Summer, Social Media & the Texas Furniture Makers’ Show ®

Hyatt Regency Hill Country Resort & Spa

Well the summer heat is upon us and  while it does not compare to last year in intensity, it is never the less HOT!! 

As I write and prepare to post this we are celebrating our 17 years of marriage  and briefly escaping the heat, by floating in the Lazy River at the Hill Country Hyatt in San Antonio.  A little break before the next round of mesquite furniture projects take priority with their details, demands and deadlines. 

We are currently reworking the Lou Quallenberg Studios website and appreciate any input, suggestions and words of encouragement you feel like sharing.  Staying relevant in this wireless, web worked, world  is exhausting. 

We recently created these new mesquite media buttons to link to our social media sites  on the website and print on our marketing materials. Perhaps the first mesquite versions?!

facebook: Lou Quallenberg & Mesquite Furniture

Linkedin: Lou Quallenberg

YouTube: LouQart

twitter: quallenberg

 

rss feed Blogger Mesquite Musings

Blogger Blog Mesquite Musings

As we gear up for the busy Fall Winter season we have several projects filling the schedule. I apologize if we have dropped the ball connecting with you whether you are  a client, artist or friend. The demands of family are currently a huge priority. 

Due to my crazy health situation I am no longer working at Jamail's in Horseshoe Bay.  It is so frustrating when your body won't cooperate with your head and heart.....

Below is the Press Release for the 2012 Texas Furniture Makers Show® in Kerrville. if you are a furniture maker residing in Texas you can find the Call for Entries and application on their website here.  We encourage you to  enter, the more the merrier.  

We enjoy participating in the Texas Furniture Makers Show each year and are always blown away by the talent that fills the Galleries at the Kerr Arts & Cultural Center with beautiful furniture pieces. 

Last year Lou was so busy he did not have time to make a new piece for the show. We hope that will not be the case again this year but he needs to get cracking because the clock is certainly ticking.....

2012 Texas Furniture Makers’ Show®

The thirteenth annual Texas Furniture Makers’ Show® takes place November 8 through December 8, 2012 at Kerr Arts and Cultural Center, 228 Earl Garrett Street, Downtown Kerrville, Texas. This juried exhibition is a statewide competition featuring handcrafted pieces by the best custom furniture makers in Texas and is co-sponsored by Woodcraft®, a national retail chain of specialty woodworking tools and equipment located in San Antonio, Austin, Houston, Dallas and Fort Worth.

The purpose of the Show® is to present the work of Texas furniture makers to the public in a formal gallery atmosphere, to improve the quality and skill of Texas furniture making by formal consultation and by example, and to bring national attention to the one-of-a-kind handmade works of art created by Texas furniture makers.

On display will be a myriad of tables, chairs, benches, cabinets and more, many crafted in multiple, complimenting woods and accessorized with other materials, reflecting styles as diverse as Shaker, 19^th Century German, modern cedar log, and Federal.

The Presentation and Awards Ceremony will be held on Saturday, November 17^th from 5:30 – 8:00 p.m. This year’s judges are:

Philip C. Lowe is an award winning furniture maker, author, and founder of The Furniture Institute of Massachusetts, inter-nationally known for its dedication to excellence in the art of classical woodworking techniques applied to the art of furniture design and construction. In 2005, Phil received the Cartouche Award, the highest honor bestowed by the Society of American Period Furniture Makers and in 2010 he was granted the 2010 Bulfinch Award for Artisanship presented by the Institute of Classical Architecture & Classical America. Philip will also present our Seminar on Saturday, November 17^th entitled “Life Works of Philip Lowe and The Furniture Institute of Massachusetts”.

Gordon McDougal is the owner of McDougal Gallery of Fine Woodworking in San Antonio. Gordon completed a one-year apprenticeship with Jeff Green of Bucks County, PA, and attended the Marc Adams School of Woodworking where he earned a Masters Level Certificate in Woodworking.

Randy Johnson is the Editor in Chief for American Woodworker and Woodwork magazines in Eagan, MN. Randy studied art and industrial arts education at the U. of Wisconsin-River Falls and later received a Master’s degree in Industrial Technology Education from Appalachian State University in Boone, NC, with an emphasis in furniture construction and design. Prior to joining the media world, Randy owned a custom furniture business specializing in the designing and building of custom furniture.

Kerr Arts and Cultural Center is open Tuesday – Saturday 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Sunday, 1 – 4 p.m. Admission is free. For more information or to obtain an Entry form call  830-895-2911  or  visit  www.texasfurnituremakersshow.com.

Making Connections for Dancing Trees and in Life

Lou Quallenberg with the rough cut mesquite slabs of his Dancing Trees

The Mesquite Screen Scaffold

As you can see Lou Quallenberg's latest project, the Dancing Trees are now up and standing.  He achieved this feat with the help of a scaffold built specifically for that purpose.

All kinds of neat things have been created for this very special project. The one I wanted to talk about this month are the Connections, the special mesquite hardware pieces, Lou created that will connect the mesquite slabs to each other. There will be twelve of these beauties and each one will be sized and specially sculpted for it's specific location.

The Connections are created from solid chunks of squared 4"x4"x12-18" mesquite blocks that were cut into thin 1/8th inch slices.  The slices were then organized into opposite grained sets for strength and taped together.  Next they are glued together using System Three epoxy. We use this more expensive epoxy because so far it is the strongest epoxy we have found on the market. Once glued up they are then clamped and left to dry for several days.

After the glued blocks are dry they are then trimmed and cut into blocks the specific size required. The blocks are very carefully measured for their spot and then sculpted using the band saw, spindle sander, grinders and sand paper  to achieve the desired look. The different colors of the mesquite slices and the opposite grains give the Connection its striped variations. Lou thinks of them as mini tree limbs and each is a sculpted treasure.

Glued and Clamped Block

Mesquite Slices

 Taped Set of Mesquite Slices

The groove is cut into the sculpted piece using a router and jig. The tongue for the Connection is made from maple and will be screwed into the slab opposite of the sculpted Connection.  The tongue portion of the Connection will not be visible. Mesquite can be brittle and in order to ensure the durability of these Connections another hard wood was chosen.  These will be long lasting Connections.

 Mesquite Connector & Maple Tongue

Mesquite Connector and Block

Speaking of Connections I wanted to talk a bit about connections in business and the connections that weave throughout our lives.  First I want to mention how important it is to connect and follow up with your clients according to Richard Koch in The 80/20 Principle: The Secret to Success by Achieving More with Less  using Pareto's Principle eighty percent of your business comes from twenty percent of your clients (it seems to be pretty much true for  Lou Quallenberg Studios.)  That twenty percent is important to your success!

Wet Mesquite Connection

Call them, email them follow up make that connection. You cannot fake the connection but if you honestly love what you are doing then you probably have formed some form of connection with that client. Nurture that connection!  It's basic customer service and it seems to have gone by the wayside as more companies become corporate giants and lose the connection with their customers.  


This new client came to us through a former client, obviously a satisfied former client. We connected regularly with this former client on facebook, via email and by phone. 

We spend hours trying to learn and understand the best way to connect using social media and the internet.  We tweet on twitter, post updates on facebook, link up on Linked In, blog on blogger all for the sake of connecting to our clients and prospective clients.

We try to keep a close and open connection with our Galleries (Artisans, Circle & Riverbend ) and other Representatives. Our open and sharing connection is truly enjoyed with our many artist friends. By helping out where we can we try to keep a community connection. We keep the family connection going by sharing shop space with Steve A. Walker and working Shawn A. Walker to the bone in his spare time, on top of regular family gatherings. Oh and we can't forget about our Pet Family connection (BTW Barney is now 7 months old and 110 lbs! He's a BIG puppy!)


 We all make connections throughout our lives and I truly believe these connections are what life is really ALL about.  Whether it is a connection with family, friends, customers, employees or a stranger in the parking lot the important thing is to make the connection!
  
A big thank you to Susan Britton Seyler for writing this recent article on Examiner.com 
Mesquite Heirloom Furniture by Lou Quallenberg - National designer furniture | Examiner.com Award winning Mesquite Artist Lou Quallenberg creates sculpted live edge furniture in a contemporary style that reflects the flavor of the west.