OUT with the OLD in with the NEW (year and other stuff)

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.

Because we had made the decision to partner with Hill Country Mesquite and get our work shown on the London worldwide stage it was an easy decision to enter the British Airways Face of Opportunity Contest with a chance to win a trip to NYC / London and on to any destination that British Airways flys.

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!!

Our Winning Essay:

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:

Riverbend Fine Art

710 1st Street
Marble Falls, TX 78654

830-693-6632

Circle on the Square

103 east main
llano,texas 78643
325.247.4963

and you can always visit us online 

www.LouQart.com

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.

A word of Congratulations goes out to Llano, Texas for making True West Magazine's List of Top Ten True Western Towns. While we helped do the work  of putting the application together it was the charm of Llano's History, Llano's Historic Courthouse and Red Top Jail and the hard work of MANY that create and put on the events that evoke the Western Spirit of this great little town. We are so happy to be a part of this great small town. Thank you Llano, Texas!!!

Cheryl & Lou Quallenberg with Mr. Big Bucks

 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.

It's been an amazing and blessed year for us with we made a Video,  have not one but two NEW Galleries representing us, painted a deer for Trail of the Deer, created Dancing Trees,  made the London Connection, Won the Rikon Mini Lathe via a Client, Won Best Texas Style Award (3 years in a row), Won British Airways Face of Opportunity Award, helped Llano make the True West Top Ten and received a GIANT Puppy,  we truly have so much to be thankful for and WE ARE!!  So OUT with the OLD year and in with the NEW Year.  With the amazing way the past year went I doubt we can even start to imagine the possibilities of the NEW YEAR.....

Dancing Trees: A mesquite art project in the Texas Hill Country

Last month I mentioned the fact that we had spent the last thirty days looking at hundred dollar bills and images of money in order to paint our entry in the Trail of Deer Community Art Project. (Bidding on the Bucks has now started check it out here: Llano's Trail of the Deer) I said that it had brought us good fortune but I failed to mention that we had been contacted by what we expect will be one of our largest clients/projects to date! So YES! Working on Big Bucks brought in some big bucks!!

Our new baby Barney

And its a good thing because the newest addition to our household is a 97 lb, six month old, English Mastiff puppy we fondly call Barney. He is on track to eat us out of house and home!! I am afraid he does not know his real size and this problem is only going to get worse as he grows into his 200 lb potential.

He has brought the puppy bounce into our lives and his bark reminds us to stop, take a break and play.  We also have our hands full with housebreaking and socializing- every rug in the house has been out on the fence this past week.

While his addition to our life is a bit stressful we both have fallen in love and can't imagine a life without him. Welcome Barney!!!

Large Mesquite Slabs

This NEW  PROJECT is one that Lou can really sink his artistic teeth into.  It is a for private chapel in the Texas Hill Country and includes a huge mesquite slabbed screen to match the client designed, custom, curved window/wall, mesquite benches and lectern.  Lou had been looking for some direction on his artistic path. I feel sure this project came into being to provide that direction for his creativity as well as his soul.

Lou Quallenberg with Mesquite Slab

The Mesquite slabs are pieces that Lou has been saving for "special" projects.  They have been in the shop air drying for a few years,  after their initial time kiln drying.   The center slab he will use in this design is another sister slab to both Jackson and Jackson Sister which were both made into coffee tables and debuted together at the Western Design Conference in 2008.  Jackson Sister also won the Best Texas Style Furniture Award at the Texas Furniture Makers Show® in Kerrville in 2008.  So these Mesquite slabs have a great family tree!

Sketch Mesquite Screen

It almost always starts with a sketch.  Lou Quallenberg has sketches and doodles all over his many work areas. They provide ideas as well as inspiration.  When he begins a project he usually provides a sketch to the client just to be sure they are all on the same page. Most of his work ends up looking very much like the sketch. Somehow he seems to know in advance the many directions the pieces and wood will take him.

The size and scope of this project caused him to really want an accurate visualization, both for himself and the client. The actual slabs are very heavy and require extra hands to move them around. Even though the project is on a tight deadline, Lou really felt it called for a scale model mock up. 

In order to do that we took photos of each slab chosen for the project. A 12 inch tape was placed on the slab so that all pieces could be accurately re-sized and scaled down. He then placed the photos onto small pieces of mesquite and cut each one out.  He drew on some of the smaller cracks and holes in pencil. We ended up with what is much like a puzzle. He played around with the mini slabs until he found the right balance.

Model with seven Mesquite Slabs

Model with five Mesquite Slabs

As you can see in the photos, the design was changed from the original five slabs of mesquite to seven slabs of mesquite. This is why taking the time to make a scale model version for your client can really pay off.  Lou was very happy with the design at five slabs but the client chose to add two more slabs and it really did make a difference visually.

In order to finish this new piece before the approaching October Deadline, we needed to temporarily expand the workspace. Lou found what he thought was a great deal on an outdoor Garage/Canopy at Sam's Wholesale. We had hoped the canopy would be multi-purpose and serve not only as temporary workspace but also as a possible Show Booth at the Texas Mesquite Art Festival in Fredericksburg. We have been considering doing this show even though it is an outdoor show.

The canopy is now installed and is definitely serving its purpose as 200 square feet of extra work space, but the set up and installation challenges will probably keep us from using it as a booth. Maybe it can become my greenhouse? The lesson we learned from this whole canopy  experience is that Sam's does not always have the best price.  We found the exact same canopy (according to the manufacturer King Canopy-see emails below) at Walmart for $199 and Sam's has it priced $219.74.  So buyer beware always do your price checks before purchasing.

From: "Will Cowan"
Date: July 28, 2010 2:32:45 PM CDT
To:
Subject: RE: [Contact Us] Sams & Walmart Canopies

Hi Lou,

I apologize for the delay in getting back to you, we are running a backlog
on emails about 3-4 days long and are trying to catch up.

Yes, those are the same canopy. It is the BJ2PC (our model #). I am not sure
why Wal-Mart and Sam's have different prices, it might be for shipping
purposes that Sam's is $20 more, but I don't set their prices. Regardless,
they are still cheaper than what I could sell you them for.

If you have any other questions, feel free to ask.

Thank you,
King Canopy Customer Service

-----Original Message-----
From: info@kingcanopy.com [mailto:info@kingcanopy.com] On Behalf Of
info@LouQart.com
Sent: Monday, July 26, 2010 5:45 PM
To: info@kingcanopy.com
Subject: [Contact Us] Sams & Walmart Canopies

Lou Quallenberg sent a message using the contact form at
http://www.kingcanopy.com/contact.

These two Canopy's seem to be the same? Are they?

http://www.walmart.com/ip/King-Canopy-10-x-20-Universal-Enclosed-Canopy/1196 9438

http://www.samsclub.com/sams/shop/product.jsp?productId=131317&navAction=pus h

The canopy works well as extra outdoor space and the grinding has begun. Now cross your fingers that he will be able to get it done in time. I would prefer not to hear the call "All Hands on Deck!" I'm really not that good at sanding.

This project is one of the big reasons (a backlog on the schedule) we will be missing out on The Western Design Conference in Jackson Hole and Cody High Style (which Lou Quallenberg Studios was invited to for the first time) in Cody, Wyoming this year. We hope both Shows understand and will still consider us for their future shows. We enjoy our wonderful trips to Wyoming but it is a long haul.  It takes huge effort to get Lou out of the shop and away from the wood.

FYI
Lou Quallenberg refers to the Mesquite Slab Screen piece as "Dancing Trees" and by the time he is finished I think these seven little ladies will all be singing as well.

 ©

Making Big Bucks!!

I promise next month we will talk about Mesquite and Mesquite Furniture making. But for now it's all about making "BIG Bucks"......

Llano's Trail of the Deer herd was successfully unveiled Sunday, June 27th and Lou Quallenberg Studios contribution "Mr. Big Bucks" was finally, officially complete and off of our plate.  You would think it would be a relief to have it off the schedule but I think, just as any artistic endeavor, once completed there is a feeling of loss or "Oh no now what?"  They are our babies after all. Now we have our dining room back and our evenings are once again available for whatever or wherever the night leads us, but there is still that hole.

Our entry "Mr. Big Bucks" started out as a hundred dollar bill design, trying to play up the "Bucks" theme.  I also thought it would not hurt us to be staring at hundred dollar bills for the next 30 days. The power of visualization is an awesome power that I have seen in action many times in my life. Some skeptics may call it a coincidence that the phone started ringing and opportunities began pouring in but I hafta disagree.  I am SURE that working on this "free" community art project has been a rain maker for us. You should try it!  Get an image of money and work on a fun project with it for 30 days and see what happens. It could change your life!!

The first layer of money green was applied with the help of my sweet sister Heather Martin and my nephew Matthew Martin. We would and could have done it without them, but it would not have been half as much fun.  There was a great deal of surface to cover and  the help was greatly appreciated. Matthew also helped some with the metallic gold antlers and eyes.

After the base coat was completed we let it air dry over Memorial Day weekend - while we were at the lake.  We then moved him from the Lou Quallenberg Studios shop to the house so that I could work on him as I had the energy- sometimes late at night. 

We originally thought we would airbrush the design but had to revert back to hand painting when Lou could not get the paints to work with the airbrush.  With only thirty days total to complete the project and the air brush idea out, we decided to go "old school".  Lou painted Harley choppers in the 70's so we fell back on his taping skills.  Let me just say Lou Quallenberg is amazing with tape!   There were multiple layers of tape to get all the lines in their proper places. Taping is an art in and of itself. The tape was great for all the lines but we could not really tape Ben Franklin off.

While at the lake my brother Shawn Walker cut a stencil of Ben Franklin using an enlarged version of an image of a hundred dollar bill that I created on the computer. Unfortunately  since we were at the lake for Memorial Day weekend we did not realize that the large size and sculpted curves in the deer form would not work well together.  So onto Plan B or is that C now? We decided to reduce the size of the bill.  This meant much more work for less coverage and perhaps less bang for our "buck"?  

So I  used the stencil Shawn made to make a painted print on paper, which I scanned into the computer and re sized to create smaller stencils.  The first large stencil was cut out of contact paper, the smaller stencils were cut out of vellum because it was easier for me to cut them out with the x-acto knife.  More stencils were required because the vellum was less durable than the contact paper and we had reduced the size of the bill meaning more Ben's were required.

 We began to run out of time and energy so the 100's were added to the four corners of the bills.  At this point we decided the look was close enough to get the point across and we moved on to adding dollar signs using stencils of different sizes. Each dollar sign was drawn with pencil and then hand painted.   The process was time consuming and ran us late into the night.  I decided to pull out the glow-in-the-dark paint and painted his ears and spots on the grass.  So YES! He does glow in the dark. 

Sister Heather came to the rescue Saturday along with my teenage niece Taylor Martin.  Shawn also came in from Austin to lend a helping hand.  They all kept working on hand painting the dollar signs, while I began the Pyramid under the right eye.  Lou came in behind me taping the bricks and painting them in. We both worked on the eyelashes or glow around the eye.  

It was Sunday morning early on Father's Day and "Mr. Big Bucks" was due at T Paint and Body for his urethane gloss coat on Monday. We both  looked at each other and decided he was DONE.  We spent the day with my Dad, away from the many shades of green paint and our totally wrecked dining room/paint studio.

"Mr. Big Bucks" is currently grazing in front of Llano National Bank on Ford Street in Llano for the next month or so.  "Mr. Big Bucks" and the rest of the herd are available for purchase through an online, auction-style bidding process that ends February 2011. For details check with Robin  Chiesa 325/247-4963 at Circle on the square Art Gallery in Llano. ALL of the money goes to charity and the continuation of the Trail of the Deer Community Art Project.   If "Mr. Big Bucks" brings his owner/purchaser as much good fortune as he has brought us then he is really worth his weight in gold!!!

Mesquite takes a back seat

Just for now mesquite is taking a back seat on the blog. Our life right now is pretty busy with the Llano Trail of the Deer Community Art Project.  Seven, life sized white tailed deer sculptures made their way to Llano on May 25th.  The project is similar to the The Trail of the Painted Ponies, Cow Parade, Big Boots, and Guitar Town in Austin.

The deer are now living with their selected  artists who are hopefully working hard at making them each works of art.
 
Artists include:

Russell Baros   "Daddy WAR Bucks" 

Ira Kennedy  "Star Buck"

Janet Mason   "Tex"

Lou Quallenberg & Cheryl Quallenberg "Mr. Big"

Gin Schwope   "TBA" 

Llano Art Guild  "TBA"

Artist TBA   "Buck Naked"

Lou Quallenberg Studios has committed to creating one of these babies in a collaborative partnership of Quallenberg & Quallenberg.  It will work fine as long as Lou realizes I am the boss - or maybe just bossy (I'm pretty sure he knows that already though.)

We will not be using mesquite for this project, but who knows maybe next year we will try out a new way to use mesquite on the ever evolving Trail of the Deer Community Art Project.   The painted deer herd will be making their debut the last weekend of June.  Then you can expect to see them at most of the events in Llano or Hunt them down using the online map.  One deer, we are calling him "Buck Naked", has been left unpainted.  He may show up at local events and be set up to fire paint balls at for a few "Bucks".   He will eventually be used as a special commissioned art piece.

We plan to have a Trail of the Deer Coloring Contest for the Schools (Elementary, Jr. High, and High School) in the Fall. We are also looking in to getting table top size deer so more folks can make their own deer.  It is all about getting people interested in ART (and attracting tourists to Llano, Texas.) But all of this takes "Bucks" so please consider helping out with a Donation or Sponsorship.

These wonderful folks have already helped get this project of the ground. 

Colonel Crow's Trading Post

The Dabbs Hotel
Enchanted Rocks& Jewelry
Executive Growth Sam Jones
Frosty Miller Ranch Realty
Llano Economic Development Corporation 
Milagro Massage
 Nailhead Spur Company  
One Trick Pony/ Tres Rios Silver 
Morrison & Mary Smith 

The "Dressed" Deer will all be auctioned off  in the spring and all the "Bucks" raised will go to create an art scholarship, local charity and to help kick start next years "Trail of the Deer Community Art Project."  (We are hoping for 12 Deer  next year!!!)

None of this would have happened if  Robin Chiesa had not put it all on the line and gone for it. She is an amazing woman, full of enough energy to do the work of a committee. Thank you Robin!!

You can read more about our Community Art Project here in the Llano County Journal or here in the Llano News.

Well as many of you know our sweet Louie did not recover last month so we have been grieving the loss of him from our lives. Louie spent much of his time with Lou at the shop so it has been much harder on him losing his buddy. We were not blessed with children so our furry family members help to fill that spot for us. To have that spot emptied in an already fairly quiet home has been very hard on both of us.  The house is quieter now, VERY quiet.  I wrote this one night several months ago when I could not sleep due to the sound effects, in stereo, from Lou and Louie.

I sleep in a room with two large beasts
my ears suffering a ravenous feast.

A high pitch here
A low rumble there
Strange noises that fill the air.

I sleep in a room with two large beasts
hoping the noise will NEVER cease. 

CW Quallenberg 2010

We really miss those sounds and all the sleepless nights it caused. (Watch the video below for a sample)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-zgf2wieHqE




Why Dogue de bordeaux / French Mastiffs? We have been asked why we stick with a breed that has an average lifespan of 5.29 years.  It is a good question especially since we usually miss out on the sweet puppy stage.  Maybe it is that wrinkled scrunchy face, the gentle slobbery nuzzles, the largest head in dogdom, the laid back attitude mixed with a fierce protective mode that most strangers would not challenge, or memories of  the movie Turner & Hooch.   More than likely it is in memory of the two sweet souls we have already rescued and loved and cannot imagine not having had in our lives. When we are ready we will open our hearts and home to another one of these sweet big headed creatures. Until then we mourn the loss and miss the wiggle. We just are not ready yet......