JD's Ramblings

Site Build It! - now you can hire a specialist to build your website for you -- March 25, 2008 11:38 PM

Healthy Coffee House - Murphy, North Carolina, USA - Save on drinks and overnight stays -- January 21, 2008 6:19 AM

Introducing: business networking site for SFI Marketing Group affiliates -- January 7, 2008 7:37 AM

SFI's EyeEarn co-op is active -- January 7, 2008 2:37 AM

Come visit the brand new Murphy NC 28906 social networking community -- January 2, 2008 2:09 AM

Site Build It! Special Offer -- October 24, 2007 10:33 AM

Do you need fast ethernet or gigabit ethernet broadband? -- October 3, 2007 10:12 AM

New: zReturn Lost and Found Services -- October 3, 2007 10:10 AM

You can extend the reach of your Merchant Circle marketing -- October 3, 2007 10:08 AM

Creating a better link to your Merchant Circle business listing -- October 3, 2007 10:06 AM

Texturing the petals is similar to shaping the leaves, but I don't have to use a chisel to indicate any veins. This part takes the most time and is the most tiring. In order to texture and thin the petals for a steel rose, it takes over 5,000 hits with a hammer (nearly 8,000 for a large rose) to be sure the entire petal is textured with mostly-overlapping peins. It helps to have good music playing in the background during this phase!

After the petals are textured and thinned, I place them on the end of the stem in the proper sequence (there are large, medium and small petals on each flower), and then use a torch to heat the end of the stem to a red heat and pein the end over, thus riveting the flower to the stem and holding it securely.

All shaping of the petals is done at a red heat, using a torch for heating just where I'm working, and a pair of pliers to shape each petal individually. This is the part that is most uncomfortable because of the heat, and at the same time, the part I enjoy the most because it is what makes dead, flat, sheet metal look like a flower.

(I found out last fall and winter that there are times when it isn't so uncomfortable working with the heat. It felt especially nice on those cold, gray, snowy mornings.)

Start heating and shaping the inner petals. If you look carefully, you'll see a small red spot where that particular part of the flower is being heated for shaping. It is possible to shape the flowers cold, but I find that working them hot is a superior method and makes the flower more realistic in my eyes. (You'll also notice my red shirt getting a darker shade of red as the afternoon turns hotter, aided by the torch and radiated heat from the flower. I think I drank about a gallon of water while working on this rose!

Carefully form the indication of a bud in the center.

Although it won't look exactly like a bud, it's important, because -- while it's not too noticeable if it's not there -- it definitely looks more realistic when it is there.

Work outward through the petals, shaping them individually as well as possible. Part of the shaping must be done from the front, some from the back. It's necessary to move all around and shape the emerging flower from a number of perspectives.

When shaping the outer petals, the calyx receives it's final shaping. Once the petals are all shaped, I go back and look at the whole flower and make any adjustments that appear necessary. Flowers are organic, and it's important to try to avoid a mechanical look (which would be caused by shaping each petal the same and evenly spacing them). It's the irregularities and unique shape of each petal that seems to bring the dead metal to a semblance of life.

We're done, so it's time for Signing the Rose.