Okay, I'll *try* to catch-up a bit!

Ceramics Stuff:

Okay, I don't think I'm gonna find time to download and sort through (and comment on!) the gazillion pictures I took during the sessions at Potter's Council, so I'll just summarize the "Demos" we went to while we were there.

First, we got to try Aluminum Foil Saggar-firing with James Watkins. I couldn't find a specific website for him, but found lots of references!

I had created a bunch of plain ol' coasters - hoping to get them into the Saggar - but I was a day late on getting them up to the studio (actually, they loaded the bisque a day early!) so I ended up buying a lovely urn and I saggar'd it instead. I learned some cool techniques about applying ferric chloride (nasty stuff!), copper sulfate, salt, spanish moss and gauze soaked in copper sulfate prior to wrapping the piece in aluminum foil and low-firing in a raku kiln.

I think my urn came out quite nicely (although I wish it had been a piece that *I* created).

Then we attended a session with Sharon Smith. She shared lots of ideas about surface textures - which was cool. And "re-purposing found items" which - at times - seemed a little "Out There." But I truly enjoyed her presentation and "Think Outside The Box" methods. Her stuff is mostly made with paper-clay and is low-fired, so I didn't come away with a whole lot of stuff that I would use (I tend more toward mid-fire or high-fire - and more "functional ware").

Margaret Bohls does extremely "detailed" work with slabs rolled onto gridded plaster molds. Her stuff is amazing and she's definitely got the "Engineer Mindset" kickin'! I don't think I could hold my attention-span "still" long enough to crank out the kind of stuff that she makes, but it is amazing and I did come away with ideas for creating textured plaster molds.

Jake Allee is extremely "high-energy" and I really enjoyed watching his demo. He starts his pieces by throwing on the wheel, then de-constructing and re-constructing thrown forms. While I'm not a huge fan of the wheel, he did "inspire" me to buy a small wheel because - let's face it - there's some stuff you just can't achieve using slabs alone (and I think I can handle throwing a cylinder or two!).

I think, by far, my favorite presenter was Claudia Reese. She does simply amazing things with colored slip on wet slabs - with a bit of "finish work" on the wheel. The colors on her pieces are absolutely breathtaking! Almost 3-dimensional! Her work is mostly mid-fire (which I can handle). Some of her pieces are almost too "busy" for my tastes (lots and lots of patterns!), but I came home and immediately started working on a set of 4 plates that were inspired by her "style."

Currently, I'm working on a set of 4 square, footed plates - using paper-shredder poopies as sort of a "reverse stencil." I don't have colored slips mixed up yet, so I'm working with under-glazes. Here are some pictures of the first plate (the other three will utilize the same colors - but in different configurations). Unfortunately, I've only gotten 3 plates done, so far - and I've run out of underglaze (Oooops!). I have to wait until my order arrives before I can work on the last plate. Then I *hope* to get them all fired at the same time (and, maybe even in the same part of the kiln!) so they'll mostly match!

Studio Update:

Nope. Still not done :-( I started painting the kiln corner with a bunch of random greenery. Haven't finished it yet, but I will - SOON!!!

Garden Update:

Oh my Goodness - is my garden looking HAPPY! I am stunned and amazed - given the utterly crap-tastic weather we've been having (low 60's fergawdssake!). One good thing about cool-ish weather is that it's not too terribly challenging to complete my garden chores! I did manage to plant my herbs into last years' upside-down planters on the patio.

I left one of the tomato plants, hanging upside-down, in the planter. Bear in mind that last season was an utterly suck-tastic year for tomatoes and I don't think I got squat. But, so far, this year it's looking surprisingly promising!

My Birds of Paradise and Cannas are also looking quite spectacular! In fact, I think I need to dig and divide the BOPS because they are outgrowing their planter!

Wandering back to the Garden-Garden... Fruit trees are looking *quite* happy!

Early-Bearing White Peaches (Early-July, maybe??)

Santa Rosa Plums (No Satsumas this year, unfortunately)

Yellow-Peaches - should be ready around August

As are the raised beds....

Brandy-New Raised Bed #1

Bed #2 - lookin' good!

Ooh! Green Beans ready to harvest already!!

And even the Straw-Bale Bed is kind of surprising me. I did lose all but two of the lettuce plants (too hot across the front bale). And all of the sunflowers are gone (not sure why). Ditto the Straw-Bale Beans. But two tomato plants and two squashes (not sure which kind) are still hangin' in there!

I still have a 6-pack of corn to plant - and no place to plant 'em, so I think they'll end up in the Straw-bale bed. No clue how/if they'll work - but I've *yet* to harvest any corn - despite my repeated attempts at growing it!

Anyway, I think the Straw-Bale Bed is not going to be a complete failure. So that's encouraging!

Hopefully we'll start to get some halfway decent weather in the weeks to come. Hell, we haven't even been able to open the pool yet! (I want my money back!!!!)

Oops. Falling behind again!!!

Damned Real-Life keeps getting in the way of blogging!

The last blog post was actually me screwing around with a "Review" page on CSN Stores (it worked, obviously! But I don't think I'll be doing it again). And, of course, the "Cheater-Post" of sharing the Viral Video of "Ultimate Dog Tease" (which I *still* find hysterical!).

Last weekend, I was at a Potter's Council Conference in Temple, TX (Yee-Haw). I think it was called "Inspired Surfaces" or something like that - and I learned some stuff and got TONS of inspiration (and laughed my @$$ off - since I was traveling with P). Annnnnd, I bought myself a prezzie! I bought myself a little baby potter's wheel - not because I want to throw pots (I don't like throwing on the wheel), but because I learned some cool "other" applications for a potter's wheel. And it was Super-Cheap @ the show (like, appx $300.00). It should arrive sometime next week :-)

I'll have to download my pictures from my Droid and post some notes about the conference...

I've also *mostly* finished the studio and have also converted it to my "Home Office." Again, pics will be forthcoming. (But no - I still haven't finished the "Kiln Korner" and my kiln *still* isn't out there! Hopefully, this weekend....)

The cool part about having my office out there is: if I'm on a Conference Call where I *don't* have to talk - I can, umm, "multi-task" and work on some of my stuff (Shhhhh! Don't tell my boss, k?!). In fact, there was a Team Meeting this week (for the Development Team - not MY Team - and it was just "informational" anyway!), and I managed to squish out two new plates and a bowl during that call. I would *never* do that on a Client Call, but for "blah-blah-blah" informational meetings, I don't see a huge problem with it (especially considering that - previously - during those types of calls, I'd be playing Bejeweled Blitz on Facebook!) (Again, Shhhhh!!!).

The other cool thing about working out there is: It's just so damned PLEASANT! I can open the windows, get some fresh air, listen to the birds chirping, look out and watch my garden grow (Damn - is my garden HAPPY!) (Yes, need to take pics of that, too!). Annnnd... Don't get me wrong! I *do* work out there, too! I've got a desk, laptop, printer, land-line, and basically everything I need to perform my job functions. Annnnd I am "Ergonomically Correct" dammit.

All of the California "Home-Shored Associates" had to have "Ergonomic Assessments" from an outside contractor (probably because some dipsh*t sued somebody because of their own stupidity - but I digress!) - and I passed with [mostly] flying colors. The only humunha-humunha suggestion the Ergo-Dude had was to rig-up a docking station and full-sized monitor on my midget-desk. I *insisted* that the company did give me a docking station + monitor, but that I preferred to leave them at the office. I do have a keyboard/mouse set-up on an ergonomic pull-out tray with wrist-rest. I use my laptop as my monitor (at eye-level thankyouverymuch). "I don't *want* any more equipment out here because this is - first-and-foremost - my Art Studio!" "At the end of the day, I shut-down my laptop and bring it into the house - along with any paperwork that requires shredding." Any and all horizontal surfaces in the shed are used for my artistic "Works In Progress." Any monitor, left out there, would take up space and would - most likely - get destroyed b/c I generate a LOT of clay-dust. He blah-blah'ed about the laptop monitor not being big enough, and I pointed out that I could see/read it *just fine* and - if I wanted to, I could move the entire laptop CLOSER to me. So he made whatever notes he deemed appropriate, took a few measurements, snapped a picture of my desk, and proclaimed that my work-station seemed to be -ergonomically - fine. Then he went on his way (Yay!).

(I found the entire experience to be pretty annoying - to tell you the truth!)

Anyhoooo... I thought I had time to post a "real" blog-post but My Beloved has come home from work now, so I'll have to finish up later (maybe while I'm out in my Studio/Office!).

THREE-DAY-WEEKEND coming up (Yay!!!) - With Crap-Tastic Weather forecast (Boo!!!)

My Review

Originally submitted at CSN Stores

Very Nice - Very Tropical!

By imqtpi from San Jose, CA on 5/10/2011

 

5out of 5

I was pleased to learn that, yes, it does open and close. The 9-foot model is easier because it has a pulley system (the 7-foot does not).

And, with a little bit of sawing or filing, it will fit in a standard umbrella stand. The pole is natural bamboo so depending on where the "joint" is, you might need to cut a few inches off the base. In fact, the umbrella is *very* tall, so you'll probably want to shorten it anyway (height is not adjustable).

I bought the 7' umbrella first, but I found it wasn't quite big enough to shade our Tiki Bar (it seems a little less than 7' in diameter - more like 6'. But I haven't measured it).

I ended up buying the 9' umbrella for the Bar, and I moved the 7' to our outdoor dining table.

Overall, I am very satisfied. I love them and hope they can withstand our blazing summer sun and last more than a year or two (they will be stored in winter)...

7-foot umbrella on our Tiki Bar

Tags: Using Product

9-foot umbrella - underside view

Tags: Picture of Product

(legalese)

Too funny not to share!

It's gone viral - but in case you haven't seen it...

I've watched it at least a dozen times and *still* laugh every time...

Whoever made this is a genius!

Moving in!!!

Finally!!!

OMG - It's starting to look like a Studio!!!

Disclaimer: I'm on the Netbook - in the studio - so I assume no responsibility for fat-finger spelling errors!

So the Big Studio Project "officially" started on January 15, right? That's when I went to "look" at sheds and started clearing the building site...

May 8 - The Studio is "mostly done!" Jeez - I had *no* idea it would take this long!!!

It's not "completely" done yet b/c I haven't finished painting Artsy Fartsy Sh*t on the Kiln Korner wall, nor attached the heat-shields to the walls, nor dragged the kiln in - yet. But I have got Studio Furniture (including the Slab-Roller) set-up, so The Studio is "functional!"

Good thing, too, because production has come to a screeching halt. And I've got to have some bisque-ware ready for the Potter's Council Workshop in less than 2 weeks!

So, I dragged my slab-roller in, and excavated a set of shelves from our Storage Shed and set 'em up in the Backyard Studio today (Yay!). I'm glad I took/posted all those pictures *during* construction because I have officially *lost* beach-access now!!!

I knew the shed was gonna end up shrinking! *sigh*

Anyway... The whole idea behind The Studio and my Ceramic Arts Krep is that it's *supposed* to be all Stress-Free and Relaxing, right?! So why am I freaking out about getting the studio *completed* and cranking out new projects?! Well, I paid a handsome sum of cash for the Potter's Council Weekend in Temple, Texas. And I need to have some bisque-ware ready for a "demo" of Saggar Firing (something I've already done!). Nevertheless, I do want to "get my money's worth" out of it, so I *did* want to bring some suitable bisque-ware.

P felt I should squish-out a vase for the Saggar Demo. And I agree, vases are far more desirable for Saggar-ware. But I just didn't have the patience (or energy!) to squish out a vase today (and whatever-I-make has to be ready for bisque-firing no later than Tuesday - if I want to have it ready for Potter's Council!), so screw it! - I made 9 Drink Coasters today! They're small, ridiculously easy, lightweight, and should travel-well in my "weekender" bag! (Hopefully, no breakage - but that's why I made 9!).

Yep. My first "official" creation in The New Studio was a set of 9 cheesy, no-brainer drink coasters!!!

Drink Coasters: *Yawn!*

But, I made 'em with my newly-set-up slab-roller; Tunes blaring on the Monster-Boom-Box (with Mega-bass that makes the floorboards rattle!); and a fresh, sugar-free Margarita at my side. So I'd have to say that, yes, "Life... Is Good!"

*That's* what it's all about!!!

Garden Update:

Sorry - no pics!

Raised beds are doing great. All plants appear to be fat 'n happy - Yay!

Straw-Bale Bed: I've lost all, but two of the lettucesesesezzzz. I should've kept them planted on the left-hand bales (shady side of the bed). Oh, well! I also lost one (possibly 2) of the sunflowers. And my pumpkin (or one of the squashes - can't tell!) is floundering miserably. The Straw-Bales just don't seem to hold water, so they require a lot of supplemental watering - even though I've had Rog bump-up the watering schedule to 5 mins/twice a day. Fortunately, I seem to generate a lot of water from the shed (A/C unit dumps water into a bucket) so I've been keeping it on "Life Support" for the time-being. We'll have to see how this pans out...

Boating Update:

We hired "Jack the Rigger" to rig up some Lazy-Jacks for Das Boot.

Lazy-jacks, for you non-boatie types, are a series of lines rigged-up to the boom and mast of the boat that help "guide" the mainsail down in a somewhat neat-and-orderly fashion. Typically, when we want to drop the sails, the wind is howling at 25+ knots, and it's kind of difficult to handle a jillion yards of fabric, dropping down on the cabin-top in high winds (and the risk of knocking the skipper overboard in such conditions is rather high!).

See, I remain at the helm, "pointing" the boat "into" the wind (to minimize the blowing of said jillion yards of fabric off to one side). Skipper Rog is on the cabin-top trying to "contain" the sails using bungee cords. All told, it's a messy affair! Lazy-Jacks oughtta minimize the drama!

Dropping the mast

So Jack-the-Rigger showed up and started rigging-up the Lazyjacks while I was down below, attempting to glue the teak-and-holly flooring panels to the floor.

Lazy Jacks, deployed...

Lazy Jacks, stowed

We brought 6 x 2.5 gallon jugs of water to "weigh-down" the floor while the adhesive set.

I can't remember whether I'd blogged about this previously (I probably did!), but I was kinda hoping that the T&H floorboards would "adjust" to their new home after a week aboard. They didn't and they were still somewhat "warped" compared to the fiberglass flooring in the boat.

So I decided to tackle it one floorboard-section at a time. I started with the "forward" floorboard (figuring that one would see less "traffic" overall, since you have to hunch-down like a gnome to walk on it!). I glopped it with a generous amount of adhesive and piled all 6 jugs (120#+) on top of it, hoping the adhesive would "set-up" and the floorboards would conform to the shape of the fiberglass flooring beneath it.

Not sure, yet, if it worked. But I am hopeful.

Anywaaaaaayyyy... All told, it was ANOTHER friggin' busy weekend!

Oooh! Fishnet!

Okay - Post-Post Update.

Had to do it in a separate post 'cuz damned if I can figure out how to tag a new photo at the *end* of a post!

Here is the "front wall" triangle up over the palm matting, and the ceiling with my Fishnet Treatment. I *think* I like it (I'll probably like it better with more Tchotchkes!)

WooHoo Bamboo!!!

Studio Update (again!):

Today I am trying yet a *different* methodology. I am blogging from my Netbook which has a teeny little keyboard (which is maddening for my Fat Fingers!). I may blog here, then go back and edit on my laptop! Any spelling errors *will* be attributed to fat-fingering!!!

Soooo... Good Neighbor, Brian, originally re-did my texturing on the walls of the shed. And he did a FANTASTIC job! I paid him for it - of course - and he insisted that I had overpaid him (for doing Double-Work? Scraping off someone else's crap and starting from scratch?!), so he told me he'd put up my door-frame - Gratis - whenever I was ready.

In the meantime, I'd gotten all Artsy Fartsy on the walls. Then - Oh Irony! - I ended up covering up 80% of his "Professional" texture job with woven palm mats and reed fencing! Gotta love it!

Anyway, he caught me in the front yard last week and reminded me that he was willing to put-up my door frame and I did the "Ummm... Errrr... There's been a change in plans" routine. I told him that I decided to skip the "proper" door-frame and wanted to go with bamboo instead. "And, actually, I've made a lot of changes to the walls and I really could use some ideas and your professional opinion/suggestions on what to do next! Wanna come see?"

"Sure!"

And we trudged over to my backyard. He walked in and immediately yelled "Holy Sh*t!!"

My knee-jerk reaction was "Oh NO! What's wrong?!" (or else "He's pissed that I covered up his texture job" or whatevers!).

"Nothing's WRONG" he replied "This is f*ckin' AWESOME!!!"

And I smiled.

"Seriously! It's like you're in the f*ckin' Caribbean or somethin'! Did YOU do this?!"

And I smiled even bigger.

So I showed him the bamboo slats and told him I wanted to use them for the door-frame and chair-rails and baseboards. Then I showed him the windowsills where I had "wrapped" the palm mat around the edges, but - in spots - I had cut it too short, and - in the corners - the mat didn't cover fully. "Is there some way we can disguise the raw edges using bamboo?"

So - long story short - Brian said he was up for the task. He came over (with his power-tools YAY!) the last 2 nights, after work, and did a fan-freaking-tastic job of "finishing" the shed with the bamboo slats.

At first, he was freaking out because the slats were thinner/thicker in spots (Hell-OH? It's Bamboo?!) and things weren't matching up perfectly. I kept reminding him "It's a Tiki Shack!"

And, as Tiki Shacks go, this one is pretty damned cool!!!

Chair rail -getting installed near the back (beach) wall.

Bamboo chair rails - getting installed.

And you can see how the "raw edges" of the palm mat in the windowsill are kinda "problematic."

Brian's Most Brilliant Idea for covering up the raw edges of the Palm Matting!

Freaking awesome!!!

Kiln corner and A/C unit (I need to get a longer hose for the A/C) -

and I need to decide what kinda Artsy-Fartsy sh*t I'm gonna do on the wall

(since I don't want to tack "combustibles" on this particular wall!)

Finished corner

Same corner, showing baseboards and flooring

Okay! So things are nearing completion! Next: I've decided to stick with the "open-air beach-side bar" theme. I'm going to paint the sky on the front wall on the "triangle" above the palm matting.

For the ceiling: I originally thought I was gonna put reed-fencing up there, or else a faux-bamboo paint treatment, but I decided that might "darken" things too much in there. Instead, I am gonna stick with the plain white ceiling and, instead, staple some cheesy fake fishnet (with seashells and assorted Tropical Tchotchkes woven throughout) to the ceiling. Everywhere *except* directly above the kiln (kiln+combustibles, ya know?!).

For the kiln wall: I think I'm gonna stick with some sorta Artsy-Fartsy paint treatment. Maybe continue the beach and the sky, and add some Tropical Plants and/or small Tikis painted on the wall... I need to hit HD again for some Green "Oops" paint (or else have some Custom Colors mixed up)...

"Almost There!" (she says for the jillionth time!!!)

Veggie Garden is Planted and Studio is Coming Along!

Okay, I'm trying to update the blog using a slightly different methodology.

Usually, I blather incoherently for an hour or so, *then* I attempt to upload photos and insert them into the appropriate slots.

This time, I'm uploading pictures first, then blogging "around" them! (Uploading and positioning pics using Blogger is kind of a pain, I've discovered!) Not sure if this is gonna work, but I'll give it a try!

Gardening Update:

As of this past weekend....

Straw-bale bed is planted! Internal temperatures have stabilized around 75-80* and the bales are - more-or-less - starting to break-down, so I figured I'd start planting...

First, I ran a 1/4" Soaker line off our drip system. I needed to run a 1/2" line behind the studio to get it *to* the straw-bales, then I tapped off of that line with a 1/4" line, added a "T" connector and made, essentially, a "loop" with the 1/4" soaker-hose line...

Okay. I've got water! *Now* I need plants! I used a straight weed-puller hand-tool to jab into the bales, wiggled it around, and managed to dig some planting holes. I probably could have just as easily used a narrow trowel, but the pokey-weeder tool was what I had at-hand...

Pokey Weeder Tool, jammed into the straw-bale bed

Some sections of the bales were easier to "jam-into" than others, but it worked just fine for 6-pack sized seedlings, as well as some of my 3" pots... I wouldn't attempt anything larger, however...

One mistake I may have made (Oops!): I laid the strawbales down "flat" so the strings run around the bottom and top of the bales. In Googling "Straw-Bale-Beds" I have discovered that I probably should have stood them on their sides (so that the strings run around the front-side and back-side - rather than resting on the ground). One advantage to having them on their sides is that it would be a heckuva lot easier to jam planting holes into them since the "alignment" of the straw would be more vertical. Not sure if that makes any sense - but it's the best explanation I can verbalize!

Anyway, "It Is What It Is" and I'll make the best of it! I started out planting a 6-pack of lettuce, across the front of the bales:

Baby Lettuce planted in front bale

I planted taller stuff towards the back. Three Sunflowers, a tomato and some beans. I planted a pumpkin on the right-hand, "sunny" side of the bales...

There really was no rhyme or reason to my planting scheme. I just start jamming stuff in "hither and yon" and we'll just see what happens! (That's the beauty of "Experiments!").

OTOH - I'm thinking I probably should've stuck the lettuces on the left-hand side since they prefer cooler temps and that side is probably going to remain mostly shady. "Oh, well!"

Straw Bale Bed is all planted!

At the same time, I started tackling the new raised beds. All of my "warm season" veggies got planted here (and anything I couldn't find room for ended up in the straw-bale beds!). I also open-sowed a row of carrots and radishes in each of the beds. Annnd, I added a row of Marigolds across the front of each bed - because I've heard that they repel pests (we'll see about that - but it certainly can't hurt to try!)

Starting to plant raised beds...

Again, I added 1/4" soaker lines to both beds - this time in a Figure-8 pattern (seemed like the best way to cover the largest area). Somehow-or-other, I ended up with SEVEN tomato plants - all different colors, and all are "heirloom" varieties. I'm a little nervous about that since I've not had the best of luck with heirlooms - but we'll see!

Drip-lines installed and veggies (and marigolds) are planted!

Planted and mulched!

Again, there is no rhyme or reason to my planting scheme. I just planted whatever I had - wherever I could find room! And I think (hope) I was successful in not "crowding" my plants - this time around!

Yes, I know those are cheesy/lame tomato cages! I've attempted to "beef them up" a bit with stakes driven deeply into the ground. And - who knows - maybe *this* year I'll manage to make a half-assed attempt at pruning/pinching the 'maters back so they don't become completely unruly!!!

Studio Update:

In spite of Tazz's "surprise" surgery, I have still managed to make SOME progress on the studio!

I believe, where we last left-off, I had stapled some woven palm-mat to one of the walls. I was *hoping* to acquire some half-round bamboo poles, but my (semi-) local supplier was sold out with no planned deliveries until late May - *sigh.*

Well, Google found me another supplier and - let me tell you - I was *totally* jazzed beyond comprehension when I found this site! No glory or reimbursement to be had from sharing: Tiki Shack Importer. I am just WAY thrilled with their stuff, their prices, and SPEEDY delivery!

I placed my first order on, like, a Friday (I think) and it was delivered the following Tuesday! And their prices include shipping! Yep - I am thrilled!

So anyway, I bought the woven mat for the walls from them. Very happy with it!

Then I went back and bought some bamboo slats for chair-rails/baseboards/door-frame/whatevers... It arrived quite speedily - and it's awesome stuff!

Ooh! Bamboo!

So then I continued on my quest to cover the walls with Tacky Tiki Sh*t:

Progress is happening!

(I still need to staple-down the matting into the windowsill)

No, Really! It *is* progress!

So I've got the top half of the walls covered (figuratively *and* literally). Now, for the lower half (actually third), I remembered that I had a roll of bamboo-reed fencing, stashed in my storage locker. It's 6' tall x 16' long. So I dragged it out, thinking I could cut it down to size and staple it to the bottom third of the walls as wainscoting:

Reed fencing - needs to get cut down to half-height.

Google revealed that I should probably use a big ol' honkin' miter saw to cut the fencing down to size. But I didn't want to do that. I ended up using a wimpy little girly-hacksaw to cut the reed fencing in half. Nope. Not the straightest or neatest job in the world, but I plan on putting up bamboo "chair rails" to hide my shoddy hack(saw)-job! One "smart" thing I did: I left the rolled fencing *in* it's plastic shrink wrap and it actually did make the job quite a bit easier!

First look at reed-fence "wainscoting:"

Nope. I don't like this. Looks like the lady forgot to wear her slip!

What to do? What to do? Oh, I know! I think I have a gallon of "Oops" paint that is "fairly close" to the tone of the woven mat... Let's see, shall we?

Craptastic Paint Job.

But the "Oops" paint is a damn close-match, I think!

Yup. I do believe that this might work! So I slopped-on a light coat of paint....

Reed fence over "Oops" paint

Yup. I think this is gonna work!

After confirming the match was "Close enough for Government Work," I continued...

Then I stapled the reed-fencing over the crap-tastic paint!

Reed fence "wainscoting" over crap-tastic paint

Yup. This'll work! Then I held-up a piece of bamboo-slat "chair-rail" as Proof of Concept:

Bamboo Slat Chair-Rail

Yup. This is *definitely* gonna work! Now my neighbor, Brian (same guy who did the "final" texturing), has agreed to come over and help me with the bamboo trim-work. I want to use the bamboo slats around the door-frame, *in* the window-frames, and as base-boards and chair-rails (Gawd, I hope I bought enough!!!). He's coming over tomorrow to help me out.

Yayyyyy!!! I think the Studio is just-about DONE! Halle-freaking-lujah!!!