Most everything that I do, I do with someone in mind and/or for some reason. I very rarely make something just to make it. I found a picture a while back that I really liked of a fish jumping up out of the water to catch a dragon-fly. What drew me to this design was the way the water seemed to splash right out of the frame over a log. I had it printed and held on to it until now.

My brother-in-law had a band saw that he never used and it seemed like it was going to waste. I had a feeling he would just be getting rid of it soon, so I called him up and asked him what his plans were for this saw. His response was “I’m taking it to your house!” Perfect I thought! I get a new toy and now I have an excuse to make him something as a way of saying “Thank You!”

It didn’t take me long to remember the fish design that I had stored away for such an occasion as this. I pulled it out and got to work immediately. Once I started this piece, I began to make small changes here and there. The design called for some weeds and cat tails sticking up out of the water. I didn’t like this as much, so I removed them from my plan. I also decided to remove the dragon-fly that the fish was jumping up to grab and I inserted a fishing lure.

Since my brother-in-law is a fisherman, I knew this change would personalize this piece and make all the difference in the world. I wanted it to look like the fish had just been hooked and was being pulled up out of the water. His delight when I gave it to him makes all of this worthwhile and I would consider this a mission accomplished!

I have just finished a new project that I am very excited about titled Longhorn Stampede. One of my favorite artist is Roberta Wesley. I often draw inspiration from her works. She has done a painting called “Day of the Horns” that I am very fond of, and this work inspired me to do a piece that I call Longhorn Stampede. In Roberta’s painting, the thing that draws me to it the most is the fact that the longhorn cattle seem to be running right towards you. To view Roberta Wesley’s work you can visit http://www.wesleyprints.com/index.html

I too wanted to create this illusion in my piece by layering the longhorns so that the very front longhorn is raised out of the picture the farthest and then each longhorn in the back ground is further and further back to created a 3D effect. I did this by starting with the center longhorn and working my way backwards.

I chose to do different types of wood for each longhorn in the piece to give it depth and to make it easier to differentiate each animal. Once all of the longhorns were completed, I then did the background. Like in Roberta Wesley’s painting, I also added a windmill in the background that I feel gives the project more character.

I framed the piece and added some old rusted barbed wire to the frame to give it the western rustic look.

My newest project is of a ribbon butterfly for blood cancer research. I was contacted the other day by a wonderful lady named Jeanne who let me know that she was working with an organization called Team in Training that raises money for cancer research. She contacted me to ask if I would be willing to donate a piece to help raise funds for this cause. I was very honored that I was asked and I am excited that I could do something to help. This is the finished product.

After seeing some of my work, my boss approached me one day with a request for his father. His father’s birthday was quickly approaching and he wanted to do something special. I talked to him about his father’s interest and hobbies because I strive to do something special and that means something for each and every customer. I enjoy seeking out what a customers passions are and incorporating this into a custom design. I think it makes the piece special to each person. I learned that he owns a 1956 Panhead Harley Davidson, and his passion was working on and restoring this bike. I wanted to incorporate this into something for him. I thought for a while on what could be done. I called my daughter who does CAD work and asked her if she could draw up a design for this project. She drew the engine part so that I would have a template, but we could not decide on what else to add.

A few days later while looking over some prints of an eagle, it hit me. I decided to take the design of the engine and add wings to it and the Panhead Eagle design was born. This is one of the largest designs I have created and it is composed of hundreds of small pieces of wood. In the design, there are a few bolts holding the cover in place on the top and front of the engine. Instead of making these out of wood, I decided to actually use bolts. I did this by cutting the stem off of the bolt and just using the top. This adds a lot of character to the piece. This project is one of my favorite creations because of how detailed it is. I was very excited about completing this piece and handing it off to its new owner. The reactions I normally get from my customers seeing their piece for the first time really make what I do worth it. I was later told that this piece is hanging in his shop where he works on his bike. I am always looking for new things to do, and this one was defiantly a very rewarding challenge.

We are proud to announce that our Etsy shop is up and running. This allows us to accept major credit cards and etsy gift certificates. Please visit our newly updated “Intarsia Shop” tab on our homepage to view our updated inventory and purchase items.

We also have a contest drawing going on through Facebook. To enter into the drawing for this Rose intarsia piece you can

1) Subscribe to our Blog at http://www.cmobleydesigns.com

2) Like our Facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/chrismobleydesigns

3) Share our Facebook page with your friends

Your name can be in the drawing multiple times. We will hold the drawing as soon as we hit 200 Likes on our Facebook page.

Good Luck!

Creating custom intarsia woodworking often finds its best design from a story. One stormy day in April, not very different from any other day, tragedy struck in Alabama. My father was out for the morning working as usual. He decided to come home early because there were some reports that bad weather was coming. He could not have gotten home at any better of a time. As he pulled into the driveway, he had just enough time to find his wife, grab a few neighbors, and get into the panic room inside his workshop. Now this room was only built for a few, however, he provided refuge for as many people who could fit including a neighborhood dog.

It only lasted a few moments, but when the chaos was over it was time to leave their shelter and survey the damage. What they saw when they emerged from this tiny room was unimaginable. My father’s home was one of the only still standing in the entire neighborhood. The home had extensive damage, but was still there. The neighbors on both sides lost most everything to the storm. Prior to the tornado, there was a tree farm located directly behind the neighborhood that was the home to some enormous and beautiful pine trees. These were all gone now; they were sucked right out of the ground and broken like toothpicks. The devastation was overwhelming. The search for family, friends, neighbors, loved ones, and pets had begun.

My father and his wife aided in this search and helped as many people as they could. People began to bring food and water for the survivors while rescue parties dug through the rubble of what was once a beautiful community. Even though there was no water, electricity, or telephones, my father and his wife decided to stay in what was left of their home to protect what they had left. Looters drove the streets of the neighborhood preying on those affected by this tragedy. The military sent soldiers in military vehicles to help prevent the looters from taking what they wanted, but it wasn’t enough. A week went by and there was still no electricity or water. The cleanup was well under way and people from all over had come to aid.

About a month after the storms, my wife, kids, and I went to visit. By this time, things had started to calm down and the healing process had begun. I can honestly say I was not ready for what I saw. Even after a month had passed and the sight was nowhere near as horrifying as it had been, I still could not wrap my head around the devastation. The stories that were told of those few days were unbelievable. We just drove around in awe of what had happened. The tornado that hit Alabama and many other states on April 25th through April 28th, 2011 have gone on record as some of the most deadly and costly tornado outbreaks in U.S. history.

After we returned home to Texas from our visit, I was going through old photographs and found one of my father’s home right after it was built. I decided to build him a custom intarsia woodworking picture of his home completely out of wood. I knew this gesture would mean a lot to him. This picture is composed of many very small pieces. This is one of my first true attempts at creating a 3D effect. The balcony and front porch stand out from the picture while the sides of the home are more sunken in. This gives depth to the image. As soon as I finished it, I got it packaged up and sent as quickly as I could. Just a day later I received a phone call from my father. He was overjoyed with what I had completed for him. It now hangs in his newly redone entry way. It has almost been two years since this storm outbreak, and my thoughts and prayers still go out to the victims.

My newest project of a Clydesdale horse and her colt. This project is 202 pieces made from pine, cedar, dark walnut, light walnut, and aspen.
To read the full article about this project and for more pictures, visit my website http://www.cmobleydesigns.com

A few weeks back, I did a horse project for a customer. She sent over a picture of a painting hanging on her wall and wanted a piece done of this painting. I absolutely loved the picture that she sent over and was extremely excited to start this project.

There is a few ways that I could have done this project for my customer 1) Making the pieces follow the musculature of the horse’s body or 2) Having the pieces follow the shading in the picture. I decided to do this piece with option two in having the pieces follow the shading. Both the customer and I were very pleased with how this turned out. The pictures just don’t do the finished product justice.

One of my other customers saw this finished project and wanted one of their own. Instead of doing exactly the same as the other one though, they instead wanted it done with the pieces following the musculature of the horses. I took the same image and created a new design. I was worried that the horses would blend into each other too much, so I decided to use two different colors of wood to help differentiate the horses from each other and their surroundings. I also did the horse’s mane differently in this project. The fished product of this new project turned out exactly as I had hoped. I was striving for a silhouette style look and I believe I achieved my goal.

I enjoy being able to take a photograph of something and doing so many different styles with it. I guess it is all in the way that I interpret a photograph and translate it into wood.

I hope that I get to do another piece such as this soon because I truly enjoyed the experience.
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Epona Celtic Horse Knotwork – Intarsia Woodworking
Epona was a goddess of great strength to the ancient Celts. She is the protector of horses and symbolized understanding, vitality, and Independence. I chose to do this Epona Celtic Horse Knotwork piece because of the beauty in the design and in the meaning.

As I talked about in prior knotwork articles, I have come across several knotwork projects that I am exploring. I found a similar design to this while at a festival and I fell in love how the lines are continuous in the designs and continue to flow in a timeless fashion. After seeing the design, I came home and worked up a plan. I also decided to do some research on the meaning behind the design and I stumbled across a great article about Epona that was very informative by angelfire.com http://www.angelfire.com/journal/ofapoet/epona.html. In this project, it was very important to me to keep the lines flowing as effortlessly as they could. The horses in this scheme denote strength, and I also wanted this to show through in the design. I began this piece by creating the backer. This is made of pine. I then began the cutting. This design repeats itself three times, so I learned quickly that I could cut everything in threes and it would all line up as I reassembled the image. The horses are of walnut and the knotwork is done in cedar. I chose to do these contrasting colored woods so that the knotwork would stand out against the backer. I added some detail to the horses with a dremel to give the horses some more character. This project is constructed out of 161 individual pieces.

This piece was made without a customer in mind, so it has been added to our current inventory and is for purchase at $250.00. If you are interested in this piece, please us the contact us section of our website http://www.cmobleydesigns.com/contact-us for more information.

Also consider following us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/chrismobleydesigns/. We currently have a promotion going on. If you like our Facebook page, you will be entered into a drawing for “The Rose” piece. Each like will gain you one entry and each share will gain you an additional entry into the contest. When we reach 200 likes on Facebook, we will hold the drawing.

I have not given Celtic knotwork much thought in the past when it comes to creating Intarsia pieces until I was asked to do the Celtic Love knotwork piece a while back. The Celtic Love knotwork symbolized everlasting love. Since doing this piece, I have stumbled across a few Celtic symbols that I have really liked and decided to create a pattern for and make. The meanings behind the symbols are beautiful and powerful.
The first of these new designs is this Celtic Tree of Life design. Knotwork is very challenging because there are just so many pieces and each piece has to line up perfectly to keep the lines continuously moving without a stop. I began this piece by creating the backer which is made from pine. I them began cutting out each small piece from walnut and began shaping them.
Then I reassembled the tree. I originally was not going to do any leaves on the tree but I decided to add them afterwards. I did the leaves in cedar to give it a pop of color.
This piece is constructed out of 156 individual pieces.
I think my favorite part of this project is the twisting and turning of the branches and the roots.
To read the full blog check out my website
http://www.cmobleydesigns.com

Chevy Truck – Intarsia Woodworking
The difference between men and boys is the prize of their toys ~ Doris Rowland

I have had the pleasure of doing another truck project. This time it is of a Chevrolet Silverado. A while back, I did an intarsia project of my son’s Ford Boss truck (reference Boss post). One of his friends that he grew up playing football with saw the finished project and wanted one done of his truck. He sent me over a photograph of his truck to use as a template and to make a pattern from.

In the picture, there were a few details such as the chrome grill that he did not want included in the piece. These were very minute details that I just omitted from the design. I took the photograph and sketched out a pattern.
Once I had a good pattern to go by, I cut out the pieces of wood and began shaping them to match the curvature of the body style. On a piece like this, it is very important to capture even the little details in the curvature of the vehicle. If not, this will through everything off. Even though the rims are black and blend into the tire somewhat, I wanted the details of them to show through, so it was important to include as much detail as possible. Again with this piece, I wanted the truck to appear as though it was about to drive right out of the frame. In order to achieve this look, the pieces must be cut at just the right angle to give the picture this affect.

Once I had completed the process of shaping and reassembling the pieces to create the design, it was time for paint.
To add more character to the project, I added the Chevrolet Bowtie and a flame design on the background.

Dopey – Intarsia Woodworking

I just finished up a fun project that I did for a friend. My friend did a neat thing last month; she posted on Facebook a “Pay it Forward” type campaign for the first five people that commented on her post would receive a gift from her within this year. The catch was the people receiving the gift from her had to also post the same thing on their page and pay it forward to five of their friends. As you can imagine, this caught on and spread like wildfire. One of the people that commented on her post is an out of state friend of hers that loves Dopey from the Disney movie “Snow White”. My friend came to me and asked if there was anything that I could come up with for her. I found two different designs of Dopey that I liked, so I decided to do an intarsia style wooden piece for both. This way, she could choose which of the two she liked and then I would sell the other. I did not have any set plans for these, so I had to create one. To do this, I took the image, and hand drew out a preliminary pattern to go by.
I started by cutting out each piece, sanding them all down, and then reassembling the image.

Then it came time for the paint and the backing. This is where I really was able to get creative.

I did this process for both of the designs. After sealing the piece with shellac, they were done.

Doing this project got me thinking about how neat it would be to do all seven dwarfs and Snow White to complete the set. This would be a cute idea for a children’s room or nursery theme.

After my friend chooses which one she would like, the other will be added to our current inventory and will be available for purchase. If you are interested, please use the contact us tab on our website and we would be more than happy to help.

This is the rose that I recently completed. I love how it almost looks like chocolate! It is currently the give away prize on my facebook page. As soon as I hit 200 likes on Chris Mobley Designs, we will hold a drawing to give it away. Each like gets one entry into the drawing and every share will get an additional.
This pattern is by Kathy Wise and was featured in Intarsia magazine. The curvature of the pedals were the main challenge in this piece, but I am very glad with how it has turned out.

Horses – Intarsia Woodworking
One of my recent Intarsia projects is from a painting of horses. The client sent me a photograph of a painting hanging on their wall and requested an Intarsia piece from this photograph. I was very excited to start this one because I loved the picture they sent over.

I started this project by cropping and enhancing this photograph on the computer. There is a few ways that I could have done this project. 1) Making the pieces follow the musculature of the horse’s body or 2) Having the pieces follow the shading in the picture. I chose to go with the second method because both of the horses, ground, and background were all a very similar color and I wanted the horses and the pieces to stand out. It is hard to differentiate between pieces if everything blends together.

I blew up and printed this enhanced photograph out on the plotter so that I would have an actual sized print of the piece.

I then hand drew out each piece to create some plans to go by. This is one of my favorite parts of the process because, when you do not have set plans to go by, you get to create your own. This is where the creative side of me loves to come out.

Once I had something to go by, I headed for the shop. I began cutting out each piece and fitting the picture together. Like most all works, the hair is the most difficult, because the pieces of wood get very small. On this the two horses seemed to blend together and it was difficult to differ one horse from another, so I raised the horse on the left half an inch off of the other to give it more dimension and create a 3D affect.
I used several different types of wood to accent the shading in the painting. Where the sun was shining on the horses, I used much lighter wood and in the shadows, the wood is much darker.

Once the pieces had all come together, I added a background and frame to the image and sealed the wood.
I am glad that I decided to determine the pieces of wood by the shading in this painting. It gives it an impressionist feel to the piece.

I made this piece for my wife. I picked ash, bloodwood, and mesquite. I picked the ash and mesquite because the grains in the wood add so much character to the piece. I picked the bloodwood because of its rich color. I decided to layer the crosses and star instead of doing a flat piece to give it more dimension and stand out.

I am finishing up a fun project that I am doing for a friend of a Dopey from “Snow White”. She did a neat thing last month. She posted on Facebook a “Pay It Forward” type campaign for the first 5 people that commented on her post would recieve a gift from her. The catch was, the people reciving the gift from her had to post the same thing on their page and pay it forward to five more people. This would continue on and on and spread like wildfire as you can imagine. One of the people that commented on her post was an out of state friend of hers that loves Dopey from the Disney movie “Snow White”, so she asked me if there was anything that I could do to help her out with a gift. I decided to make two styles of Dopey in an Intarsia style woodworking and paint them. The first is completely finished, the second is lacking paint and final touches. She will choose between the two on which one she wants and the other will be put up for sale.

I enjoyed my long weekend by working on a few projects. I completed this Lion Intarsia piece that I have been wanting to do for quite some time. I started this piece by doing the face first, then the mane. I cut out all of the pieces in the face and then the hair on the top of the head and worked around the face clockwise. Once I finished cutting everything out, I began the sanding and reassembeling process. I couldnt think of a better way to spend my weekend. This piece was made with no customer in mind, so it is for sale. Message me if you are interested.

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www.cmobleydesigns.com

www.cmobleydesigns.com

www.cmobleydesigns.com