Beaver Dam Weekend

Speaking of fractures, this weekend should be interesting. It will be the first attempt at tinning since I cracked my wrist last month. (A construction accident or being a klutz... jury's still out.) I know that a lot of the tin work I usually do will be sidelined, but it will be interesting to see how many ways I can find to compensate for the use of my right hand.

Sometimes tinkering includes "make do" repairs, often called fractures. The piece I am working on here is a mug that lost its handle. Finding ways to get the metal married to the pottery without direct anchors is sometimes a challenge! This one was a complete success, and the owner of the mug was pleased with the outcome.

In the background there are examples of some of the items I craft, as well as some brass kettles that we offer for sale.

A Grand Time to Tinker

This year's event at Grand Portage National Park was especially satisfying. Good weather, good friends, and a setting that always inspires me made the days go by all too quickly. Perhaps the best part was that Jeremy was along with us after having spent most of the summer working down in Georgia. Our workshops and demonstrations are conducted in the post, the very site where tinsmiths were active during the fur trade era. Jim and I had 8 or 9 young people in our chamber candle holder workshop on Friday and an equal number of adults in our wall sconce class on Sunday. We offered an extra workshop just for other presenters on Thursday, and that was very well received. The park had set aside a coffee roaster for me to repair, and I found the time to complete a pierced tin panel for a 3-sided lantern for the door prizes at the on Saturday evening. It was an interpretation of the Northwest Company (NWC) logo. I was lucky enough to win a folding knife in the drawing!