Our plan is to use this space to share information and ideas about mesquite wood and the trials and tribulations of making mesquite furniture. We are by no means experts on mesquite but Lou has decided to dedicate the rest of his life to learning to use this wood and uncovering the many mysteries we know it holds.
Showing posts with label British Airways Face of Opportunity. Show all posts
Showing posts with label British Airways Face of Opportunity. Show all posts
I always thought joining the 100 Club of anything was an honor or privilege. I'm still trying to see the honor, the privilege or anything positive about living through 75+ days of temperatures OVER100 degrees Fahrenheit. I mean REALLY this is ridiculous! Lou Quallenberg continues to make mesquite furniture through this scorching heat, in a shop without an airconditioner, day after day. It is unrelenting with no relief in sight and a large project deadline creeping ever steadily closer and closer.
75+ days over 100 degrees Fahrenheit and no relief in sight!!
We won't go through another Texas summer without a swimming pool. I'll even pay to have water shipped in to fill it if I have to. We are currently bailing our bathwater to save a few of our trees. It is amazing how much water runs down the drain wasted so don't let me get started about flushing toilets....
This may end up being the first year that we do not have a mesquite furniture piece entered in the Texas Furniture Makers Show since we started showing there in 2005. Lou won Best Art Furniture in 2005 and Best Texas Style Furniture for the past three years consecutively 2008,2009,& 2010. We are busy and that is a very good thing. We feel blessed. Besides it is just too hot to do ANYTHING. So the show pieces get put on the way back burner while the commissioned pieces get built and delivered at the slow moving, sweaty, hot and tired pace.
We will certainly attend the 12th Annual Texas Furniture Makers Show and are making plans to catch Thea Marx's seminar "How to Market Your Work without a Big Budget" & "Western Design: The Old, the New and Why It's Western." We really like Thea Marx and ALL that she has done to promote Contemporary Western Design. She is the reason we entered the British Airways Face of Opportunity Contest and while we did not get much of a chance to visit in London at the Face to Face Conference it was great knowing she was there working her western style magic on the United Kingdom, at Harrods and I know she charmed them in Paris as well.
Lou Quallenberg Clamping the Mesquite Bench Back Rest
I thought I would share a few photos of the current mesquite furniture project taking up most of the space in the shop these days. Lou is working on the mesquite benches for the private chapel in Bandera. They will sit curved, facing the alter and the Dancing Trees.
Solid Mesquite Slabs for the Bench Seats
They each have a slight curve on the seat and back rest. The back rest on each bench is composed of four slices of mesquite wood that are 9/32" thick. They are cut and then epoxied together and shaped into the curve. The same process is used on the base apron to match the curve of the seat. It is also used on four other smaller pieces that serve as braces for both accent and strength.
They are really taking shape and coming along. Lou's God Son Travis will be visiting from New Jersey for a good portion of September and we hope he will be able to lend a helping hand on this job. Just hope working with mesquite in the Texas heat does not do him in.
Barney with Mesquite Bench (partially assembled & clamped together)
Thank you British Airways You are First Class ALL the Way!!!
Keith Williams CEO British Airways
Simon Talling-Smith holding our Mesquite Sample
After a few travel bumps and bruises caused by the bad weather and because of the extreme generosity of British Airways I finally made it to London. I was there without my carefully thought out and packed luggage, but there was something almost freeing about that situation and besides I had Lou Quallenberg's mesquite furniture portfolio, business cards and the little wooden mesquite samples he had made. What else did I really need?
I had tried for several days to make it to New York but the weather just would not cooperate. So when British Airways kindly offered to fly me direct from Dallas to London, so I could at least make the final portion of the Face to Face Global Entrepreneur Conference I got myself to Dallas as fast as I could. I ended up meeting Chris McKee a fellow Face to Face award recipient in the British Airways VIP lounge, a perk that the ticket agent granted me due to my mounting travel woes. Chris is Founder and Managing Partner of Venturity Financial Partners in Dallas, Texas and would turn out to be a great coach for using the London Underground. Chris was also suffering from lost luggage but he had managed a "Plan B" bag which was good because he was headed to Bangalore, India and his first bag did not find him before he left. At the time we thought we were the only Face to Face folks on the plane.
I met Kenyatta Harris owner of 4 $hades Clothing and Tshirts of Dallas,Texas in the Heathrow Sofitel Hotel lobby and was so totally surprised when he informed me that he had sat behind me on the plane from Dallas. I wish I had known sooner because we really hit it off and could have spent the day hanging out until the reception. At the champagne reception I recognized Rishi Khanna, CEO/Managing Director of ISHIR Infotech as the guy that sat across the aisle from me on the airplane. Rishi, Chris and Chris Eilers owner of Dunn Brothers Coffee (and one of the top three finalists of the Face of Opportunity Contest) are all members of EO Entrepreneurs' Organization a group that I jokingly referred to as a cult because they all talked about what a great organization it is. I am seriously looking into membership options because of the way those guys talked, one of the requirements is $1million in revenue so we will work on that step first. Hey Dream it! Believe it! Make it happen!!!
Chair in London Hotel Lobby
Chairs in Barcelona Hotel Lobby
Some of Gaudi's Furniture Designs
The Champagne Reception was First Class, like as I would find out, everything British Airways did for us. I finally got to meet Jenny Walker face to face but unfortunately did not ever hear her sing in person. I tried to make up for lost time and catch up with some of the folks I had hoped and planned to meet but there was so little time and so MANY people! I did get a brief glimpse of the glamorous Thea Marx. I briefly met Anne Tedesco VP Marketing NA for British Airways, and Melissa Fernandez Evans Face of Opportunity Campaign Project Manager at British Airways but a HUGE amount of THANKS goes out to these two woman for such a great conference.
Once the conference was over and we were all on our own, headed off to our "face to face "meetings and other destinations my luggage decided to FINALLY make an appearance.
Saturday morning thanks again to Chris McGee and his guide tour services I found my way to the Train Station at Kings Cross (of Harry Potter Fame) to meet up with Joe and Amie Prest from The Mesquite Company. This was my "face to face meeting" with the company that was bringing Lou's work to the United Kingdom. Unfortunately Lou's tables had not made it across the pond but they were in transit and expected any day.
V&A Museum London
Sponge w/custard
We went to several potential Gallery spaces to see if any felt suitable for his work. I found it interesting that most of the Galleries required you to ring a bell to be buzzed in. The artwork was incredible we saw one of David Mach's super sized wire hanger sculptures- so cool. We also went to the Victoria and Albert Museum finding inspiration in every corner of this huge museum.
Amie did not want her photo taken but I should have insisted on one of the two of them after all it was about Face to Face. We made a stop to eat and rest our feet at a traditional English style pub. We all had the fish and chips which was delicious. Dessert was interesting to say the least. Amie and I shared the sponge with custard. It was my first and hopefully last sponge. Amie who is originally from Texas nailed it when she compared it to an undercooked corn muffin. I know Joe was hoping to take a spin on the London Eye but my energy had run out and as the light began to fade I knew I needed to get on the underground and get headed back to the hotel.
Lamppost inspiration in Barcelona
Sunday I packed up my bags and headed back to London's HeathrowAirport to go on to Barcelona, Spain. I had hoped to meet up with a Furniture company that we had admired online but could not make it happen in the short amount of time I had changing my destination from Cairo to Barcelona. I did have enough time to find a great place to stay: Hotel Praktik which I would highly recommend for location, service and charming architecture. I was a bit intimidated getting on the plane to Barcelona and not knowing for sure what I would do or where I would go. I decided to just enjoy the journey and see where I was lead. Had I done more research I would have made a point of making it to Montserrat to see the Black Madonna because that is the sort of thing I truly enjoy religious mystery and the sacred. As it was I fell in love with Barcelona the art and architecture, the people, and the the lifestyle. I spent most of my time at La Sagrada Familia and Park Güell admiring with the work of Antoni Gaudí. The entire time I was there I knew that I would be coming back because Lou REALLY needs to see, feel, taste and touch this place. I'll work on that.
The flight back to London was where I met and visited "face to face" with Mike Goodstadt a young architect, designer and genealogist from Valencia. Mike was traveling on business to London with Lavernia & Cienfuegos.He told me about designing and building webpages using Squarespace and a book he was reading called Trust Agents by Chris Brogan. I look forward to sharing more with this creative young man. I only hope I can be half as helpful to him someday.
Overall it was a whirl wind trip that filled my head with inspiration and ideas that should pay off long into the future for Lou Quallenberg Studios.
When I got back I had to hit the ground running as Llano's Trail of the Deer Art Project wraps up it's initial year 2010-2011. Today is the FINAL day to place bids on these works of art. The money raised will be used to purchase more Deer for the 2011-2012 Trail of the Deer Project.
Lou Quallenberg Studios is also a participating artist in the @LASTLlano Art Studio Tour on Saturday March 26th, 2011. It will be a great opportunity to meet our wonderful and ever growing population of Llano's Resident Artists. Lou Quallenberg will demonstrate his process of turquoise inlay into mesquite at 2:00pm.
Our spring is shaping up to be one of the busiest yet and for that HUGE thanks goes out to our clients, friends and supporters. Thank You! Thank you! Thank You!
Bon Voyage! We whispered aloud as the trailer pulled away from the shop. Safe journey was our wish for the two tables that were safely wrapped and strapped into the trailer being pulled by Thad Hanna of Fredericksburg Shipping. We had originally planned to follow the trailer and record the process of the journey that began in Llano and had two more stops before it even left the "Great State" of Texas. The mesquite tables were bound for Fredericksburg where Thad would work his magic, build crates and prepare the shipment for the port of Houston and it's long journey across the pond. We thought this was our last glimpse of the tables and got a bit misty eyed.
As they pulled out of the driveway almost on cue Lou received a phone call request from Joe Prest of Hill Country Mesquite in the UK to add a block of mesquite wood to the shipment, if we had it on hand. We found a nice piece of mesquite that fit the size requirements for the UK project so we took the trip to Fredericksburg. This meant we got to see the girls one last time already safely packed into their crate and ready for their journey over seas.
Lou gets to say goodbye AGAIN!
This one still needs it's crate.
Staked and Packed
I wish that my travel preparations were as easy as theirs looked from my perspective. Although I know we were not involved in the paperwork and delivery details, that I am sure could make a person CRAZY if they did not know what they were doing, shipping furniture to another country. So THANK YOU!! Thad Hanna and Amie & Joe Prest for your hard work and knowledge on both ends, that made this so easy for us here at Lou Quallenberg Studios in Llano, Texas.
It is not that my travel arrangements are really all that difficult it's just that because of a few health and energy issues each step of the way has to be planned out with some scheduled down time.
The part of the trip that British Airways is taking care of was all set up:
Breakfast Conference London Keith Williams, CEO, British Airways
Lord Stephen Green, UK Minister for Trade and Investment
Sir Clive Woodward, Olympic Performance Director, British Olympic Association
After Friday each of the 250 British Airways Face of Opportunity Award recipients are on their own with a free flight to ANYWHERE British Airways flys for their face to face meetings. The destinations are as diverse as the businesses represented. My plans for Cairo and the pyramids were changed due to the recent protests, violence and upheaval as I post this I am scrambling to make plans in Barcelona.
The group has already started networking on Linked In. Our frequent input (using Lou's profile-because I don't have time to manage his profile and mine) on the Linked In Group caused British Airways to invite us to be one of ten Quick Tips Filmmakers at the conference. They will give me a question to ask as many of the people at the conference as i can while recording the answers. I have already connected with the lovely and talented Jennie Walker a musician with an incredible voice. Her song Night Flight to London (click here to hear it) is already my theme song for this trip and I am sure it will be the whole group's theme song by the end of the trip. I can't wait to know her better and hear that voice in person.
I am also looking forward to meeting Judith Z. Miller an artist that works with sticks and stones making an unusual line of wearable art. Judith hopes to head to Thailand after the conference if she can raise the funds on another award recipient Danae Ringlemann's website Indie GoGo a very cool crowd funding or international fund raising website. Jennie Walker is raising funds for her trip there as well. I hope to use the Indie GoGo site at some point in the future to put into motion my dreams of a Hill Country Artist Retreat, Art Education and Art Ranch.
Thea Marx of Contemporary Western Design has already set up a meeting with Harrods in London and plans to go on to Paris to meet with folks from the Louve about a Western Design and Style show like she puts on every year in Wyoming. T. Cat Ford is a writer and will be meeting with theater companies about her play THE CHAOS TRADE - An American Comedy of Investment Errors. Debbie Nathan is the founder and executive director of Artsbridge Inc.a place that gives Israeli and Palestinian youth the opportunity to see each other as human beings using art. Okay I know I am mentioning mostly artists but that is who I usually connect with.
Here are just a few of the interesting products/ businesses that are represented by the group:
Please note there are quite a few Non profit groups as well and I just do not have time to list each one and their cause but I encourage you to go to the Contest website here and look them ALL up because this is such a great group.
I could go on and on because there are so many unique and great company's represented and I hope that I get a chance to at least meet them all and connect with as many as possible.
By the time you read this I will be on my way to New York.......
So here it is the end of the year and WHAT we only made one video this year? How did that happen? We started last year with every intention of creating one a month for a total of twelve. That makes us eleven videos short! Oh well you know the saying: "the road to hell is paved with good intentions". ( I think the road to heaven is paved with LOVE but that's just my opinion.) Maybe next year the videos will take precedence over the blog - just a thought not a promise. In case you missed it here is our one and only Mesquite Furniture Making Video - to date:
So WHAT have we been working on? Well unfortunately not a whole lot of Mesquite Furniture work going on at this time. The Dancing Trees took a huge amount of time and energy and most of our large mesquite wood inventory. We are waiting on usable mesquite wood (slabbed and dried) to begin the chapel benches that go alongside the Dancing Trees. Lou has been tied up ripping out the tub in my parent's bathroom replacing it with a walk in shower and widening the doorways to make it all wheelchair accessible. Out with the OLD bathroom and in with the NEW. Lou Quallenberg is mighty handy to have around - but seriously what a true waste of talent!
Taking care of an injured and aging parent has taken its toll in both time and energy from both of us. Not only do we worry over MeMaw's health and care we also have to make sure PaPaw does not over do it while looking after her. We both look forward to the NEW year in hopes that MeMaw's healing means out with the OLD cast, in with the NEW improved, stronger ankle and overall physical MeMaw in general. A big THANK YOU from the Walker, Quallenberg and Martin families goes out to Llano Nursing and Rehabilitation, Physical Therapist Linda Walling, Occupational Therapist Luis Sirvent and all of the caregivers that took such good care of her. We only have two skilled nursing facilities in Llano, Texas and only one that provides the much needed services of rehabilitation.
Any day now the two Jackson & Sister Tables will be headed OUT on their journey to the UK where they will make their debut in London. We are proud to have a few NEW representatives for our work. The lovely and talented Amie Prest and her hard working husband Joe Prest the owners of Hill Country Mesquite will be introducing Lou Quallenberg's Mesquite Art Furniture to the UK and Europe. We look forward to a long and prosperous partnership with the Prests. Their passion for Mesquite combined with their positive energy is a sight to behold. The fine folks at Hill Country Mesquite will also be promoting Mesquite, Mesquite Products as well as the fine works of Shangri-la Woodworks and Texas Mesquite Co. We wish them super success as they start this new venture.
First let me say that we may not have found out about the British Airways Contest if it had not been for Thea Marx of Contemporary Western Design mentioning it on her facebook page. Her promotion of all things contemporary and western is amazing. This woman is a one horse promoting machine!!! We thought for sure she would be one of the finalists for the TEN ticket prize British Airways is giving away. Check out her video here: youtube
So we entered the essay contest on a whim thinking wouldn't it be nice to go and see Lou's pieces in London or wherever they end up overseas. Well it is about that time that MeMaw ended up in the hospital and voting deadline was a few short days away. We kinda lost track of what was going on then Amie Prest emailed us to tell us the Texas Hill Country Fans on facebook had taken up the cause. They voted their hearts out daily (and so did most of our friends) and because of that we WON!!
Lou Quallenberg's Texas Mesquite Art: London DEBUT
My business tip is to follow your passion. If you are doing your own THING and starting up a business, it is guaranteed that you are going to be working harder and longer than the competition and all of your 9 to5 friends. This means you better be doing that one THING that makes your heart sing!
My THING is creating art furniture from one of the most amazing woods I have ever seen: Texas Mesquite. Much like me- this very hard, craggly, gnarly wood is full of character, holes and color variations created from the stressful conditions that the tree survives and thrives in. The wood has a rich color range that flows from golden blonde to a rich, deep, velvet red and so many stunning combinations in between. No two pieces are ever the same and I try to use that uniqueness to my advantage. My one of a kind sculpted designs are created and inspired by each individual piece of wood as I attempt to honor the incredible life that the tree lived.
My company Lou Quallenberg Studios in Llano, Texas was recently contacted by Hill Country Mesquite in Nottinghamshire, England. Their THING is to market mesquite and mesquite products in the UK. The company and I have reached an agreement to export some of my pieces to England to be part of their showcase of mesquite art pieces at the end of this year and early part of next year. I would like to travel to London to help promote this incredible wood and my furniture art to an audience of Art Galleries, Home and Garden Magazines, and prospective clients that are currently being courted by Hill Country Mesquite. I am very excited to have my work put onto the world stage with London as the launch pad and it would be so incredible to actually be on location for it‘s debut.
While I’m in the UK I would like to pay a visit to master craftsman, furniture maker and teacher David Savage at the Rowden farm Workshops in Devon. It would be a dream come true to take a class, but at the very least I would like to see the shop, gain a few woodworking tips, be inspired and perhaps discuss the merits of mesquite wood.
I would feel honored to attend any business forums or seminars that British Airways puts together for small business. So I’m asking you to please help me play a bigger role on the world business stage and help me grow my business into a lasting legacy, so I can just keep doing my THING.
Due to a conflict in schedules Cheryl Quallenberg will be making the trip and attending the conferences representing Lou Quallenberg Studios in place of the busy Lou Quallenberg and you can be sure she will be posting about it on the blog hopefully with a few pictures and great stories. Just stay tuned.
Don't forget if you are not in London you can see Lou's work Stateside at these two fine Galleries both NEW representatives this year:
or stop by the shop and we can show you what we have going on
just call first to be sure we are around and not off flying around the world.
While we were so very sad with the sudden OUT going of life and light from our sweet Louie this year, we are so very happy with our NEW puppy Barney.
He turns a year old in January and he has gone from 95 lbs to 150 lbs in the small amount of time we have had him. He literally grows before our eyes some days. Every pound he adds somehow expands our hearts more than we ever thought possible. He has brought his delightful lumbering puppy bounce and his wavy walk into our lives and while he slobbers more than Louie ever did, it is still so much less than our Jake who slobbered all over our hearts and home when he was alive.
Don't forget that the auction for the Trail of the Deer Community Art Project has begun. Put your bucks down for Big Bucks or one of his beautiful herd mates!!! The money goes to create more deer for the Trail of the Deer and to promote Art in Llano, Texas.
