Spring!, Beavers, Eagles and the Pool life.

Our daffodils tell me it is spring; I love their smiling yellow faces. But the 3"snowflakes yesterday when I went to the pool made me think more "winter" than a"spring". They melted as soon as they hit anything; but they plus the spray from the big trucks on the freeway made seeing hard. No snow today but tomorrow has it in the forecast. (Grrr.)

We had a visitor on Monday evening. We came home from the grocery store and found a beaver in our front yard. Since we live close to OSU (the Beavers) when Bill said "Theres a beaver in the front yard." I asked, "It he playing football or basketball?" He just ate some of the tall grass, and then it got too dark for us to see him. Wildlife has been abundant lately. Several species of large hawks have been around, and we see bald eagles regularly. Living on a wildlife refuge has special times. The resident Canadian geese are making nests now, and soon we can look forward to seeing the little gooslings swimming behind Mom and Pop in the Duck Pond just north of us.

This last weekend Bill taught a class of seven guys how to make a table. They all left on Sunday with a pedestal table. Bill was really satisfied with the way the class went, and enjoyed imparting some of his knowledge to others. They managed to devour the Easter Bunny Cake I made for them.

I am continuing with my exercise program. I go to the pool four times a week, and have been doing lots of "water walking" (not walking on the water). My friend Angela and I have spent up to 1-1/2 hours just walking or marching across the pool. I enjoy my little United Nations in the pool. I have made friends with people from all over the world. Angela is from Ireland; Azhar from Iraq; Julia from England; Susie from Hong Kong; Chen from VietNam; and a little girl from Japan joined in our conversation yesterday; plus there are several from different parts of this country. Ages vary--from 32 to over 80. Learning of their life experiences has been so interesting.

Show Clean-Up

BMAC is over; Vacation is over. February is almost over!

It's back to work. My work is getting the orders all entered in the computer. I also have to clean-up some data, get it so it is consistent. Bill claims he can't follow it--one time I entered B for black, then Bl, then Bk. That and a few other things that over the years have been inconsistant. So I guess that's the first job for today. I spent yesterday entering orders, answering e-mail and phone messages.

Generally when we go to a major show we have new designs. This year we had 7 new styles of boxes and 1 new table. After I had entered the orders, I did a little playing with the numbers, and discovered that this time, buyers discovered the new things, for 1/3 of the items sold were new styles! It's nice to get that kind of feedback on new work.

We have less than a month before Bill teaches a class about building tables for the Guild of Oregon Woodworkers. And it's just 7 weeks until we're off to Las Vegas for the ACRE show. Bill has to produce many items before we go so our customers have items in their stores/galleries for Mother's Day, graduations, Father's Day, weddings and anniversaries. Just thinking about all there is to do makes me wish there were more hours in the day, and maybe I should not take out three hours every other day for exercising! But that's important too, and what keeps me a able to move better and feel better, so I'll be off to the pool (20min to get there, at least 75 min in the pool, 20 to shower, then another 20 minutes to get home) at noon.

Our flowers are getting ready for their annual showcase. Daffidils have buds getting ready to open up; Crocus are blooming, and many others are poking up. Spring will be here soon! Perhaps no more cold weather for several months; I put away my gloves and scarf for the year, and now it's the light jacket! And the sun is shining!

We're back!

We've been to Philadelphia, Washington DC, and Miami. The Philadelphia BMAC was a good show. We saw lots of our buyers, and even signed up some new ones. We enjoyed our time with our daughter, Erika. Her help made the show a very pleasant event. We went out to dfinner one evening with Liz and Mike Mikotowski; they helped us celebrate the award Erika was given for writing stories about ... that favorite congressional laughing stock, Larry Craig. Mike and Liz, Bill and Nan, and Erika toasted the congressman and enjoyed the Italian dinner.

<--Ghirabaldi Limited Edition

After the show was over Erika drove us to Washington DC. we enjoyed our chauffer's tour of the sights--visited the American Indian Museum, had a lunch of native Indian food, enjoyed the orchids and other plants at the conservatory near the capital, and then we drove around the neighborhoods near where Erika lives and visited the National Cathedral.

Then we were off to Miami. Elliott, Stephanie and Jacques entertained us for 4 days. The time was filled with sunshine, alligators, meeting their friends, eating, and exploring Miami. We enjoyed being grandparents; Ellliott had us wrapped around his finger.

Now it'sback to work. I even went to the pool today and "swam" for 1-1/2 hours.

Our Archives

For over 30 years I have been having photos taken of our work. I have more than a file drawer full of slides, transperancies, photos, tear sheets, etc. I have taken some of them out into the light of day, and gathered them together for exhibit in what I term "The Bill Museum". What fun it was going through everything.

The photo here is what I call "The Dust Collector That Ate Bill". One summer day he was cleaning it out, got up there, reached in, and looked like he was being gobbled up. I had a digital photo made of it so I could share it. We are now using the third generation dust collector, but the ol' forklift is still plugging along.

I spent half a day reviewing our philopsophy for our business; seeing how our work had evolved over the years; remembering some of the older things we made; noting the climb in prices. (A three-drawer chest was priced (wholesale) at $60.00 thirty years ago; today a much refined similiar chest is $350.00) I discovered our first printed wholesale price list; it's printed in black and white, but very professionally done (for 1978). The terms, descripitions, photos are similiar to what we use today, just today we are a bit more eleborate, and have a few more "rules" for doing business.

I have put many of the old photos, price lists and catalogs in a notebook to have on exhibit at the Buyers Market in Philadelphia. I think our customers--current and past--will enjoy seeing them. It's fun celebrating Bill's 50 years of making sawdust!

BMAC here we come!

Bill and I are both busy at work getting ready for the BMAC show. We leave for Philadelphia two weeks from tomorrow. The samples were packed and are off on their journey. New work is still being done; it will go via UPS or a suitcase--Bill is still working on several boxes. As soon as they are finished, they get brought in for a photo session. (One kitchen countertop has been tured into a detailing/photo space.)

The photo shown is of our new table. We call it a "V5" style; V for version, 5 for fifth table style. Bill designed it using the computer to draw it out. The top features spaltedmape that has been infused with acrylic. The table structure below the top features ovals on all four sides. It is very elegant. The table is now on its way to Philly.

I put linings in one of our new designs the other day. Bill and I have an on-going conversation about the gender of our boxes. I am always after him to make more feminine boxes. I think he did this time! He worked on a handle and feet that give a very feminine look, yet the box does not have an overly delicate look. No photos yet--waiting for the others to be finished.

Bill just complete a commission for a customer in Portland. It looked right at home with another table the gentleman had purchased. Before delivering it he made at stop at the studio of our favorite photographer, Dan Kvitka. The photos turned out great! (I will post it soon.)

Travel Agent Hat

Today I am wearing my travel agent hat. I made our reservations for the ACRE show in Las Vegas. It seems like a long time away, but is only three months.

I reminded myself of all the things I don't like about Vegas--the smells, the constant sounds in hotel/casinos. So to get away from all of that I made hotel reservations at a non-smoking hotel that is just a hotel--no casino. It's right next to the south end of the convention center, so very conveinient. (Not like it will be in Philadelphia--where it's a short 3 blocks to the Convention Center, but February weather in Philly can be windy and chilly--and sometimes snowy!)

When we go to a show, we try to take good care of ourselves. We try to stay in a hotel that provides some creature comforts. We always eat a good breakfast, then often skip lunch, but always have a good dinner. This place in Vegas fits the bill. I thought about The Residence Inn across the street from the convention center. They have kitchens and dishes etc. But this is a business trip--and my business is not fixing food! I would rather order it.

We are planning to drive to Las Vegas. Last year we drove and on the way home stopped at a gallery and left most of our sample invetory. This year we are planning on visiting several northern California area galleries, looking for prospective consignment places. During the end of April, first part of May it's a nice ride -- not too warm, and no snow over I-5 into/out of California. Driving down we will have an empty van as all our samples will be shipped directly to Las Vegas from the Philadelphia show.
'
It's time for a new hot--probably my accounting hat for a few hours.

Congratulations, Mitch!

We have been encouraging our friend Mitch Patten on marketing his turned pens for some time now. I really encouraged him try the ACRE show in Las Vegas in April, and I thought his items would do we4ll on Wholesalecrafts.com.

Mitch called the other night with some great news--he's gottem into the show and on the web site. That's the way to go, Mitch!

The New Normal

Life is back to normal here. That means I am now going to the gym/pool 3--4 times as week for water excerise again. Last Friday was my first time in four months, and that warm water felt so-o-o-o good. And my muscles felt so-o-o-o bad the next day. I am once again able to do everything--go get the mail, go to the bank, I even went to Target by myself.

Bill and I both are hard at work getting everything ready for the Philadelphia show. Bill's getting new boxes and tables ready; I am getting a new price list ready, as well as a newsletter to our customers and prospective customers. I also am preparing a press kit for the show. Bill is finishing up on a commission for an end table with a drawer. It's done, he's just letting the finish dry before he takes it to be photographed and delivers it.

We are looking forward to our post-show vacation. First a couple of days in Washington DC with our favorite Washington Correspondent, daughter Erika, then a few more days in sunny Florida with our grandson, Elliott (and his parents). Elliott, Steph and Jacques are on their way to South Africa as I write this. They will be there 3 weeks, so we will be looking forward to hearing tales about lions and giraffes.

We live next to a wildlife refuge. But I have to say, I really hate to hear the guns go off every morning just at sunrise and again at sunset. These supposed "sportsmen" are after their goose/geese, but I don't think it's very sportsmanlike to sit across the road from a wildlife refuge made for migrating Canadian geese and shoot them as they fly into/out of the refuge. There is something special about seeing thousands of geese circle to land in a pond, but I'm not too much in favor of the hunters waiting to shoot them. Enough tirade for today.

Merry Christmas!

A Merry Christmas to everyone. I am happy to report I am back to my normal self, and my medical problems seem to be behind me. The doctor still has me on medication, but blood levels are normal, and he is optimiztic that I will start taking less and less medication.

So that means you will probably see more posts here.

We are busy planning for the Philadelphia BMAC show February 15--18. We've made lists and more lists--lists of samples, lists of display items, lists of travel details, lists of booth display ideas. Our daughter, Erika, will be there to help us. We are so happy she can help. Both of our daughters know our busimess very well--they grew up driving tricycles through the workshop.

One of the lists we have made is some "extras" we are bringing to display. This year marks Bill's 50th anniversary of being a professional crafstman. We have some of his early designs to bring.

Enjoy your holidays, and I will start planning to post here more often after the first of the year.

Medical Report

On September 12th I was taken to Salem Hospital. My blood was suffering , I was anemic. For 22 days I was in the hospital. They classify it has an auto immune disease. Things are on the mend. I am still on some drugs. have some therapy scheduled in the next couple of days, but I will be back to normal.

Days Gone By . . . and Days To Come

Yesterday was a day for remembering. Bill and I celebrated our 4oth wedding anniversary. 40! Wow. We reminded oursleves of all sorts of things...like was our present "red" car better than our 1967 "red" car. (I go with the present convertible; Bill went with the '64 red Rambler.) Of course, dinner out at the Artic Cirlce drive -in forty years ago was much better this year--the wonderful French "Restaurant Curvee" in Oregon's wine country.

We also went to Art in the Pearl -- Oregon's premier art fair. We saw several friends and acquaintaces from years past. It was fun and interesting to see the changes in what they are doing now and what they were doing years ago. One friend, Doug Hively, was a potter; he now has two lemonade stands. Charles Cobb, Bob Tuck, Chuck Glosgotter, the list goes on. It's interesting to note the faces we no longer see at shows . . . often wonder about some of them.

Last weekend we went the the Contempory Crafts Museum in Portland. The special exhibition of "Crafts in America" was excellent. (Even more so when you personally know some of the artists represented). This show will be traveling throughout the country; I recommend you see it when it is in your area.

Over the past forty years we have traveled from Helena and Bigfork, Montana to Ames, Iowa, on to St. Paul, Minnesota, then Willamina and Salem OR, to our present home in Talbot, Oregon. And we find ourselves planning for new things, new boxes, new ways to use the new wood we have acquired. And probably a new "red" car along our journey.

Visiting Galleries

Our vacation started out with us delivering Pedestals to three galleries and a stop to visit a fourth gallery that is in it's second moth of operation.

During the last year we have kept close tabs on our consigned work at several west coast galleries, and it has paid off for us and the galleries. On this trip we repenished the inventory of tables at The Northwest Fine Woodworking Gallery in Seattle and Earthenworks in LaConner, as well as delivering tables to Chidlhood's End Gallery in Olympia. It's fun and interesting to visit galleries!

We also stopped in Wallace, Idaho to visit with Rob Harper at "Harper's". Ron works in copper, and the gallery has many of his sculptures. Our tables and boxes make good additions to his collection. He opened the space in mid-May. The overall look of the gallery was beautiful. For those who have never been to Wallace, Idaho, it is a picturesques old mining town ; there are only room for about three blocks wide of "town" and the freeway because of the town's location at the base of some steep mountains. This is one of those places you have to see to believe it. Lovely. Exquisite. Fun.

We're back!

In case anyone missed us, we are back from vacation. Our fun in the sun was more like "playing in the smoke". We visited with some acquaintances that were exhibiting at the Bigfork Art Fair in Montana, rode the red buses in Glacier Park, ate, vistied with relatives, ate, attended a 90th birthday, ate, threw rocks in the lake with our two-year-old grandson. The photo above shows the big,mountains around Flathead Lake. Those are not clouds, but smoke. This was one of the very few times we could see the mountains because of all the smoke. In fact, many days we could look directly at the sun which was bright red because of the smoky conditions.

Now it's back to work!

Time Marches ON!

Tomorrow is the start of August--Wow! What ever happened to July? It certainly didn't wait for me. So I'll get one blog in before July is over.

We are going on vacation tomorrow. Our first stops will be business. We are taking some pedestals and boxes to Washington galleries--Childhoo';s End in Olympia, Northwest Fine Woodworking in Seattle, then Earthenworks in LaConner. Then comes the vacation part of the trip. We are going over the northern Cascades, a new territory for Bill and I. We hope to get to Grand Coulee Dam before dark. In May we went across Hoover Dam; Grand Coulee is another one of those American landmarks on my "must see" list.

Then it will be on to Montana. Bill and I both grew up in Montana. we are returning for the 90th birthday celebration for Bill's aunt, Dorothy. Our daughter Stephanie and grandson Elliott arrive in Kalispell Thursday afternoon. We plan to be at the airport to pick them up. Then it's on to fun in the sun and mountains for a week.

Selling Retail

We mainly sell our work through galleries and fine shops. Occasionally we sell on consignment, generally smaller local galleries.

I recently received an e-mail from a woman nearby who had bought a box at the Salem Art Association gallery. (One of the consignment locations.) SAA is not a BIG seller, but is consistant in sales, and it is our favorite local gallery (I go there to buy gifts!) We have had our work in there for several years. Back to my e-mail--the woman wondered if we made any larger boxes in the coloreed, stabilized wood. I wrote back to her, telling her yes we did. We didn't currently have any on hand, but had a few other things, she was welcome to come to our workshop and see them.

I heard back from her, and she came to see us yesterday.

We generally pay a "finder's fee" to a gallery/shop if we sell something at retail that the buyer originally saw in the gallery. We were prepared to do that if we sold this lady something.

The woman was blown away by our prices; we quoted her the same price for our boxes as what a store would charge (2.2Xwholesale$). Her inquiry was, "I thought your price would be less thant at the gallery. Can't you discount it because I came out here?"

My answer to her: "We try to have our costs be similiar wherever you buy it. We derive our livlihood from making and selling boxes. We depend on galleries like SAA, or other stores. We are not out to compete with ourselves in other locations. "

Bill has always said he wants someone to buy an item he made because they like it, because it is well made, not just because they can get it cheap. And when it comes to buying it from us at our workshop, remember that we are not set up as a retail location. We have to stop what we are doing, unpack/unwrap several boxes for a customer to see. Why should it cost us money to do that? The bottom line is, if someone buys a box or table from us at retail, they will be charged 2.2 X the wholesale cost, the same price most galleries charge. A referring gallery will get a percentage (usually 15-20%).

Erika goes to Washington!

Our daughter, Erika, will start a new job next month. She will be a Washington DC correspondant for two papers., one in Boise, and one in Anchorage. It is the next step in her journalism career. And one she says she has wanted to take for some time. She will be covering the politics in Washington and how they affect readers in Idaho and Alaska (and the Northwest). She expects the environment and the Interior Department to be vital to what she will be reporting on.

Her father and I are very proud of her accomplishment. She has worked hard for many years to reach Washington DC. From her first "job" at So.Salem High School, through college, then an internship in Roanoke VA, then Greensboro NC, SumpterSC, back to Greensboro, then to Miami it has been enjoyable keeping up with her and her stories. Good luck in your new position, Suzieque!

Our other daughter, Stephaine, is at the present timer looking for a new position. She just finished out the year at a private school in Miami, and now is looking for something new. Right now she is enjoyng some free time and time with Elliott. Knowing Stephanie, she will find something new and exciting to do.

Agate Beach Limited Edition

Transformation

We received a request for a donation to an auction. this happens quite frequently, nd we have made the decision to give only to those who cause we would like to help. This request is from the Contemprary Crafts Museum in Portland. we fully agree with the road they are taking. They are opening in a new location, and their gala opening in July will feature an auction, with the centerpieces being auctioned off. "Transformation" is the theme, with the centerpieces reflecting this.

We are sending a limited edition box entitled "Agate Beach". It truly reflects the theme
1) The box is made from Dakota Burl, a product made from sunflower seed husks.
2) The box has been stabilized, making it more durable, and makes the maple burl on the lid a usable wood. (The burl was spal;ted, rotten before being stabilized.)
3) The feet are stainless steel drawer handles.

It has truly transformed == from sunflower seeds, rotten boards, and molten steel to a beautiful, functional box to hold precious treasures.

We have been utilizing stabilizied colored wood in our work for three years now. Most of the wood is maple burl or spalted maple. Our friend, Wood Chuck, brings us spalted wood to have stabilized. During this process, we can have color added to the acrylic, giving us boards colored throughout.

The price for doing this is expensive; it makes the wood cost over $40.00/bd. ft. But it utilizes wood with beautiful grains, patterns, and figures, wood that would be discarded as useless. Stabilizing the wood makes it harder, more durable. And adding the color brings out the beauty inherent in the wood.

Customers like red, purple and teal best. I like the blue; some comes out light blue; other times we get boards that are dark blue. Purple comes in different shades too. And the wood takes on the color in different ways, with some areas not accepting the color, with black lines of spalt dding dimensions.

On the Road to ACRE

Modern day sentinels lined the hill tops east of Bakersfield.

ACRE -- Las Vegas

We just recently did the ACRE show in Las Vegas. This wholesale crafts event was a first time show; there were a lot of uncertainies going into it. The show lived up to its hype--the quality of exhibitors was fantastic. Buyers who did not attend missed a great opportunity to see crafts up close and personal. ACRE was produced by WholesaleCrafts.com; an online web site where retailers can view and buy crafts.

For us, the trip was a renewal of road trips to a show. We had not driven to a show for some time. I have to admit, the trip down I-5 is not too interesting after 20+ previous trip. (we often travel to the desert of So. California to visit Bill's Mother.) But traveling east from Bakersfied, and seeing the sky filled with wind turbines was a view we enjoyed. We also enjoyed a side trip to Hoover Dam.

The ACRE show did not draw the number of buyers to be a Great Show. It was still fantastic, and as the show ages, I feel buyers will realize it is a premier show for American Crafts. It offers west coast exhibitors and buyers an great opportunity to display/see proffessional crafts in their own territory, and doesn't mean a cross-continent trip. And those from the Midwest and East Coast found it an easy plane trip to Las Vegas.

The show promotor, Nancy Vince, and her wonderful staff did a super job in staging this show. The show decorarator, Champion, was also great to work with. If I were to hand out report cards, they would all have A's and be on the Dean's list.

One of the thoughts we had while making our way to the show was that we probable wouldn't know many people. But we were wrong--old friends were everywhere--in the hotel, in the restaurants, at the show. Bill Frasier from DSA was there to expedite freight movement for many of his clients. Michael Nurot (glassblower) brought us a "spare" vase to display on a pedestal. We saw buyers we had seen in Feburary in Philadelphia and also many who we had not seen for some time--like Bob from Moonstones in Cambria CA. And we made numerous new friends and received orders from galleries in areas we had no current customers. Overall, the show was a success!

Our trip home was via Nevada City CA. We had made arrangements with Mowen Solinsky Gallery to leave a vast majority of our samples at their gallery. Nevada City was charming; the gallery was beautiful; our tables and boxes found a wonderful new home. We drove the rest of the way home with an almost empty van.

I hope the word gets out--ACRE was a great show! We've reserved our spot for next year. And I'm going to see if I can make WholesaleCrafts.com a better selling tool for us.

50 years of making sawdust

Bolstad Boxes Limited is a partnership of Bill and Nan Bolstad. From the outside, it appears that we work together, but in reality, we have each carved out our portion of the business and pretty much stay in our comfort zone. Like Bill does not like his work being interrupted by the phone, so we have no phone in the workshop; Nan takes on the phone calls in her office.

Bill Bolstad started out his career as a woodworker when he was very young. I have a woodcarving of a donkey that he made for his grandmother when he was 7 years old. Bill grew up in rural NW Montana, just a mile down the road from his grandparents homestead. This summer Bill will officially celebrate his 62nd birthday. And we have two important anniversaries this year also. 1) Our 40th wedding anniversary, and 2) Bill's 50th anniversary as a professional woodworker.

During the past 50 years, Bill has built over 90,000 boxes. He has made thousands of tables, hundreds of wooden toys, many wood carvings. And the ideas he has had -- too numerous to recount! The biggie question here--we may never know the answer-- is "How much sawdust has he made?" When our girls were small, their first writings were probably scribblings in sawdust on the J-machine (a planner with a big J--kids called in The J Machine). Bill used to turn on the dust collection system first thing everyday; and inevidably scare our cat Daisy out of her slumber atop the folded bags of the collector. He would collect the saw dust and use it as mulch in our garden, around trees, under our roses. Neighbors would come get sawdust to mulch their yards. I used some sawdust in my "paper making days". I have a photo of Bill-s legs and feet dangling in midair as he cleaned out the dust collector. And yes, I can still recall the day he rushed into the house, grabbed the phone, and reported to the 911 operator that his dust collector was on fire.

Sawdust has been an important part of our life. It follows Bill everywhere. When I dust, I wipe up sawdust. At one time Bill wrote on a card attached to our bulletin board, "Sweep and you shall find". Important messagesw were written in the dust.

So for the next year we are going to celebrate Bill's 50th anniversary of making sawdust. It's going to take alot of sweeping!

Beginning

For months I have had all kinds of thoughts about living with crafts; I finally took the plunge to write them down. And now my mind goes blank.

This blog is about professional craftspeople: present, past and future. From various discusssion forums, I have come to realize that there are new craftspeple out there struggling to be a part of the indstry, but they often do not know the struggles, the travels, the windy road many of us have already gone through. I don't have all the answers to todays questions--just comments. And I hope to post some thoughts of people and events that I have met along the way for the past 30+ years.