Post #319660 by Paipo on Wed, Jul 18, 2007 4:35 PM

Wow! Looks like I hit the nail on the head with this one! Thanks for all the responses. This piece was a bit of a risk for me - I have a pretty good idea of what I want to make in terms of detail and complexity, and don't like compromising to save time. In the case of the jade pieces, they end up taking a lot more time and energy to create. It's good to see that there is enough interest to keep taking chances with my designs. More green stuff to come it seems! I'm also planning to revisit some of my earlier pebble tikis and bring them in line with where I'm at right now - so keep an eye out for some bigger and bolder MK II versions of some of my favourite themes.
Cheers Tama, BenE, BenZ, Bullet, Finky, Perry, Robin, Tom, G and Kinny for the encouragement!

In response to a couple of specific points:

I know you guys are in all likelihood kidding when you say you want to break all your stuff, or not even attempt stonecarving, but the novice efforts I have seen here amaze me when I consider the lack of hands-on tuition or the ability to visit and observe other stone carvers at work.
It really does take a lot of time and commitment to learn how to carve well, no matter what the medium, and we all start at the same place. I found a whole boxful of shitty carvings from my first year or two the other day, and there was very little of salvageable quality!
I am trying to contribute more to the Q + A thread, but there is so much good stuff to see here I often overlook it. As I have stated in that thread, I always respond to PMs if I'm around!

As for the tongue stone, it's a little slice of tumbled carnelian or agate that someone gave me years ago. I think it's Australian, possibly from Agate Creek, but am not 100% sure. I'll let you all know how I'm going to attach the tongue when I figure it out!