Scroll Saw Village

I’ve got a new pattern for y’all. This one is probably the most famous picture of Harold Lloyd, hanging from the clock face from his 1923 movie, Safety Last! With 200 films to his credit, he is especially known for his daredevil stunts.

You can download the pattern from my other blog, FreeScrollSawPatterns. The pattern is a little tricky around his face and hands, but the rest shouldn’t pose too much of a problem. I recommend scaling the pattern to 14 inches tall. Give it a go. And if you do, I’d love to see some pictures!

by: Natalie Goyette

One of the things that you might consider is finding a niche for your craft. Maybe you have some expertise, skill, or interest that might be a creative tool for you to use in creating items for craft shows. Below are some hints to finding what that area might be for you:

What interests you? – You can take an interest you have and turn it into a craft show success. If you are a gardening hobbyist, why not come up with something every gardener needs. Provide that craft inexpensively and you might have yourself a winning craft for spring craft shows.

What do you have knowledge of – Maybe you are a model railway buff, along with being a crafter (the two go hand-in-hand) and you want to provide railway buildings or railway terrain for people to use in their own train sets. You have the knowledge of what needs to be built and used – so why not combined the two joys in order to come up with one profitable craft show item?

What are you good at? – If you are a good cook, then make a quick recipe book. If you are pretty good at organizing things, then why not come up with a desk organizer that anyone can use.

What are other people doing? – This is certainly not an open invite to start copying the design of other people at a craft show. Instead, it is an opportunity to see what is out there and for you to be the one that says, “You know, this craft would be better if it was… (fill in the blank).” Once you fill in that blank, it might trigger an idea inside your head of how you can improve this product or maybe even come up with one that works WITH it.

When in doubt, teach others – This is becoming a great way to make extra profits at craft shows. Some crafters love to take the bull by the horns and make their own crafts, so why not capitalize on that? Provide them patterns or instructions and unmade kits at a cost – so it takes the labor out of it but you are still selling the product.

At last resort, create a niche that works for a craft you have in mind. Sometimes that niche is staring right back at us and we don’t even know it. If we are good at something, or interested in another, or you see something you can improve on, feel free to take the initiative to take it and make a profit from it at your craft shows!

About The Author
Natalie Goyette shows you how to make your craft show business profitable in her best selling ebook: Craft Show Success Secrets. Visit her site: http://www.craftshowsuccess.com

I’m a Star Trek: The Next Generation fan. So when I saw this scroll saw pattern of the crew of the USS Enterprise, my jaw dropped. Wow. What an impressive pattern. If you are looking to show off your skill, this is the pattern for you! If you are not ready to jump into that big of a project, check out Kerry’s version of the USS Enterprise. Very cool.

While you are there, check out the rest of the site. He does really nice portrait work. He also shares his method of creating great portraits by offering 2 eBooks on creating portrait patterns with Photoshop and Paintshop Pro.

While looking through YouTube, I came across Ceal Pedersen as she demonstrates how she makes unique wooden puzzles for children. The video is very interesting. I especially like how she mounts her artwork to the wood. Very informative for any puzzle maker out there. Check out her YouTube video here. And while you are at it, check out her website Heirloom Puzzles For Children to see more of her work. She has some really great stuff and will spark an idea or two, I’m sure!

I’m a sucker for the fantasy genre. I love wizards, dragons and evils that must be vanquished by a group of unlikely heroes. Naturally, I’m always on the lookout for fantasy based scroll saw patterns

When I came across Fantasy & Legend Scroll Saw Puzzles, by Judy and Dave Peterson, I knew I had to have it.

Judy and Dave create free standing puzzles. These are thick puzzles that are intended to be handled and stand on a shelf by themselves. They prefer using hardwoods to utilize their unique color and grain patterns. Their book takes you step by step in great detail for creating your first puzzle. Each step includes a close-up photo as they cut the puzzle. They cover everything from basic techniques to specific techniques required for puzzle making. They show you their method of sanding and finishing so you too can achieve the finest looking puzzle possible.

The book is 75 pages long and includes 28 unique patterns. Each pattern includes an accompanying photo of the finished puzzle with notes on the hardwood they used. Each pattern is presented in black, white and gray and includes a grain direction indicator for maximum stability. They have a wide variety of mythical creatures, including
dragons, centaurs, gargoyles, griffins, mermaids, unicorns, pegasus, tree spirits, hippogriffs, phoenix, and landscape patterns. The puzzles are stunning and would look great your shelf.

The Pros

• The patterns are optimized for photocopying.
• Each pattern includes a photo of the finished product, noting the hardwood used.
• Each pattern is categorized according to skill level.
• They give resources and specific information on the tools they use.

The Cons

• Most of the puzzles do not lend themselves well to be colored with paint or stains.

Overall Impression:
I really liked this book. I love freestanding puzzles and the fantasy genre makes this book a must have. There isn’t a pattern in this book that won’t cut. I highly recommend this book to anybody who is interested in making unique puzzles or who has a soft spot in their heart for dragons and other mythical creatures.

OK. Now that clock making doesn’t look as scary, are you ready to give it a try? I’ve gathered a bunch of sources for plans so you can build your own wooden gear clock. Now it’s just a matter of browsing through theses sites and find the clock plan that suits your tastes!

• Clock Plans
• Joe Monincx All Wood Clocks
• Wooden Gear Clocks
• Marc Tovar’s Wooden ClockWorks
• Clayton Boyer Clock Designs
• Peg Gear Clock
• Wooden Clock #39

Last post, I talked about Adrian Iredale’s video on how he makes wooden gear clocks. It is pretty inspiring and he makes it look a little less intimidating. But, maybe you’re not quite ready to jump into the deep end just yet.

Jim Bumgardner of KrazyDad.com has written about his experience making a wooden gear clock. He isn’t a woodworker. In fact he has very little woodworking experience. But he was curious about how clocks work, so he ordered the Ascent clock kit from Wooden-Gear-Clocks.com. Granted, the gears were all precut, but that shouldn’t matter too much. As scrollers, we know how to cut. Its the precise assembly that seems overwhelming. But Jim was able to put together the kit with little trouble. You can read about his experiences here. Its pretty interesting and he gives a little writeup about how the clock works. Check it out!

One of my Holy Grail projects is to make a wooden clock. I think I would have a real sense of accomplishment. It would be a great way to show off your skill and impress your friends. Besides, they look really cool. Adrian Iredale has a bunch of videos on YouTube that show off the clocks he has made. He also put together a great video on how he goes about making his clocks. After seeing him make a clock, it seems a little less intimidating. Perhaps I might take a crack at clock making a little sooner than I thought. You can check out the rest of his videos here. You can see his clocks in action. You can also visit his website and purchase plans for many of these clocks.

When Allison White put together her blog to show off her intarsia and scrollwork, she didn’t quite know what she was getting into. Blogging, just like scrolling, can become quite addictive. Her blog, Willowshimmer Woodworks, highlights her artwork along with her thoughts about each project. Along with her woodworks, she shares some of her favorite quotes, funny cartoons, and her thoughts about life. It really is a neat scroll saw blog that has a personal and sentimental touch.

She has tagged each post so you can find the posts you are most interested in. Look under the Labels section for a list of her tags. She has a lot of great work and worth checking out.

As a dad with a 1 year old boy and a husband with a honey-do list a mile long, its tough for me to spend some quality time with my scroll saw. Typically, I can only get in a couple hours a week. The problem with scroll sawing, like any other skill, you have to keep doing it or else you lose your ‘knack.’ When I finally able to sit down at my saw, it takes me awhile to get back into the groove of things. My lines are wobbly, and my corners are far from sharp. But, with little frustration, a few choice words, I finally get back into my cutting groove.

Wouldn’t it be nice to stretch those cutting muscles before jumping into the game? GrayBeard Phil of SSWC forums has put together a nice exercise. Just print it out and stick it to some scrap wood. Before you sit down and work on your next masterpiece, use this practice sheet to get back into your cutting mode. It only takes a few minutes, and you won’t risk ruining your project with sloppy corners and wobbly lines.