allows a sort of ring pull aspect as well.  In short, lots of options.  But, it may have the downside of looking like slime mold.  ;-)

1. 
   saschafer | Jun 05, 2009 06:38pm | #19

   Who says that's a downside? Slime molds are very interesting organisms, straddling the border between fungi and animals.

   One of the nicest people I've ever met is a biologist at Princeton University (now emeritus) who studies Dictyostelium slime molds. See here.

   -Steve

    

2. 
   Lataxe | Jun 05, 2009 07:54pm | #20

   Steve,

   I too enjoy the molds and fungi.  However, I will not frighten the horses by posting pics of phallus impudicus or phallus caninus taken in the Cumbria and Yorkshire woods, despite the fact that these fine fungal fingers might make models for canny door-pulls.  Not the kind of finger promised by Sean to Ray perhaps; no, even worse an emblem!

   Your point about pulls needing to be universal is well made but, as Sean points out, the shape he's devised seems not just organic but also something of a multi-gripper.  One could grasp it a number of ways, as well as via the full fist.  Now I've seen the actual model for it, I'm even more impressed.

   However, we need to see the handles installed, finished and therefore finally "blended" into the whole piece.  That 3D grain in the doors does tend to counterpoint the rectiliner aspects of the cabinet itself, as the lad points out, so it looks like those pulls are going to work rather well.

   Of course, I have filed away the design paradigm for later wholesale copying and exploiting.  :-)

   Lataxe

3. 
   Samson | Jun 06, 2009 06:00am | #21

   For those scoring at home - another practice round:

   View Image

4. 
   PADDYDAHAT | Jun 06, 2009 06:53am | #22

   Sean, WOW, if you plan on using these custom made pulls on that already stunning piece then it will be elevated to a level that I do not have a good enough adjective for proper praise. Paddy

5. 
   SARGEgrinder47 | Jun 06, 2009 07:27am | #23

   Have you considered building wooden mausoleum vault handles as those would look good on them. :>)

   I know.. I know.. go get some sleep. ha... ha...

   Very nice in all honesty. On a serious note I have made something similar to the first ones when making walking sticks for some older acquaintances. I have seen similar on some custom made Dagger handles also.

   Just fuel for thought...

   Sarge..

6. 
   KiddervilleAcres | Jun 07, 2009 05:52am | #29

   Sarge,

   older acquaintances

   Ye tellin us you know someone older than you!?

   Regards,Bob @ Kidderville Acres

   A Woodworkers mind should be the sharpest tool in the shop!

7. 
   SARGEgrinder47 | Jun 07, 2009 05:23pm | #30

   I was honest and did say "some" which translated means very few. So... the general public which makes up the majority that are younger than I... can just get the h*ll out of my way when I go out for a short drive to the lumber yard. Those young, obnoxious,  snot nosed whipper-snappers clog the roads like cholestrol in arteries and are always in my way. :>)

   Sarge..

   Edited 6/7/2009 10:24 am ET by SARGEgrinder47

8. 
   Lataxe | Jun 06, 2009 01:06pm | #24

   Sean,

   This second handle appeals a smidgen more than the first.  It seems to be the symmetry of the second handle that adds to its appeal; also something about the downward-pointing arc.

   As is now the tradition around here, I asked the ladywife to view and comment using her most critical eye.  (She is a furniture consumer and less enamoured of the making-tekneeks than we lads of the shed).  She too prefers this one ("Its more like a handle") but has taken agin' the degree of droop of that frontal plunge. ("It looks as if it might be melting and about to drop-orf a dollop").

   Perhaps this is the crux of her critique then: the degree of plasticity in the designs.  Would it improve them to have their topoogical pirouettes reined in a little?  As ever, it's a matter of taste but perhaps a relevant question is: do the radical handle swoops, plunges and melts take the eye too much away from the rest of the piece?

   I think I agree with Colleen: the shapes and organic nature of them handles is attractive and in keeping with the 3D grain of the panels (as you pointed out) but the pulls would integrate a little more if their various shape-changes were muted to some degree.  When the sculpting becomes a sculpture in its own right, it has perhaps gone too far (for a pull).

   Wot you think?

   Lataxe

9. 
   Samson | Jun 06, 2009 05:07pm | #25

   I think my knob odyssey is just beginning.  I'll be making many more before I come to some that satisfy me all around.

   I don't thinl plasticity is the problem in a general sense, but more that it needs to be shaped in the right ways. 

   Back to the groping forward.  I wouldn't have suspected that straying from the well established could make knobs such a challenge. 

10. 
    Shoemaker1 | Jun 07, 2009 12:26am | #26

    Your getting some feed back here. Well Im going to have to hunt down some pics.I like the slimemold look but I see it more like a lava droop or a glacier moving. I like the look like it could move, if you watched it. Flowing design?I have made some wooden items for some friends that are into shall we say alternative lifestyles. some of these items are highly curved, smooth and moisture resistant. Some have pieces of leather dangling off the end, one special request was horse hair! I shall let one imagine!
    Anyway being an underemployed shoemaker I have a shoe finishing machine in my shop. Basically a big sander with a few differnt wheel sizes and grits and a "namekeg" a semi circle type pad about 3 inches in diameter. It can get into tight spots an make some tight radius cuts and do some concave surfaces with ease. Every one should have one LOLIn the mean time I go hunting for pics.

11. 
    Shoemaker1 | Jun 07, 2009 12:34am | #27

    Look what I found.
    I made this about 5 years ago for some friends who got married.
    Poplar body, birds eye maple pulls. Water based stain an poly wipe on finish.
    well there goes 30 % of my space.

    
12. 
    Samson | Jun 07, 2009 01:06am | #28

    Shoe, that is very cool.  It reminds me of some of the best bandsaw boxes I've seen. 

    Today, I made another pull - much simpler.  I may post some pictures later.  The downside of the first one I posted is how high it sits off the door plane.  I think I need something lower profile. 

    I'm just going to keep going until I satisfy myself - like usual.

    Thanks for the comments and sharing. 

    Hope you're having a good weekend.

13. 
    nboucher | Jun 08, 2009 10:33pm | #38

    What kind of beer is that in the background, and is there any connection between it and the piece? Wild. Reminds me a bit of some of the stuff that comes out of the Native American culture of some of the Northwestern coastal tribes.Norman

14. 
    Samson | Jun 08, 2009 06:11am | #31

    Decided to see what I could do with color moreso than shape.  Bloodwood (red), lignum vitae (green), blue mahalo (blue-gray), and canary wood (yellow) - i.e., all natural.

    All are somewhat rough, especially the green and yellow.  More shaping and refinement will be needed if I go this way.

    Thanks, all.  Hope yous had a nice wekend.

    View Image

15. 
    SARGEgrinder47 | Jun 08, 2009 07:14pm | #32

    I like them and have built and used some very similar to this last batch. They are not as radical in design as the others. Just my $.02 for today which leaves me broke.

    Sarge..

16. 
    Samson | Jun 08, 2009 07:18pm | #33

    Thanks, Sarge.  This approach is growing on me as the variety of color seems to work as a playful gesture in keeping with the lack of traditional symmetry here.  When each knob is unique it allows the placment on the doors to be unique and reinforces the spinning aspect of the layout.  I've always been drawn to the natural earth pigment colors - like the oxide reds and greens in the marbles of some old chinese checkers sets I've seen. 

17. 
    dkellernc | Jun 08, 2009 07:24pm | #34

    If I were to pick a favorite, the second design is the best.  All are pretty creative, though.

    Curious - in a general sense, how'd you make them (rasp shaping, carving tools, etc...)

18. 
    Samson | Jun 08, 2009 07:30pm | #35

    Thanks, Dave.  I make them with all the things you mention from gouges to rasps to knives.  The colorful batch is all pretty much with my Oar carver knife.  The others, much more chisel, gouge and rasp work.  My ryoba does a good job of roughing out too.

19. 
    SARGEgrinder47 | Jun 08, 2009 10:45pm | #39

    I've always been drawn to the natural earth pigment colors - like the oxide reds and greens in the marbles of some old Chinese checkers sets I've seen... Samson 

    Me too... those are the exact colors I go after when they are having sales on T-shirts at Target and Walmart. If they don't have earth tone T shirts I just wait until they do. My wife threw out a shop T-shirt in earth tone the other day I've worn for 28 years. Something to do with the thread rotting and the collar re-enforcement missing because it rotted off along with the holes under the arms that you could pass a foot-ball through. Women just don't understand that a few flaws as that doesn't warrant something uncomfortable. :>)

    And on a more serious note (even though the above is true) I like to use them painting walls (which I try to do every 3-4 years) .. etc., inside the house when appropriate. :>)

     

    Sarge..

    Edited 6/8/2009 3:46 pm ET by SARGEgrinder47

20. 
    Shoemaker1 | Jun 09, 2009 01:32am | #40

    I hear you in the T shirt thing. But I prefer is she wears it LOL

21. 
    SARGEgrinder47 | Jun 09, 2009 03:27am | #41

    I agree and get her a few too... but I up the anty and throw in a set of leg warmers. I love leg warmers.. on women that is. ha.. ha...

    Sarge..

22. 
    Samson | Jun 12, 2009 05:39am | #42

    I'm settling into these.  I post just to sort of complete the thought.  A bit more work to do to refine the green and yellow.  No finishes, just fine grits.

    View Image

23. 
    KiddervilleAcres | Jun 12, 2009 05:49am | #43

    Samson,

    Those are Sweeeeeeeeeeeet!

    Is there carving on the one in the lower right?  Can't tell from the pic but looks like it.

    Edit:  Just had thought: how about varying the color around the cabinet from light to dark,  green to red.  Sorta continue the pin wheel thang?

    Regards,

    Bob @ Kidderville Acres

    A Woodworkers mind should be the sharpest tool in the shop!

    Edited 6/11/2009 10:51 pm ET by KiddervilleAcres

24. 
    Samson | Jun 12, 2009 06:11am | #44

    Thanks, Bob.  This is a pretty whimsical piece.

    Yes, the drawer pull has carved releif on the top for the thumb and carved releif all across the underside.

    I'm not sure what you mean about varying the color around the cabinet.  I think I'll have to try that on the next one as this baby is very close to the end now - hinges/final fitting and final finishing are mostly as all that's left.

25. 
    Lataxe | Jun 12, 2009 11:27am | #45

    Sean,

    When you talked of various colours for knobs on the same piece I admit to a slight "hmmmm" but now that you've completed and polished them they do seem to work well.  As you say, the piece is "whimsical" and the conscious intent to include a number of motifs, grains, shapes and colours has nevertheless resulted in an integrated thang.  It could easily have ended up a splodge; or (worse) a piece of sculpti-modern.

    In fact, the piece is a high adventure and one that has come-off.  It is "wild" but still has obvious utility, even in the scupture (knobs) which invite the fingers as well as the eye.

    Maybe you are giving me another push out of my comfy-spot, as errant thoughts of trying for radical-whimsy are now floating around my normally rather conservative bonce. You are a little rascal, with these WW memes o' yourn!

    Lataxe

26. 
    Samson | Jun 12, 2009 04:36pm | #47

    Yeah yeah yeah, uh huh.  You know what I really want to know: what does the ladywife think?  ;-)

    I dunno, David.  I could make things that were formal, but it doesn't seem to be in my nature.  It doesn't tickle or intrigue me.  I'm more satisfied pulling off a bit of playfulness than super fine formality.  Then again, it seems kind of funny that many consider ball and claw feet "serious" formal stuff. 

    I would like to begin a movement, and no, not a bowel one, though some may find them inditinguishable.  I'm trying to come up with a good name.  Maybe "Fine Folk" or "Follow Your Nose" or "If It Feels Good, Do It" (shortened to FeeGooDo").  The driving principles would be creating convivial pieces that will not yield on utility and function, but nevertheless become welcome familiars with loveable (and even attractive and inviting) eccentricities.   "Once more unto the bench!"    

    Samson

27. 
    KiddervilleAcres | Jun 12, 2009 01:51pm | #46

    Samson,

    I'm not sure what you mean about varying the color around the cabinet.

    OK, here's my thought, think of a spiral/mebbe corkscrew, in terms of the pulls/knobs.  From a starting point on the cabinet put a red pull/knob.  Going around the cabinet vary the color of the pulls/knobs in a spiral/corkscrew manner. 

    I'm thinking varying the color of the pulls/knobs as an extension of the pin wheel design feature (?) that you started with.  I should also think one could do this with varying shades of the same color/wood.

    Does that make sense?

    Regards,Bob @ Kidderville Acres

    A Woodworkers mind should be the sharpest tool in the shop!

2. 
   Samson | Jun 05, 2009 05:22pm | #16

   View Image

   View Image

7. 
   cwalvoord | Jun 08, 2009 09:11pm | #36

   Very cool indeed and thanks for sharing. Details like these are what make our projects interesting. They remind me of the plastic rock climbing holds they use at indoor climbing gyms. Might check out some of those shapes if you want more inspiration -

   http://www.e-grips.com/artistic/

   for example. There are many, many more.
   Chris

1. 
   dkellernc | Jun 08, 2009 10:17pm | #37

   " They remind me of the plastic rock climbing holds they use at indoor climbing gyms. Might check out some of those shapes if you want more inspiration "

   Man - I knew I'd seen something like those pulls somewhere, but couldn't place it.  That's actually a great thought - Sean's pulls reminded me of a molded shape, like one might make with clay.  That's not an easy thing to pull off - just ask any of the trompe l'oeil woodcarvers out there!