Titmice Toujours!

I do always love watching the titmice. They're charming, beautiful and an absolute hoot to watch when they're feeding their youngsters and teaching them how to fend for themselves. The young ones fly after their parents in an airborne train. If you ever have the chance, stop and watch them for a while. It's very entertaining. 

They tend to be difficult for me to photograph, because they are quick, shy and prefer to stay out of the limelight. I can sometimes catch one trying to decide which peanut to extract, but they don't dither for long, so if I'm not already snapping pictures of other birds nearby, I'll miss it entirely. Sometimes, I just have to stay focused on the peanut feeder and wait for one to come back for another helping! Yes, that's what happened here.

This one, however, perched in my miniature lilac bush and spent more than a second or two observing the goings on in the rest of the yard. Isn't it beautiful? For some reason, the big, round eyes seem more pronounced than on other birds, making them look so sincere - and sometimes a bit like a cartoon caricature.

Speaking of caricatures, I'm thinking that one of these poses might just have to find its way to a block of Tan-Z Kut for a little carving session. I carved one of these beauties a couple years ago, but the subject bears repeating. :)

 

 

What's Been Happening?

As most of you know, I've been away and helping out at the family homestead while my brother was recovering from surgery. For some reason, this round was harder than the last one, but he's doing well and is back on his feet (if not quite up to his usual speed). 

There's a lot of catching up to do! I had to close down the shipping end of Stampeaz while I was away, and a few people placed orders and have been waiting patiently for their carving and printing supplies to be sent their way.  I've been slicing Tan-Z Kut, packing up orders and generally catching up on all the things that have been waiting for me here at home.  I believe that most of the backlog will be out the door tomorrow. There are a couple orders that might need a little additional attention, but they'll be on their merry way soon, too. 

So, I finally took a minute to sit down and think about the blog again. I thought a good reboot might be a few spectacular trail camera captures of bald eagles. 

There is a pair of these majestic birds hanging around the family land and I hope that means they'll be nesting nearby.

As usual, clicking on the pictures will enlarge them. 

I particularly liked this one - that wingspan is quite something and I'm just glad that intense predatory focus is not trained on me! 

Happy belated New Year! I hope it brings you health, happiness, peace and prosperity.  

Duck Back Riding

Things have been hectic and I haven't taken time to sit down and prepare pictures for the blog. I have been taking them, though, and finally got a few ready to post. Stories and pictures will probably be out of sequence, at least some of the time, for a while. 

I loved the mother merganser giving her little ducklings a ride. They were concerned when Piper and I wandered out to the boat launch to see who might be around. 

Piper also likes to get a drink and take a little swim when we walk that way, so I guess mother merganser had reason to move the youngsters away from us. 

They're awfully cute floating fluff balls, aren't they? They have grown nearly as big as their parents now, but still hang out and go fishing together. 

They got far enough away that they started paddling around on their own again.

Then, mom gave them a lesson in how to go fishing for breakfast. 

My brother continues to improve and I was able to come back home two days before the local art show to get a few prints into frames and mats and ready to display. 

Now, I need to start catching up on things like cutting and preparing Tan-Z and Firm Kut and doing an ink order for Stampeaz. Not to mention, culling through more pictures to find good ones for the blog. :)

Happy Independence Day!

This year, there won't be any fireworks or air shows in my Independence Day celebration post (or any of my Independence Day celebrations, for that matter). 

 

This year, there will be much quieter celebrations with little Piper, who thinks loud noises are very, very scary.

Piper will get to gnaw on a new marrow bone to distract her from all the booms and we'll be listening to music down in the relatively sound-deadened basement while I tackle a few chores (like slicing up some Tan-Z Kut and breaking down boxes). 

We'll take some nice walks early in the day - before the lights and explosions begin, making it a good day all the way around. 

But, America's birthday simply couldn't be allowed to pass without at least a small commemoration here on the blog!  We have a wonderful country filled with amazing beauty and founded on excellent principles. We're very fortunate. 

Happy Independence Day! She's a grand old flag - forever in peace may she wave.

Posing for Portraits

This colorful little house finch decided to pose for me at the tip of a lilac twig, so I was able to get a few good pictures of him.

 
Usually, the birds are hidden among the many crossing branches and it's hard to get a good look at them.

I try to take full advantage of any clear views I can get.

All the different poses are entertaining and offer carving possibilities, too. This fellow is likely to end up immortalized in Tan-Z Kut.

This last one might be my favorite. He looks so puzzled and inquisitive. So, that's today's portrait sitting. He was an excellent model, don't you think?


 

Happy Birthday to Stampeaz!

Eighteen years! I can hardly believe it. It has been quite an adventure.

How will we celebrate?  Well, first Tan-Z Kut is on sale for the day.  But wait! There's more!

I will soon be introducing a different line of inks to the store and I will need to make room for all the beautiful new colors (sadly, I can't keep everything). So, I have decided that I will be replacing these VersaMagic inks with the new kids. For the rest of the month of February, these inks will be on sale. They're great matte finish chalk inks. 

Many thanks to all of you for a great eighteen years of Stampeaz! You're the best!!

Happy/Sad Anniversary Sale

Today would have marked ten years with Baloo. His memory walks with me every day and often causes me to laugh and cry - sometimes at the same time. I still frequently call his name (with a smile) when I accidentally drop something on the kitchen floor that I know he would have loved and we all laugh about the dead-things we notice along the roadside that he would have been thrilled to sniff. My brother thinks of him every time he empties a yogurt container (Baloo often walked around with a white stripe around his muzzle from trying to get every last bit he could). He was well loved and is still deeply missed.

 

Today is the tenth anniversary of the day he came to live with me and tomorrow is the first anniversary of his crossing the Rainbow Bridge (and yes, there are tears in my eyes as I type). So, since I can't commemorate the day by giving him a special treat, I'll share one with you in his honor. Today and tomorrow, all Tan-Z Kut (including the already discounted Grade B) is on sale for 10% off.

Hug the ones you love - furry ones included! I'd give a lot to hug that sweet boy again. :)

What Day is It?

So, do you know what day it is? It's an anniversary day. I like to celebrate anniversary days. I'll let you think about it for a minute while I tell you the other news.

In keeping with my resolution to post tutorials on the Stampeaz site, I put up another one today. I had enough questions about what to do if you had already carved your block and still needed to sand it to get better ink adherence. It's called, But I Already Carved. 

Okay, back to the original question.... Seventeen years ago, I purchased Stampeaz and opened it up for business again on this day that year. There have been some rocky times (like the big site crash), but it's been great to be a part of this wonderful carving community. In honor of the anniversary and to celebrate seventeen amazing years, Tan-Z Kut is on sale today. And, if you order, don't forget to ask for some of the bits and bobs that I still have hanging around on the packing table.

New Year's Resolutions

 Let's see how well I do! 

Something I have been wanting to do on the new Stampeaz site is publish some tutorials, tips and tricks for carving and printing. I just published the first one, so we'll see how well I keep my resolution and whether people find it at all useful.  I have plans for several more already and we'll see where I go from there.  

The first installment is a quick tutorial on how I prepare a block before transferring an image or carving. I like to use the sanding method and it's really, really easy to do. So, if you're interested, the post is on the Stampeaz site in the blog section here.

Here's the before and after picture to try and entice you... :)

 

Carving Stuff

Procrastination has ended (at least for one specific goal). I have finally started working on possible designs and carves for my Christmas card this year - and also invoice images! I'm not sure this is going to be the winner, but it's what I've been chipping away at for the last couple of days.

I know, I know! I carved a deer in the snow a couple years ago, but this image called out to me. I'm going to have to put it aside for a day or two to see if my opinion of it will improve with a little distance. 

Also, remember way back in August when I told you that I had scraps and bits of odds and ends that I would include in your package if you asked? Well, I still have some, have found more experiments and have created some new ones. This is what the pile looks like at the moment, as it sits on the packing table awaiting requests.

There is quite a variety of bits and pieces including PZ Kut (yes, really), Firm Kut, OZ Kut, Tan-Z Kut and a number of things that were experiments that I never had full runs made of.  As you can see, some of these have images already on them that I decided I was never going to carve, but a quick acetone scrub would fix that (or flipping the block over and using the other side). These are great for inchies, hitchhikers, fleas, bits of text and other small carvings. So, if I'm sending something your way anyway, just let me know you want a handful of extra odds and ends and I will make it so. 

Gone Fishing

This will be another one of the Pond Life series. Remember, about a week ago, I said I'd had a good photo night at Pyatt Lake (which is really a sort of large, shallow marshy area with deeper sections)? That was the night I hatched the idea about putting extra carving block bits into customer packages - and if you missed that post, I still have some (https://stampeaz.blogspot.com/2022/08/an-odd-notion.html). Just let me know if you'd like to have a little extra included with your order. 

Anyway, back to my story.  As I approached the observation deck, I noticed a couple of sandhill cranes out hunting for fish or frogs out in the lake. 

I tiptoed partway onto the deck very stealthily and got a picture.

Then, I carefully edged my way out a little farther for a better view. They continued their fishing expedition undisturbed by my presence.

I'm not entirely sure what gave me away, but they got a bit agitated and started bugling and clacking their very distinctive call.

I didn't want to disturb their dinner hour, so I quietly backed away, as one of them did a marvelous rendition of the dance of the ruffled feathers. As soon as I was at what they considered a safe distance, they resumed their search for dining delicacies and I continued on my walk to the other observation deck about a half mile away.

When I got out to the second platform, I noticed this great blue heron perched on a dead tree in the middle of the lake, not too far from where I stood. It looked me over, but didn't seem too fussed about my presence.

After a while, a golden eagle swooped in and perched near where the cranes had been snacking and the uproar was something to hear! They both took off and flew from the threat and I managed to catch a picture of one as it rose above the undergrowth and then looped back toward me.

It settled in a tree right in front of me and just a little to the left of the heron, who observed the proceedings with interest.

It was fun to watch the crane gracefully fold its huge self into a neat, compact package to and wait for the danger to pass.

It stayed for a while, allowing me to enjoy its company, before flying into the twilight to join its mate, which had perched much farther away from where the eagle landed. (I could see the eagle, but couldn't get a good picture because it landed in a very well camouflaged area to watch for its own dining opportunities. It would have looked like a dark blob amongst the leaves.)

After the crane flew off, I watched the heron for a while longer, before heading down the trail for home. 

All in all, a very nice sunset walk. It could only have been made more perfect by the presence of a large black dog quietly watching by my side. But, you all know that's true!

Memorial Day and Gratitude

Memorial Day always finds me thinking of the sacrifices that have been made by so many brave souls.  Sacrifices that have secured cherished freedoms and opportunities that I hope I never take for granted or fail to appreciate. Baloo and I walk to the war memorial, read the names of those who died in defense of those freedoms and spend some time in quiet contemplation and gratitude.  It's a priceless gift they have given me. 

I am also very grateful for the customers who have stuck with me through many iterations of product development, a web site crash and rebuild, a pandemic and an amazing amount of family stuff that has thrown me off my game a bit. Thank you for that. I'm trying to get things back on a more even keel now and am learning how to set up sales in the new site. If all works as I think it should, Tan-Z Kut will be on sale through Monday. 

And to top off the news, I have (finally) gotten the modified Speedball cutters back into inventory. I'm sure Kirbert (and maybe a few others) thought I had been abducted by aliens or something. 

Cauldron Bubble - Brewing up Trouble!

Trick or Treat?

I thought I would scare myself a little by trying something new on the Stampeaz site for Halloween. I'm giving the sale scheduling feature a trial run to see how it works. My test is on Tan-Z, which is on sale for today only - at least, that's how it's supposed to work. :) 

So, it might be tricky for me, but I hope it's a treat for you - happy carving!! 

Happy Halloween!