| Project by Mark A. DeCou | posted 1899 days ago | 6946 views | 1 time favorited | 26 comments | ![]() |
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This cane has been “SOLD” and shipped to Wichita, Kansas USA.
Welcome Web Surfers:
If you are surfing looking for a special walking cane on the internet, go toward the bottom of this posting where you’ll find a list of canes that I have built that are ready to ship immediately. Also, there are links to several more customized canes that have already been sold to give you ideas for your own commissioned cane.
You can reach me by emailing to:
mark@decoustudio.com
Or you can visit the DeCou Website
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Photo 1
Project Story:
When I make something to show in a gallery, or store, or art show, I make something I like, and hope that others will also. Since I’m a guy, they sort of look like “guy” canes, at least that is what I have been told. There have been a lot of ladies that have purchased them, but I have also found that many other ladies have turned away, thinking that they were too “masculine” looking for their tastes.
A couple of weeks ago a very nice lady called me asking for me to build her a fancy dress up cane, that she could take out with her to events, and social gatherings. She felt that her late-Husband’s aluminum adjustable tube cane would just not work, and after seeing it, I agreed with her.
She was really embarrassed using her husband’s cane, but she didn’t have anything else, couldn’t find anything else, but stumbled onto my canes for sale in the Hatman Jack’s store in Wichita, KS where she frequently buys hats. So, we made an appointment and she told me exactly what she wanted.
She wanted a classy looking Lady’s cane, made to her size, round and narrow, tapered, with a pretty brass tip, a small dainty handle, and long stem roses carved on the side that were painted, but not too brightly. The roses were to show up, but not be overpowering for the appearance.
I have never carved roses before, but told her I thought I could make it work. I actually had a lot of fun figuring what a rose would look like, and how to carve on a narrow little cane, so that it stuck out from the round tapered shaft. To do this, I started with a round cane blank I made 1-1/2” in diameter, and just removed everything that didn’t look like a cane, or a rose. The roses are carved out of the single block of wood along with the round shaft, they are not glued on.
I spent this week working to meet her design parameters. She was so sweet to work with, that I built a little display stand that she could keep by the door to hold her cane.
Just the Facts:
Wood: Black Walnut
Carvings: Long Stem Roses
Finish: Acrylic Paint, Lacquer, Black-tinted Lacquer
Tip: Brass, turned and polished with a replaceable rubber tip.
Photo 2
Photo 3
Photo 4
Photo 5
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Cane Sample Slideshow: To hear Music, click the Speaker Icon
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More Walking Sticks & Canes:
If you go to my Mark DeCou Website you won’t find very many canes pictured there. I do realize that I need to invest in improving my website, but until that is accomplished, here are few more of my canes posted at lumberjocks, thanks for your patience.
Handmade Finished Canes For Sale, Ready to Ship Now:
ETSY.com Online Shop Inventory: Click Here to Visit my Cane Inventory Page
Some Cane that are Unsold:- Folk-Art Carved Wood Spirit Hiking Stick, Serial N0. 2009-06
- Folk-Art Carved Pirate Face Cane -Serial No. 2005-16
- Folk-Art Carved Mountain Man Face Cane -Serial No. 2006-03
- Fancy Barley Twisted Ebonized Oak & Elk Antler Cane, Serial No. 2009-05
- Rustic Natural Walking Stick, Nanny McPhee Movie Inspired, Serial No. 2009-07
- Fancy Dress Cane, Curly Ambrosia Maple Handle with Black Spiral Shaft, Serial No. 2008-21
- Fancy Dress Cane, Walnut Bamboo Inspired Shaft, Buffalo Horn Laminated Handle, Serial No. 2008-23
- Scrimshaw Artwork Walnut Cane -Serial No. 2008-08
- Red Oak/Black Lacquered Twisted Cane -Serial No. 2008-14
- Red Oak Barley Twist Walking Cane -Serial No. 2008-15
- Walnut Ball-Top Dress Cane -Serial No. 2008-06
- Walnut Cane with Chrome Ball Knob -Serial No. 2008-20
- Carved Thumbstick Hiking Sticks with Composite Malachite -Serial No. 2008-24
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- Bishop’s Carved Walnut Crosier
- Nascar’s Jimmie Johnson Themed Walking Cane
- Carved Oak Leaf Walking Stick
- Folk-Art Smiling Wood Spirit Face Cane w/ Elk Antler Handle
- Folk-Art Carved Wood Spirit Hiking Stick
- Folk-Art Pirate Carved Face Cane w/ Deer Antler Handle
- Cartoon Character Taz, Folk Art One-of-a-kind Art Cane
- Sculpted Wood Spirit Face Cane
- Folk-Art Wood Spirit Cane w/ Elk Antler Handle & Scrimshaw
- Folk Art Mountain Man Face Cane
- Shamrock Wood Spirit Irish-Theme Face Cane
- Walnut Wood Spirit Face Cane with Antler & Turquoise
- Collection of Face Carved Canes
- Moses-Inspired Face Carved Cane w/ Antler & Turquoise
- Shepherd's Stick, Carved Border Collie Welsh-Style Dog Show Trial Stick
- Carved Oak Leaf Walking Cane with Scrimshaw Artwork
- Amazing Grace Music Notes Carved Cane
- A Lady’s Elegant Red Long-Stem Rose Carved Cane
- Prairie Fire Hand-Carved Hiking Thumb Sticks
- A Folk-Art Carved Albatross Head & Snake Walnut Cane
- Carved Folk-Art Walking Cane; 'The Greatest Story Ever Told' Story Stick with Scrimshaw Artwork-
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- Apache Chief Geronimo Folk-Art Face Cane
- Folk Art Native American Face Cane Set
- Apache Chief Cochise Folk-Art Face Cane
- Folk Art Carved Cane of Shoshone Chief
- Indian Guides Chief Big-Red-Cloud Hiking Stick
- Apache Chief Cochise #2 Folk-Art Face Cane
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- Scrimshaw Art Trophy Buck Deer Head
- Scrimshaw Art Walking Cane: Praying Mantis Insect
- Scrimshaw Art Walking Cane: Floppy Eared Bunny Face & Walnut Barley Twist
- Big & Tall Barley Twisted Oak with Scrimshawn Handle
- Walnut & Curly Maple Cane with Scrimshaw
- Scrimshaw Art Walnut Cane
- Fancy Barley Twist with Scrimshaw Cane
- Lady's Dress Cane, Red Oak, Walnut, Black Lacquer, & Scrimshaw Artwork of a Purple Cone Flower
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- Folk-Art Carved Wood Spirit Hiking Stick
- Nanny McPhee Movie-Inspired Crooked Walking Stick
- Naturally Twisted Tree Sapling Cane
- Naturally Twisted Tree Sapling Walking Stick
- Shepherd's Crook Hiking Stick
- Black Locust Tree Sapling Walking Stick
- Red BirchTree Sapling Hiking Stick
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- Fancy Barley Twisted Ebonized Oak & Elk Antler Cane, Serial No. 2009-05
- Big & Tall Walnut & Maple Barley Twist Custom Cane
- Big & Tall Red Oak and Antler with Scrimshaw Monogram
- White Oak Barley Twist Cane
- Osage Orange Barley Twist Cane
- Walnut & Figured Maple Barley Twist cane
- Black Walnut and Spalted Sycamore Barley Twist
- Red Oak Barley Twist with Black Lacquer
- Red Oak Barley Twist with Walnut Handle
- Dress Cane, Oak Barley Twist with Walnut Ring
- Bryan's Cane, The Start of my Cane Journey
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- Pink Ivory and Elk Antler Dress Walking Stick
- Coiled Ribbon Twisted Spalted White Oak with Walnut Handle
- Polished Black Steer Horn Upright Walking Stick
- Mexican Bocote Wood, Elk Antler Handle with Hand-Wrought Fine Silver End Caps
- Fancy Walking Cane, Camphor Burl, Maple, Bubinga, Whitetail Deer Antler, Inlays & Silver End Caps
- Custom Dress-Up Walking Cane, Walnut shaft with a Camphor Burl Handle
- Walnut & Buffalo Horn Twisted Cane
- White Birch & Buffalo Horn Twisted Cane
- Walnut Bamboo-Style Cane with Chrome Ball Top
- Walnut & Buffalo Horn Dress Cane
- Bird's Eye Maple Cane
- Spalted Sycamore Walking Cane
- Walnut Tall Knob Top Opera Cane
- Zebrawood & Walnut Knob Top Opera Cane
- Dress Cane Set, with several Material Options Shown
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What is Scrimshaw Artwork?:
A Scrimshaw Art Journey: What it is & How to Do it; Five Simple Steps to Success
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Click here to go to My Website page with Walking Canes
- Hatman Jack’s Wichita Hat Works in Wichita, Kansas
- Hutchinson Art Center in Hutchinson, Kansas
- Prairie Past Times Antiques & Crafts in Cottonwood Falls, Kansas
You can contact these gallery stores directly and see what they still have in stock. They will ship to you if you buy something. If you prefer, you can also email me, as I keep fairly current on what is “unsold.”
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Background: My Cane Making Story:
I enjoy sculpting walking canes. Some folks call them Folk-Art Canes, while others call them Artisan Canes, some call them Carved Canes, while others call them Walking Sticks. There is quite a bit of argument about whether something should be called Sculpture or Carving. They could be considered Functional-Art, which is the type of work that I am usually drawn to. No matter what these canes are called, they seem to bring joy to the owners, and I have been asked to make quite a few of them in the past 5-6 years.
I started making canes on the request of a nice married couple I met on a church-building short-term mission trip to Mexico City in the early 1990’s. Several years after our trip, their son-in-law was diagnosed with bone cancer, and so they wanted to get him a specially made cane that he would enjoy using. They had heard from others that I had quit my corporate office job and started doing woodworking full-time. So, they contacted me to make his cane.
Sadly, I also built him a casket, another first for me, about a year later
Since the time I did that first Cane for Bryan, I have enjoyed the work on the canes that I have been able to make, but more importantly, the people that I have been able to meet and help along the journey. I do make a bunch of unique items and furniture, but without a doubt, I receive more correspondence and thank-you cards from cane customers than any of the other items I make, combined. So, they are fun for me to build, and I look forward to each new person and situation.
To keep a handle on all of the memories, I engrave a small serial number on each brass cane tip, and then I keep a detailed database log of each cane, customer, and situation. The list always brings me warm memories each time I scan it and remember the folks that have supported my work over the years, and vice versa.
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Still Want to See more of my work?
Start with each of these links, and they will take you to other organized lists of my other niche products:
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(This text, all photos, project design, are protected by copyright 2007-2009, M.A.DeCou, all rights reserved and protected, ask permission first! Weblinks to this page are permitted)
-- Mark DeCou - American Contemporary Craft Artisan - www.decoustudio.com
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26 comments so far
GaryK
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10263 posts in 2156 days
#1 posted 1899 days ago
Mark,
That’s one nice walking stick and a great story.
-- Gary - Never pass up the opportunity to make a mistake look like you planned it that way - Tyler, TX
dennis mitchell
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3994 posts in 2482 days
#2 posted 1899 days ago
Very classy!
Chris
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1850 posts in 2159 days
#3 posted 1899 days ago
wow…. Thanks Mark.
-- "Everything that is great and inspiring is created by the individual who labors in freedom" -- Albert Einstein
Roger Strautman
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626 posts in 2301 days
#4 posted 1899 days ago
What a classy cane. Nice touch of adding the nice stand. Another quality piece by Mark!! Thanks for sharing.
-- " All Things At First Appear Difficult"
darryl
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1785 posts in 2494 days
#5 posted 1899 days ago
as always Mark, you do fantastic work.
This cane is beautiful and sounds like it matches exactly what your client is looking for.
excellent photography as well.
as a side note, I’d still be interested to see how you might incorporate the Celtic Knot design that we penturners use in one of your canes.
Mark A. DeCou
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1947 posts in 2573 days
#6 posted 1899 days ago
Thanks guys for the compliments. I do appreciate the encouragement. I built 18 canes in January-February, but I shuttled them out to stores so quickly I didn’t get any photos. Something I try not to do very often.
Darryl, I’ve looked pretty intently at pen turning to get ideas on what to use in my canes. I have been reluctant to do canes with multiple pieces just counting on glue to hold it. People lean their body weight on the canes, and they also carry them in all kinds of weather, leaving them in cold cars, and then by the warm fire, etc. So, the life of a cane is pretty harsh. Also, the pens have the brass tube that supports the wood, but even then I have seen older pens that were coming apart, and showing splits, and other problems.
Cane design is an interesting thing. I get quite a few questions and comments about canes from the internet. My goal is to introduce something unique, safe to use, comfortable to use, and a conversation piece. I have seen internet photos of canes that looked like stair ballisters with a handle, and others that folks have turned, or whittled, and I have several books on the subject that also offer inspiration.
Recently a guy asked me about a celtic knot carved down the cane in a spiral, and so I looked at it. The cost was prohibitive to him, but it would make a cool looking cane.
So many cane ideas, so little time,
Mark
-- Mark DeCou - American Contemporary Craft Artisan - www.decoustudio.com
Karson
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34369 posts in 2568 days
#7 posted 1899 days ago
Mark. A great looking cane. I’m glad that you are among the living. I talked to Dusty a week ago and he said that you told him you were under the weather for a month.
God bless you brother.
-- I've been blessed with a father who liked to tinker in wood, and a wife who lets me tinker in wood. Southern Delaware karson_morrison@bigfoot.com †
Mark A. DeCou
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1947 posts in 2573 days
#8 posted 1899 days ago
Thanks Karson. I was down for a month with that flu/pneumonia crud going around. Two weeks in bed, and two more weeks just tired and not worth much in the shop.
I feel great now, probably better than 100% of what I was. Why? I cut back on my junk-food and diet soda pop, including M&M’s. I was going to quit the soda pop completely, but I’m back to one can a day now. It is easy to quit soda pop, I’ve quit it hundreds of times.
thanks,
M
-- Mark DeCou - American Contemporary Craft Artisan - www.decoustudio.com
Karson
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34369 posts in 2568 days
#9 posted 1899 days ago
I’m with you on that. Glad that you are better.
-- I've been blessed with a father who liked to tinker in wood, and a wife who lets me tinker in wood. Southern Delaware karson_morrison@bigfoot.com †
Tony
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974 posts in 2198 days
#10 posted 1899 days ago
Nice one Mark!
-- Tony - All things are possible, just some things are more difficult than others! - SKYPE: Heron2005 (http://www.poydatjatuolit.fi)
Scott Bryan
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27262 posts in 1990 days
#11 posted 1899 days ago
Mark,
I agree with the other comments that this a very nice cane. But to me the story behind it is almost as important as the project itself. With these pieces you are are able to follow your dream in life and make a difference in other people’s lives.
This is an inspirational post. Thanks for allowing us to share a small part of your life story.
-- Challenges are what make life interesting; overcoming them is what makes life meaningful- Joshua Marine
Joel Tille
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213 posts in 2412 days
#12 posted 1899 days ago
Very Elegant Cane Mark – The women should have no problem using this one.
-- Joel Tille
cajunpen
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11472 posts in 2234 days
#13 posted 1899 days ago
Outstanding.
-- Bill - "Suit yourself and let the rest be pleased." http://www.cajunpen.com/
Thos. Angle
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4400 posts in 2130 days
#14 posted 1899 days ago
Mark, that is one dandy walking stick. The lady ought to be proud to show it off.
-- Thos. Angle, Jordan Valley, Oregon
teenagewoodworker
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2727 posts in 1936 days
#15 posted 1899 days ago
thats a great cane. who ever bought it must show it off to everyone who she sees. i love the rose on it too. keep up the great work.
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