Loved cutting it...got a bad review though

[heppnerguy]

I started to cut this pattern and because I was planning on it for a gift, decided to stack cut a couple of them so I could have one for my shop wall.  Well, I made the decided to cut it with 1/8 inch Baltic Burch and use a spiral to cut the eye first with it and then go to my #1 Pegas blade. There was a slight Bow in the wood so I placed both bulges facing each other so  as to try and avoid the chance of breakage. Well that was a mistake as just as i finished the eye, it broke out. I was thinking that I would just go back into the shop, increase the pattern size a little but     only cut the head out instead of the entire animal as then I could use the remainder of the wood I was going to use instead starting completely over again. I  told my wife what I was planning on doing and showed the progress to the cut as I went along. She thought  I was doing an OK job, at that  point. When I finally finished it and took it into the house and showed it to her, she replied, "  I don't like it."

"What?" was my reply and it was because I had not included the entire pattern in the cutting.How could she have not noticed that all the other times I showed her my progress on it?

Now, I can't give it as a gift and it has  become another of my closet art pieces, you know, the ones you are too embarrassed to show others. Well I know here in the village, people are always complimentary at other's work, even when it is inferior to what they might be making, so because my wife caused it to become closet art, I will be looking for at least one person here to say something a little nice about it and make all my cutting time, not so much of a complete waste of my time. It is OK to lie this one time.

Dick

heppnerguy

[Peter N White]

I will be first and say very well done but not telling a lie.

[wombatie]

The only thing I can think of is maybe she doesn't like the drips coming from the mouth, because when I first looked at it, I thought oh it's drooling. 
But that aside there is nothing wrong with it, it's a perfectly good gift and does not deserve to be in the cupboard.

Marg

[Fab4]

Hi Dick:
I would say that your rabbit turned out great
I would proudly display this one
Maybe buy your wife some flowers and apologize, for whatever you said/did
then I'll bet you she will like it......LOL
Fab4
 

[bobscroll]

Jolly good job you did there Dick, and very well finished! Thank you for letting us see your work! Bob

[FrankEV]

I'm betting it was not your cutting but the subject she did not like.  I agree with Marge, the drips off the snout take away a from the piece somewhat, but that is between you and the pattern maker.  You have to be kind of a wild life enthuist to appreciate the image. 

To me, It definately does not belong in the closet, but the Frame, although very nice, is not appropriatee for the piece.  I would make a very rustic, rough, distressed, wide frame out of maybe Pine, Cedar or maybe old pallet wood and then the whole piece would take on an entirely diferent and more apealing appearance...more suitable for maybe a cabin setting or hunters man cave. 

Not knowing "who" the piece was intended  for, it is hard to say if you should gift it to that person.  If he/she is a hunter or is found of northern wild life, I would say it could be definately gifted as planned.  

BTW, the cutting itself looks very well done.

Edited March 20, 2023 by FrankEV

[ChelCass]

I agree with Frank on the frame. A rustic one would work better.  As for the water drips, if you have ever seen a Moose in the wild they eat the vegetation in the water and when they raise their head they drip water from their face/head. I would hang this on my wall.  Nicely done!

[daveww1]

terrific job, it's beautiful

[Charlie E]

Looks great to me! My wife and I have a good relationship, 40 years, but if I want to feel good about something I’ve cut I don’t ask her what she thinks about it. Brutally honest, and if she attempts a fake approval, after 40 years it’s easy to spot. Obviously, I know she won’t be reading this.

[barb.j.enders]

I agree with Marge on the drips from the mouth.  I also agree with Frank regarding the frame.  I think you did a great job in cutting it.  Hang it proudly.  Gift it proudly.

[jerry walters]

My son is a wildlife photographer. He has taken several pictures of moose and if I remember correctly some of these pictures have water dripping from their mouth. Must be just sloppy drinkers. My son, and me too, would be proud to hang this on his wall. What did your wife think was missing from the picture? I like it.  I wish my wife were still here so I could share my work with her, she loved when I would show it to her. Now I just bug my neighbors. As you can tell I like it.

Jerry

[FrankEV]

13 minutes ago, Charlie E said:

Looks great to me! My wife and I have a good relationship, 40 years, but if I want to feel good about something I’ve cut I don’t ask her what she thinks about it. Brutally honest, and if she attempts a fake approval, after 40 years it’s easy to spot. Obviously, I know she won’t be reading this.

My lady, when looking at a piece I cut, really does not know the difference between a good cutting and a bad cutting.  For her it is the image itself and of course, my coloration is up for critique, when I add color to a piece.  However, although she rarely says she dislikes a piece, I can just read her face and the tone in her voice that tells me whether or not she realy likes what I'm showing her or not.  It is funny, because she is usually in the same place I am about the image. 

 

[FrankEV]

10 hours ago, heppnerguy said:

....How could she have not noticed that all the other times I showed her my progress on it?...

Re-reading your post, the above sentence jumped out at me.  This is something I never do.  Not even in this forum, will I show a partialy finished piece.  Most of the good artist I know do not ever like to show a work in progress unless they are specifically in "demonstration mode".

I most often show a pattern I'm thinking of cutting to my Lady to see if she thinks it would be a good subject or not.  This is usually the point where I know if she likes the subject/image or not, and will make me think twice if I going to cut it or not.  I have cut a few that she did not much care for but they actually came out well, with much approval in this forum.  We all know everyone has different likes and dislikes. 

When she visits me in the shop and sees a piece I'm cutting it's no big deal, but I don't look for any comments on my progress or how the piece looks at that time.

I  most often only reveal the finished piece to her when getting ready to take photos to post herein.   

Of course, I my case, I often need her help when I add color to a piece.  She has a better eye as to how it should look, so, at my bequest, will be very honest on my efforts to color a piecce.  The subject itself is not so much a concern at that point, but more so as to how the color rendering is working.  This is the exception to my rule.  

 

[Scrappile]

I think it looks good!  I sure have had difficulty with the Baltic Birch I have gotten lately,  Lots of chip out and breakage that I never had before.  Some say, that they are their own worst critic,,, I say, my wife is my worst critic!  You know what I mean?

[kmmcrafts]

I think it looks great as it is frame and all.. It's funny how people have so many various opinions on our craft projects. I have made some things that I didn't care for and my wife would be like " you're going to try to sell that!?? " LOL apparently she didn't like it either.. Funny thing is I have a handful of items that neither of us really liked and they are some of my best sellers, LOL.. 

On the flip side, I have showed patterns to her that I was thinking about cutting to get her opinion.. and many of these we didn't really like the pattern but the finished piece was wonderful. Just the opposite sometimes happens where we love the pattern but the cutting is less desirable. 

As for showing work in progress.. I have sold way more pieces showing photos and short video clips of works in progress and sometimes I sell the piece before it's even finished.. and I've gotten many custom orders from showing works in progress.. so for me.. showing my progress has been beneficial.. 

[Eplfan2011]

I'm in agreement with Kevin, I'd certainly have no problem finding a spot for it !

[Dak0ta52]

I have to pretty much agree with the consensus. You did an outstanding job on the cutting. I was going to comment on the beauty of the frame and agree that it should be attached to a more delicate piece (gentler or prettier). I think it would be wrong to stow it away never to be seen again. My opinion is your lady doesn't much care for a moose theme project. I seen a picture that "spoke to me" and knew I had to get a pattern done and cut. I have done so and every time my wife sees it, she has a negative comment of some sort to say about the piece. I may never sell it, and it may never be displayed in our house, but I like it and enjoyed cutting it. For that matter it was well worth the wood, time and effort I put into the piece. I've never posted a picture of it at the Village. For some reason I've wanted to keep it personal. It is not risque or "adult" in any form, but the impact it had on me when I first seen the picture was strong. Apparently this piece had some type of impact on your or you wouldn't have attempted to cut it. If you like it, smile at your lady and say, "Thank you," and gift it to your friend or hang it in your shop. Nuf said! 

[rdatelle]

I don't know about the drips but I think it looks great.  Your beating yourself up over minor things that I can't see. 

[Gonzo]

I’m in the same camp as everyone else. Looks great. Love the frame 

[heppnerguy]

23 hours ago, Peter N White said:

I will be first and say very well done but not telling a lie.

It was all in fun and I was excited to see what comments I got. Thanks for replying.   I received a few good suggestions about the frame and i do plan on making one in the next day or two

Dick

heppnerguy

[heppnerguy]

23 hours ago, wombatie said:

The only thing I can think of is maybe she doesn't like the drips coming from the mouth, because when I first looked at it, I thought oh it's drooling. 
But that aside there is nothing wrong with it, it's a perfectly good gift and does not deserve to be in the cupboard.

Marg

Marg, It was OK that my wife did not like the project. I go to her for her opinion because she often has the  answer about a project  question I might ask her.  This time, I have to admit, her answer did surprise me.  I know that I do not  always like the subject that someone cuts as that pattern was of little to no likes for me.   No two people are the same for sure

Dick

heppnerguy

 

[heppnerguy]

22 hours ago, Fab4 said:

Hi Dick:
I would say that your rabbit turned out great
I would proudly display this one
Maybe buy your wife some flowers and apologize, for whatever you said/did
then I'll bet you she will like it......LOL
Fab4
 

Paul, that  is NOT a rabbit I cut. It seem very obvious to me that it is  indeed a duck. How can you not see that? I never for a moment thought it so bad that one could not understand what the subject of the cut was. You surprise me some time.....

Dick

heppnerguy

[heppnerguy]

19 hours ago, bobscroll said:

Jolly good job you did there Dick, and very well finished! Thank you for letting us see your work! Bob

Thanks Bob. I just knew you would stick up for me.

Dick

heppnerguy

[heppnerguy]

17 hours ago, FrankEV said:

I'm betting it was not your cutting but the subject she did not like.  I agree with Marge, the drips off the snout take away a from the piece somewhat, but that is between you and the pattern maker.  You have to be kind of a wild life enthuist to appreciate the image. 

To me, It definately does not belong in the closet, but the Frame, although very nice, is not appropriatee for the piece.  I would make a very rustic, rough, distressed, wide frame out of maybe Pine, Cedar or maybe old pallet wood and then the whole piece would take on an entirely diferent and more apealing appearance...more suitable for maybe a cabin setting or hunters man cave. 

Not knowing "who" the piece was intended  for, it is hard to say if you should gift it to that person.  If he/she is a hunter or is found of northern wild life, I would say it could be definately gifted as planned.  

BTW, the cutting itself looks very well done.

Thanks for the framing idea. I see several others agreed with you. It happens that I went to a garage sale last Saturday and purchased 18 frames for $7. I could not believe the great buy. I just grabbed one that was the correct size and placed it over the cutting but never even secured it. just for the photo. I am now planning on taking your advice and making one for it myself. I never really thought much about a certain kind of frame actual having an importance to the picture it was framing. From now on I will keep that in mind. You see, one is never too old to learn something.

Dick

heppnerguy

[heppnerguy]

15 hours ago, ChelCass said:

I agree with Frank on the frame. A rustic one would work better.  As for the water drips, if you have ever seen a Moose in the wild they eat the vegetation in the water and when they raise their head they drip water from their face/head. I would hang this on my wall.  Nicely done!

You are so right  about the  moose and the water connection. We had no moose in Oregon or here in Arizona but I have seen them in Montana and in Norther n W ashington State and they do feed in the water often. OH, I  learned about the framing as you also mentioned and I am planning on making a fitting frame for it.

 Dick

heppnerguy