Posts: 13
Threads: 0
Joined: Aug 2005
I don't consider the wood projects I build to be anything special, I just love working with wood and hand tools. As of late, I have been doing more meaningful projects for my wife and kids, and they ask why I don't sign my work on the project. Many years ago, my wife purchased me a branding iron from LV, but to be honest, if I used it twice, that is a lot. The branding iron is a bit large for small pieces, and I've found that it takes some practice to brand a piece of wood, without either burning it, or not getting all the letters to burn into the wood. Do others sign their projects, and if so, what method do you use to sign the piece?
Scott
Posts: 6,562
Threads: 2
Joined: Sep 2006
Location: North Florida
I write my name and the year with a pencil in some out of the way underside area. Pencil marks last a long time if left undisturbed.
===---===---===---===---===---===---===---===---
Please visit my website
splintermaking.com
Posts: 2,336
Threads: 0
Joined: Jan 2008
Location: Irving, Tx
I sign & date every piece with a Sharpie Ultra Fine. Pencil was used by our ancestors, but I did not have good luck with it on bowls so I switched.
"I tried being reasonable..........I didn't like it." Clint Eastwood
Posts: 1,394
Threads: 0
Joined: Aug 2008
I stamp the piece several times in locations not easily seen / found, and I also sign at least one drawer bottom or case side interior with chalk as was common in the period. The stamp is a backup so that no one can remove the chalk and sell the work as an antique.
When I first started I inlayed a penny from the year the piece was finished somewhere into the piece, thinking I was clever, but I realized that this is very commonly done and so I stopped doing it.
Zachary Dillinger
https://www.amazon.com/author/zdillinger
Author of "On Woodworking: Notes from a Lifetime at the Bench" and "With Saw, Plane and Chisel: Making Historic American Furniture With Hand Tools",
Posts: 10,118
Threads: 0
Joined: Sep 2006
Location: South Alabama
I sign all my big pieces, though usually it's just my initials and the year. I've often looked in vain for names/dates on old furniture, and I'm always delighted if I do happen to find one or both. Not everything I build will survive into posterity, but I consider signing my work a favor to future generations who might be interested in learning something about when/where the pieces were made.
I usually use carving tools (often just a V-chisel) to carve my initials and the year. Other times I use a ballpoint pen. Even a dark pencil mark can last a long time on wood, especially if you put a finish over it.
Steve S.
------------------------------------------------------
Tradition cannot be inherited, and if you want it you must obtain it by great labour.
- T. S. Eliot
Tutorials and Build-Alongs at The Literary Workshop
Posts: 6,562
Threads: 2
Joined: Sep 2006
Location: North Florida
(10-18-2016, 12:13 PM)Bibliophile 13 Wrote: "I've often looked in vain for names/dates on old furniture, and I'm always delighted if I do happen to find one or both."
True that. It is also a joy to be working on a rehab and find your own signature and date from years ago.
===---===---===---===---===---===---===---===---
Please visit my website
splintermaking.com
Posts: 4
Threads: 0
Joined: Oct 2016
India ink. Won't bleed under varnish or poly.
Posts: 2,766
Threads: 0
Joined: Oct 2012
Location: W. of Rainier, E. of Orcas
I would hide signature and date on my commercial renderings, and then look forward to my fellow workers finding it. Dating and signing gives a sense of completion and closure to work. My dad only signed artwork he was satisfied with. The only time I painted with oils was to sign a painting he gave to a museum. They thought it was important, and a note on the back was not sufficient. So I practiced and smeared pigment on everything.
I find a lot of amateur/bespoke work at Goodwill and other thrifts that are signed. Most is contemporary work, removed by 30, or so years from the present. It's fun to try and date woodwork, then find signatures for confirmation. Remember Spanish Walnut Finish?
The most common signature is, "Made in China".
Posts: 19,999
Threads: 0
Joined: Jul 2003
I use one of those LV branding irons.
carl
Posts: 114,745
Threads: 0
Joined: Jun 2002
Location: Sparkling Clearwater, Fl. Tampa Bay Area
(10-18-2016, 07:42 AM)smoothjazz27 Wrote: I don't consider the wood projects I build to be anything special, I just love working with wood and hand tools. As of late, I have been doing more meaningful projects for my wife and kids, and they ask why I don't sign my work on the project. Many years ago, my wife purchased me a branding iron from LV, but to be honest, if I used it twice, that is a lot. The branding iron is a bit large for small pieces, and I've found that it takes some practice to brand a piece of wood, without either burning it, or not getting all the letters to burn into the wood. Do others sign their projects, and if so, what method do you use to sign the piece?
Scott
A woodburning pen works well and is as permanent as you can get..You can pay a lot more but this one is serviceable....
http://www.sears.com/weller-25-watt-shor...lsrc=aw.ds
Often Tested. Always Faithful. Brothers Forever
Jack Edgar, Sgt. U.S. Marines, Korea, America's Forgotten War
Get off my lawn !
|
