Joe W.

after it's all said and done, you may find it would have been less painful/time consuming/etc. to buy one already made. My limited experience with custom work, like home remodeling, is to triple time and cost to most estimates. Of course, if it's enjoyable for you, go for it!

I didn't see that one. Will give it a go. Good job!

You are motivating me to give it a try. Good Job

hours upon hours - ya done GOOD!

It makes me wonder if passing on the increased cost will be accepted for craft products by customers as compared to manufactured goods. Time will tell. Regards craft shows/farmers markets, I noticed the first two times I went to the local farmers' market my sales were surprisingly good. Actually, I didn't know what to expect. The last two times, same place, sales were half that much. And I noticed there were not that many new faces.

Look gOOd to me! I read a post awhile back that said something to the effect that cutting organic shapes is less critical perception-wise compared to geometric/letters/numbers. Even looking for the ooopsie, I couldn't spot it. Makes me want to try portraits.

I'll have to try that next time I use it I did use it to spray a modified pattern cutout of Steve Good Bud Vase and was pleased with the finish. Used the 70% isopropyl alcohol to thin the acrylic paint. It took a while for it to dry. Saw a UTube video where the guy recommends using denatured (pure) alcohol and picked up a can of it from Tractor Supply (best price I found). Supposedly, the drying time is faster since there is no water in the alcohol. Will post results when I use it.

My wife does has done a bit of cake making over the years, including some wedding cakes. She is pretty good at it. A few years ago I got her an airbrush for decorating her cakes and it has increased her decorating options, to include using some some stencils I made for her. She was hesitant at first, but quickly got the feel of it. So if your wife is like my wife, then buy two - one for her and one for you. The family that airbrushes together, stays together

Yesterday's Farmer's Market had a couple people ask if the work was done by a CNC machine. I took it as a compliment and took the time to show them a piece partially cut out and explain to them how the scroll saw works. By the way - the Steve Good "Penny Drop" game has been a consistent seller the past four weeks.

A better dust collection mousetrap - patent it!

You are well on your way to - and not too far now - from getting requests for signs and such

My wife uses an airbrush for cake decorating and uses Vodka for cleaning hers. Hasn't had any problems - it is the standard design (gravity fed) that does not use a plastic hose like the HF. I picked up the last airbrush our local HF has and used it a few days ago and was satisfied with how it worked - painted a cut out Star of David with it holding the airbrush about 6-8 inches away from the piece. The spray pattern is a bit wide, (compared to my wife's gravity fed airbrush) but a WHOLE lot less than a spray can. Set the compressor to 30psi and adjusted the bottle's brass screw tip to give a medium amount of spray when using it. Clean-up wasn't too bad - but - it seems like more paint is wasted - because of the size and shape of the bottle compared to the small airbrush gravity fed designs. I did look at a few airbrushing YouTube videos and see you can use 'regular' acrylic paint (thinned and strained), and save some money. I paid $5 for a 2 oz bottle of airbrush paint at Hobby Lobby and I understand that is the going rate. I do like the airbrush - it gets paint into the small fret spots without having to use a lot paint compared to using spray cans. And to cut down on wasted paint, when possible, I'll save the painting part for last and paint several pieces at the same time. Finally, it does make me consider getting a standard gravity fed airbrush to see if it would do an even better job.

You've got skills Really nice cutting.

I got the last airbrush on sale at my local Harbor Freight. My wife has a lot of acrylic paint & I'll be experimenting with them and let you know

A Steve Good pattern (which has been popular at the Farmer's Market). My wife thought Black might sell as well, so this is the result. Happy with the outcome, but it took almost a whole can of spray paint to get a complete and even coverage. It looks like Santa might be getting me an airbrush for Christmas.

Dan - ya da MAN! Find an art gallery - it's that good!

That is Beautimiss!

Hello Kevin, Regards "will scroll saw things make a better sales". Yes I think so. Lots of factors involved there. Location/type of event/etc. And custom/personalized - if quality cutting/finishing is done - will make for continued sales as I believe satisfied customers will spread the word about you/your craft. I've sold at the local Farmers' Market the last three weeks and it generated three custom order sales, in addition to what sold on the tables. A couple signs but nothing I've seen at the department/craft stores. My last sign was a personalized football one and I got a new experience using clay to fill in the letters with. More work involved but customer is happy with it.

Cut out this Steve Good pattern in stages over the course of a few days. 3/4" Select Pine using a variety of Pegas MGT blades. It's interesting - with the blue background the wood (with no finish applied) appears more golden, whereas with a black background the wood appears more white-ish / light colored. Funny, because I'm considering finishing it with amber Shellac.

Ya done GOOD!

Congrats on having a good time (even if it was a bit tiring at times).

that's interesting and intriguing. We experienced a similar situation a few years ago. My wife was making a cake of the Duhamel cathedral for a friend. Quite detailed with its many windows and such. Anyway, it looked really good in real life, but the photos I took of it showed every little imperfection. Can't quite figure that out, but assume the brain is responsible in some way. By the way, nice cutting. Especially like the starfish.

Kevin, Thanks. It feels good to be able to give something back. This is an amazing forum it has helped me A LOT! Great bunch of members here and Travis does a yeoman's job keeping the site running smoothly.

You're in the right place. Keep coming back.

Very nice and unique. Well done!!!!!!!!!!!