Work in Progress
Plans
Below is a pic taken minutes before it started raining: the first set of plans I have sold, ready to be collected. As my local printer cannot do outsize A0 in colour I used a highlighter to identify the different components.
Although the customer will feedback on their suitability, I would be much happier if I had built a boat from them myself to be sure that they were usable.
I have an old skin on frame boat I built about ten years ago sitting on the racks outside doing nothing. As its coating of just enamel paint - an experiment which didn't work, has degraded in the sunlight I should be able to strip it and try out adapting the frame to the plans. As this boat has a keyhole cockpit would also enable me to produce an alternative to the ocean version, perhaps of a slightly longer boat.
Paddle and Window
Behind the paddle which has been cut to outline shape is the window to go in the workshop wall, courtesy of Freecycle a wonderful site. You may recall from an earlier post that the necessity of this came out of trying to laminate glass-fibre in a workshop with no ventilation and the effect - despite wearing a mask, that it had on my lungs.
Since then I have realized that I should have taken this step years ago. It is hard to believe how stupid I have been in taking ten years to realize that the environment in which one works is just as - if not more important than what you are making as it affects the outcome, both in terms of the product and the well being of the producer. These moments, days do not return.
For now; as I am working on paddle outside then cedar dust in the workshop should not be a problem. It is nice working by the back lane because I get to chat with the people passing by.
A must see
I watched the first of the BBC's series on Japanese art and life last night. It was absolutely inspiring.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/p054mdmy/the-art-of-japanese-life-series-1-3-home
It has me thinking that I should be focusing on producing beautiful things that work - and charge a price that reflects my input. I think I can do this better, and it is closer to what I am, than going down the glass-fibre route to produce kayaks more cheaply and quickly and make some more spending money.
Below is a pic taken minutes before it started raining: the first set of plans I have sold, ready to be collected. As my local printer cannot do outsize A0 in colour I used a highlighter to identify the different components.
Although the customer will feedback on their suitability, I would be much happier if I had built a boat from them myself to be sure that they were usable.
I have an old skin on frame boat I built about ten years ago sitting on the racks outside doing nothing. As its coating of just enamel paint - an experiment which didn't work, has degraded in the sunlight I should be able to strip it and try out adapting the frame to the plans. As this boat has a keyhole cockpit would also enable me to produce an alternative to the ocean version, perhaps of a slightly longer boat.
Paddle and Window
Behind the paddle which has been cut to outline shape is the window to go in the workshop wall, courtesy of Freecycle a wonderful site. You may recall from an earlier post that the necessity of this came out of trying to laminate glass-fibre in a workshop with no ventilation and the effect - despite wearing a mask, that it had on my lungs.
Since then I have realized that I should have taken this step years ago. It is hard to believe how stupid I have been in taking ten years to realize that the environment in which one works is just as - if not more important than what you are making as it affects the outcome, both in terms of the product and the well being of the producer. These moments, days do not return.
A must see
I watched the first of the BBC's series on Japanese art and life last night. It was absolutely inspiring.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/p054mdmy/the-art-of-japanese-life-series-1-3-home
It has me thinking that I should be focusing on producing beautiful things that work - and charge a price that reflects my input. I think I can do this better, and it is closer to what I am, than going down the glass-fibre route to produce kayaks more cheaply and quickly and make some more spending money.
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