It started out looking like a good idea....

[KMCloonan]

This past weekend I cast a hybrid blank of willow burl (with some of the bark still on it) and some Amazing Clear Cast resin with blue mica pigment. All was going well until I checked on the blank in the morning, and it looked like the resin had seeped around the sides of the wood blank, effectively lowering the level in the middle, so the thickness of the pool of resin in the middle was more like 5/8" instead of 3/4". So I decided I needed to add a little more resin to bring it up to 3/4", so I made up a small batch of epoxy, but this time I used green Mica powder and poured it on top of the already cured blue epoxy. Well, the blank looked pretty cool, so I cut it into2 pieces for a Baron pen. The result is below.

Part of me was excited at the interesting wood geometry, with a thin peninsula of wood reaching from the cap blank to the body blank. Also, I think the dark rind of bark adds some personality to the blank. The downside it that the epoxy looks awful. It's mottled, it looks like I did not paint the tubes (I did). The light green stripe is not the brass tube showing through - it's a remnant of the green top-off I did to the short blank. It also looks like the blue epoxy is contaminated or something - washed out? just not what I was hoping for. Maybe I need to use more Mica. And definitely no more 2-stage pours.

Anyway, comments, critiques, suggestions are always welcome. Thanks.

 

[Penultimate]

I really like the bark. The doesn't look like a tube to me. I think it looks nice.

 

[PatrickR]

In your pics it has almost a water color effect. I like it And the way the wood flows. The drawback is where the wood ends before the hardware on the lower blank.

 

[KMCloonan]

In your pics it has almost a water color effect. I like it And the way the wood flows. The drawback is where the wood ends before the hardware on the lower blank.

Great point. I should have moved the cut of the blank so the seam landed at the center band. I can see your point about the "water color effect", but it was unintentional- I doubt I could recreate it. Thanks for the comments!

 

[Kcimdrib]

I like it and cant find faults you mention. Looks good well done.

 

[SabertoothBunny]

It doesn't look bad at all. Honeslty, most people wouldn't even notice the gap and thing your talking baout if you don't mention it. We are our own worst critics.

 

[sorcerertd]

Not being able to recreate it is part of the beauty. Obviously, each piece would be different even from the same pour, but this will be even more unique for the technique.

As for critique, it looks great overall. That being said, if I had personally made this, I would be most unhappy with the wood not meeting the center band on the main barrel. Part of the pour does almost appear separated, too, though that adds to the uniqueness. The greenish line, though not intentional, actually looks really good there to my eye.

Overall, it reminds me of the Aquaprase stone. For anyone interested, it is a chalcedony, framed in a matrix. It does have some cloudy sections in it, too. So there you go, something to market that beautiful pen!

 

[howsitwork]

I really like, the result even if you sang easily duplicate it ! thanks for detailing the method though

 

[KMCloonan]

Not being able to recreate it is part of the beauty. Obviously, each piece would be different even from the same pour, but this will be even more unique for the technique.

As for critique, it looks great overall. That being said, if I had personally made this, I would be most unhappy with the wood not meeting the center band on the main barrel. Part of the pour does almost appear separated, too, though that adds to the uniqueness. The greenish line, though not intentional, actually looks really good there to my eye.

Overall, it reminds me of the Aquaprase stone. For anyone interested, it is a chalcedony, framed in a matrix. It does have some cloudy sections in it, too. So there you go, something to market that beautiful pen!

View attachment 317438

That is a very cool stone! Thanks also for the feedback on the pen.

 

[KMCloonan]

It doesn't look bad at all. Honeslty, most people wouldn't even notice the gap and thing your talking baout if you don't mention it. We are our own worst critics.

You may be right. My wife gets exasperated when I point out my mistakes or defects. "No one will ever even notice that" she says.

But I'll know it's there.

KC

 

[KenB259]

From the research I've done, the cloudiness might be caused by moisture in the wood. I have one that looks similar.

 

[sorcerertd]

My wife gets exasperated when I point out my mistakes or defects. "No one will ever even notice that" she says.

But I'll know it's there.

This. All of this. Once you see that tiny flaw you can't unsee it. Most people probably won't notice the little flaws, and they will put a few scratches on the pen in normal use anyway, but I just want it to be perfect. I guess that drives us to practice and learn more.

 

[KMCloonan]

This. All of this. Once you see that tiny flaw you can't unsee it. Most people probably won't notice the little flaws, and they will put a few scratches on the pen in normal use anyway, but I just want it to be perfect. I guess that drives us to practice and learn more.

Yep. Totally agree.