Studio Helpers

I'm not sure this will come under the title of helpers exactly but it is what it is.  My husband, long officially retired (?) from toymaking and major art shows finally found some renewed art passion.  It's been awhile before there was something he could enjoy again.  Knifemaking and forging is something he can do and take breaks with.  The forge has to heat the steel up and so he gets breaks in between hammering.  Hammering isn't so good for him either so our oldest son found him an old Murray power hammer and it takes most of that out of the equation.  Whew!  Good, right?

These are the types of knives he makes.  Some are regular and some are Damascus.  He is especially fond of making the Damascus and for that especially he needs that power hammer.  He loves doing this.  Nah, he's not selling them but it's gratifying.

It's gratifying but the power hammer is frustrating.  Not to him.  To me when I need to work.  Me and especially to my eldest "studio assistant".  Yes, everyone has assistants, right?  Damn right! 

So I'm working on setting these pieces in hoping they will be juried into the shows later this summer.  I don't have time to make some glass that I would set.  It would be a bit before I could perfect what I'd like to present.  It's not that I couldn't maybe get the glass ready.  If I worked diligently at it I might.  But I'd never get the glass and set it in time to participate.  I've decided to instead work with something that fits the theme's "reflections" and something that has tripped my trigger for a lifetime! 

When I was a kid my grandfather used to attached glass reflectors to my bike.  He told me they were gems.  I kept those reflectors - I love them.  To me glass, in any of it's forms, is exactly like gems.  I don't much tend to make any distinction there.  My "perceived" value is the same.  Over the years I've collected a wide variety of reflectors but more recently came across an entire stash of them.  So that will be my focus for these pieces of reflection.  My history, my perception, the reflections.

What's holding me up?  Studio Assistant.  This is how the power hammer affects my one of two beloved furbabies.

Trudy's reaction to the power hammer.  "Oh NO Mom he's making noise!"

Trudy is 14 years old.  She's never been particularly skittish until she started to lose her vision.  But, we never thought it would get like this.  I work in the round.  My tool bench is made up of several work areas that are created in a large semi-circle so I can go from designing to fabricating and so on.  There isn't any room to fit me and two dogs into the area.  Shhhh, don't tell Trudy that.  

Don't worry, she comes first.  When this starts I decide whether I'm at a point I can stop or if hubby needs to stop for a moment so one of us can settle her down.  

I love them both, but helpers?????  I need to hire out next lifetime.