How about some crafts and/or artisan work?

[ironglow]

 Many of us are retired, so we have some time on our hands.  A great time to polish any skills or learn new ones.
  Anybody here into anything like wood carving, knife making, stock making, painting in oils, acrylics or water colors, gun smithing..or any other art or skill?

  How about posting here?  Would like to see skills shared...

[ironglow]

What?  No skills or arts to bless and share your retirement years ??  Anybody into leather work or stock carving?
   How about taxidermy?  ...Or model making....?

   Model of Mayflower, perhaps, as the one below, that I picked off the web..

[ironglow]

  Trying once more..

   I have removed many past posts, showing blacksmithing & blade smithing and photography, existent within my own family.  I was hoping to give some here, a chance to boast just a bit about talents they or their kids, grandkids exhibit   

   Here's your chance..let's see the skill your grandchildren show with pen & ink, guitar, singing, wood carving knife or model building.  In would enjoy the chance to compliment members on the talent their kids/grandkids have. 

   Does nobody here have a special skill they would like to share?  Are they no more interested in arts and crafts, than that?

 Surely, we have some talent out there, executing some kind of skill! Once more..let's share some special arts or crafts...  How about it?

[Lloyd Smale]

does making ammo count?

[ironglow]

does making ammo count?

  While not exacxtly what I had in mind, sure it can count.  A beautifully finished round is a sightb to behold.  What I had more in
    mind, is arts and crafts of an original nature. Your own design , and execution. 
   
  Handloading can come into play, especially if there is an original move, perhaps such as using a handgun bullet, loaded in a rifle case,
  so as to make a subsonic round that still mushrooms.
 
  There must be some model makers, leather workers, oil/acrylic painters, or wood carvers, just to name a few.

[Ranger99]

Finished ( mostly- needs a coat of sealer)
a knife sheath I started some time back.
Started it some time ago, got it cut out
from leftover scraps, molded, and finally
glued and stitching holes punched, but
never stitched it up and set the final rivets.
Did that a couple of days ago and did
a bit of stain. Needs to be sealed now.
Might get that done by 2023

[Ranger99]

I was painting some ( learning) a while
back and had found a couple of the
Bob Ross books at the 2nd hand book
store ( this is your world, and your happy
little trees and happy little bushes)
and started dallying with it a bit.
I actually made a couple of decent paintings
and gave them to the people that complemented
them. Hadn't done much of it in a
while. Also, I decided that his spatula
and brush stroke methods didn't work
well for me. It's like everything else.
You have to find your own way through
the briars

[Ranger99]

I've put together several knives
In the past with some of the nice
imported prefab blades that used
to be available from germany at
a very reasonable price, mostly
the E Christopher and a couple of
Herder and such.
I was told sometime back that
much of the imported soligen
blades weren't being manufactured
or imported any more, and
most of the prefab blades that
were available for sale would be
from the far east and india.
For a while some time back, my
BIL had access to some good
grades of steel through his machinist
work, but even that petered out
and much of it is taiwan stainless
and the tool steel he was getting
is no longer available through the
sources.
I'll probably try to scratch make
a couple more if things in general
get stabilized for a while. I have a
large spring from a long spring trap
and a couple of old old american
made files to fiddle with.
We'll see

[ironglow]

Finished ( mostly- needs a coat of sealer)
a knife sheath I started some time back.
Started it some time ago, got it cut out
from leftover scraps, molded, and finally
glued and stitching holes punched, but
never stitched it up and set the final rivets.
Did that a couple of days ago and did
a bit of stain. Needs to be sealed now.
Might get that done by 2023

   Will we get some pics?  One has to appreciate fine leatherwork...    Handmade Kydex sheaths/holsters are also interesting.

[ironglow]

I've put together several knives
In the past with some of the nice
imported prefab blades that used
to be available from germany at
a very reasonable price, mostly
the E Christopher and a couple of
Herder and such.
I was told sometime back that
much of the imported soligen
blades weren't being manufactured
or imported any more, and
most of the prefab blades that
were available for sale would be
from the far east and india.
For a while some time back, my
BIL had access to some good
grades of steel through his machinist
work, but even that petered out
and much of it is taiwan stainless
and the tool steel he was getting
is no longer available through the
sources.
I'll probably try to scratch make
a couple more if things in general
get stabilized for a while. I have a
large spring from a long spring trap
and a couple of old old american
made files to fiddle with.
We'll see

  Good thing you got some of those Solingen blades  while they were still available.  Pretty hard to get these days.

   Russell~Green river blades are available from some sources.  You can get such high quality blades and reshape them,
    if you want, making the blade exactly what you  wish.  Then nice wood handles..perhaps with black or orange liners, and you have
   what is close to a custom knife.
  It may require the investment in one of those small 1"X30" belt grinders to start, but chances are you would want to make more
   after the first one..  They make nice gifts for close friends/family..

  Just remember to keep the blade cool while grinding.

   Green River blades..   https://knifemaking.com/search?type=product,page,article&q=green%20river*

[Ranger99]

. . . Good thing you got some of those Solingen blades  while they were still available.  Pretty hard to get these days.

   Russell~Green river blades are available from some sources.  You can get such high quality blades and reshape them,
    if you want, making the blade exactly what you  wish.  Then nice wood handles..perhaps with black or orange liners, and you have
   what is close to a custom knife.
  It may require the investment in one of those small 1"X30" belt grinders to start, but chances are you would want to make more
   after the first one..  They make nice gifts for close friends/family..

  Just remember to keep the blade cool while grinding.

   Green River blades..   https://knifemaking.com/search?type=product,page,article&q=green%20river*

Actually, if you peruse different restaurant
and commercial kitchen supply places, you
can buy Dexter/Russell/Green River complete
ready to use knives for what the knifemaking
supply and black powder suppliers are selling
a bare blade for, sometimes even less.
In fact, the sheath is for the Russell Green River
hunting style pointed knife I've always called
the Whelan knife, since it's nearly identical
to a knife Townsend Whelan carried and
pictured in one of his books. The restaurant
supply place calls them fish knives or
fillet knives, although they're not even
close to what we call a fillet knife
Carbon 5 1/2 " clip point blade and
cross hatch checkered scales and
full tang. I've used one as an all
purpose kitchen knife for some
time, and decided a good while
back I wanted a decent sheath
to safely carry one. I already
had one, but the leather was
really too thin to carry safely

[ironglow]

More arts and crafts..  Photography and videography are another field of the arts, which are often ignored or not realized.

  My son is one of the highest rated, especially in real estate.  By now, we have all seen real estate photography..from cell phione shots to more elaborate coverage.
Here is a video of a property, admittedly a high end property that he covered just this weekend.  It is already edited and sent to the agent.  Click onto the pic for the video..

 

  Does a capable photographer help to sell a property?  What do you think ?

[ironglow]

Here is some pure drone real estate photography..  It takes a skilled pilot..to avoid costly expenses...  Stay tuned..combat worthy flying comes along at about the 2 minute mark..

 

  Won't be up long...