Buffalo Bone Crochet Hook

Dave has created this unique crochet hook from buffalo bone (American Bison from the Cascade Buffalo Ranch here in Oregon). The finial is Cocobolo with a True Stone turquoise accent ring. The length is 5 3/8 inches and is a USA hook size G, 4.00 mm. It has been initialed by Dave, the maker.

Buffalo Bone Small Crochet Hook Size D 3.25 mm

This crochet hook, which features delicate filigree embellishment, was carved from buffalo bone (American Bison from the Cascade Buffalo Ranch here in Oregon). The finial is stabilized Figured Maple with a True Stone malachite accent ring. The length is 5 ½ inches and is a USA hook size D, 3.25 mm. This hook has been initialed by Dave, the maker.

Filigree Holly Bobbin Tatting Shuttle

For Dave, it's not just about MAKING a shuttle......its about CREATING a shuttle! He has carved this 2 3/8 inch lightweight bobbin shuttle out of Holly wood and burn etched the filigree design by hand. The end is inlayed with blue swirl celluloid. The bobbin is a common plastic Singer, available at any Wal-Mart and comes in a 4 pak. It has a #14 steel crochet hook inset in the nose. This tatting shuttle has been initialed and dated by Dave, the maker.

To see more photos of this shuttle, please click on any of the links above.

Ivory and Walnut Small Top Whorl Spindle

Dave really enjoys making these small fancy drop spindles. This one is walnut accented with padauk wood and ancient mammoth ivory. You can really see the beautiful grain in the ivory on the whorl. This piece has been initialed and dated by Dave, the maker, on whorl bottom.

Type: Top whorl
Whorl: 2 inches
Length: 8 1/2 (not including brass top hook).
Weight: 1.0 Oz
Materials: Walnut and Padauk wood and Ancient Russian Mammoth Ivory

Mammoth Ivory Nalbinding Knitting Needle with Rune

A uniquely marked Mammoth ivory nalbinding needle with inlaced brass rune. This Runic symbol is SIGEL, the rune of will. It is that spiritual energy which guides all true seekers. A rune of success. The ivory is at least 10,000 years old. It has been initialed by Dave, the maker. This piece would be perfect for SCA Ren-Faire participants!

Blue Mammoth Ivory Nalbinding Knitting Needle

Rare BLUE Mammoth ivory nalbinding needle with inlaced brass rune. This Rune symbol is EIHWAZ , a very powerful rune of banishing and protection. The ivory is at least 10,000 years old. It is initialed by Dave, the maker. Perfect for SCA Ren-Faire!

What is Nalbinding? According to Wikipedia , Nålebinding (Danish: literally "binding with a needle" or "needle-binding", also naalbinding or naalebinding) is a fabric creation technique predating both knitting and crochet. Also known in English as "knotless netting," "knotless knitting," [1] or "single needle knitting," the technique is distinct from crochet in that it involves passing the full length of the working thread through each loop, unlike crochet where the work is formed only of loops, never involving the free end. Archaeological specimens of fabric made by nålebinding can be difficult to distinguish from knitted fabric.

Hand Carved Buffalo Bone Laying Tool

Dave has hand carved this laying tool from buffalo bone. This American Bison bone is from the Cascade Buffalo Ranch here in Oregon. The finial is stabilized spalted maple with a True Stone lapis accent ring. The length of this hand carved tool is 5 ½ inches. It has been initialed by Dave, the maker.

Hand Carved Wood Spirit Lace Bobbin

Dave made this 4 1/4 inch Continental style lace bobbin out of Walnut and Spalted Maple. The hand carved wood spirit watches over your lace work. It is initialed and dated by Dave, the maker.

Oregon Cascades Myrtlewood Tatting Shuttle Number 18

Dave has been busy lately making his signature Oregon Cascades Myrtlewood tatting shuttles. Thanks to our wonderful customers, he's had to make several all in a row :) He's just finished Number 18 and it is now for sale in our Etsy shop.

Little Swallow Tatting Shuttle

I am SO lost without my laptop!  The Dell repairman will be here tomorrow!  Yea!!!

This little beauty should have been blogged about last week.  The 2 1/4"  American Cherry Wood post shuttle is perfect for tatters with small hands.  Dave has burn etched a graceful swallow on this piece.

Oregon Cascades Myrtlewood Tatting Shuttle Number 17

Number 17 of our signature tatting shuttles has just been added to our Etsy shop! We have such wonderful customers, that these little beauties are selling as fast as Dave can make them and for that we are very grateful.

As always, this myrtlewood tatting shuttle with pyrography has been signed and dated by Dave, the maker.

Celebrating Another Anniversary!

We'll be traveling to celebrate another anniversary this weekend!

In our former lives, we worked and traveled at the pleasure of the Department of the Interior, more precisely the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Over the course of his career, Dave managed some of the largest game ranges in the United States, with the most recent being Malheur National Wildlife Refuge. We spent six years in Burns, which is located in eastern Oregon and is also known as the "Oregon Outback". This weekend, Malheur NWR will be celebrating it's 100th anniversary as a National Wildlife Refuge and we have been invited to attend!

Also, Rogue Ales has released a Great Egret Pale Ale to commemorate this event!

If you try to contact us via email or Etsy convo this weekend, we will reply as soon as we return on Sunday. Thanks to Hurricane Ike, the motherboard for my laptop is still sitting in Houston.

Birch Drop Spindle with Carved Tagua Nut

New, in our Etsy shop!


Birch Drop Spindle with Carved Tagua Nut


Looking for a one-of-a-kind handmade drop spindle? Dave has created this beautiful 9 1/2" long drop spindle from high density Strata-Bond, which is dyed and bonded layers of Birch that has been impregnated with resin under high pressure. This process also makes the wood moisture resistant! The whorl adornment is a intricately carved tagua nut, which is also called "vegetable ivory". The whorl measures 2 1/4" and the weight of this piece is 1.1 ounces. The hook was made from brass. The spindle and whorl were turned together on the lathe to attain optimum balance.

Oregon Cascades Myrtlewood Tatting Shuttle Number 16

Number 16 of Grizzly Mountain Arts signature Myrtlewood tatting shuttle line has just been added to our Etsy shop!

This 2 5/8 inch post style tatting shuttle was handcrafted from Oregon myrtlewood and has been burn etched with our Oregon Cascade Logo. This shuttle has been signed and numbered by Dave. A gift box is included with this item and shipping is FREE within the U.S.

Figured Maple Dragonfly Bobbin Tatting Shuttle

Dave made this 2 ¼ inch lightweight bobbin shuttle out of Figured Maple and then burn etched the dragonfly design by hand. The end of this shuttle is inlayed with dark brown ancient woolly mammoth ivory. The bobbin is a common plastic singer available at any Wal-Mart and comes in a 4 pak. It has a #14 steel crochet hook inset in the nose. This shuttle has been initialed and dated by Dave, the maker.

Happy Anniversary to Us!

September 9, 1978

Where have the years gone??? Dave and I will celebrate our 30th wedding anniversary this coming Tuesday, September 9! The photo above was taken just after we said our "I Do's" atop Elk Mountain, which is located in the Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge. Needless to say, we didn't have very many people who were willing to hike several miles up to the top for the ceremony :)

When we picked Elk Mountain as the place to get married, we were both living on the refuge, Dave was a manager trainee and my Dad was the Chief of Law Enforcement. While Dave and I left to tour the U.S. with the government, my family remained in Cache, Oklahoma, so it's a very special sight to see Elk Mountain looming in the distance when we go back to visit.

What do you think about my wedding attire? Don't laugh!! Those high-waisted pants with the "elephant" bell bottoms are coming back in style! Click on the photo for a closer look at the groovy clothes :)

Now, for a little business! Being the geeks that we are, we will have our laptop with us on our anniversary trip--did I mention we're going to RENO!? All three of our shops will remain open and you can purchase as usual. The only difference will be that any items purchased during this time won't be mailed until Friday of next week.

Drop Spindle Christmas Tree Ornaments

MERRY CHRISTMAS TO MY SPINNING CUSTOMERS! It's never too early to get in the holiday spirit, right?

Dave made this pair of 6 inch drop spindle ornaments with fired ceramic bottom whorls. While they are intended as ornaments for your Christmas tree they actually are fairly well balanced little spindles and surprised me as to how well they spin. Each weighs about 0.5 OZ. Please click here if you would like to see more photos of these unique ornaments.

Don't forget you can click on the photo above to see a zoom view!

Bone and Box Elder Laying Tool

Dave turned this beautifully colored 5 inch laying tool out of bone and dyed box elder wood.

Bone is LEGAL to ship worldwide. We have been having a problem with someone maliciously reporting this item to Ebay for removal. This person has been reported and the matter is being investigated by Ebay so hopefully there will be no further disruptions.

An Open Letter to Our Unethical Ebay Competitor

It's only on rare occasions that I speak out on this blog about personal matters. This time though I think it's necessary.

Everyone knows how cutthroat and competitive Ebay can be when it comes to selling. We have a competitor (who reads this blog, yes I, Jo, am a geek and track everything) who seems to think reporting our items to have them pulled from Ebay, will lessen the competitive field.

I really hate to burst this persons bubble, but ALL of our Ebay listings are LEGAL. Fossil ivory is LEGAL to ship within the US according to Ebay rules and regulations. Even though it is LEGAL to ship worldwide, Ebay only allows the sale of fossil ivory within the US. Bone items, are LEGAL to ship worldwide.

We are busy now responding to our latest item that was removed which was a BONE laying tool. To the person that turned this item in, did you know that YOU can be removed from Ebay for maliciously reporting an item? Well, you can!

Reporting your competitor's items for malicious reasons is NOT a very good business strategy.

Scrimshaw Sailor's Sewing Box

This Sailor's Ditty Box is another one of Dave's project pieces that he's been working on a little at a time.

It features:
*8 ½ x 6 ½ x 4 inch high bent wood oval ditty box (stained and painted).
*Imitation tooled leather lining.
*Intricate wood burned nautical themes.
*Four brass and lathe turned walnut thread spools.
*Four Mammoth Ivory thread ports.
*A scrimshaw Mammoth Ivory 2 x 1 ½ inch oval disk top mounted center piece.

This one-of-a-kind Sailor's Ditty Box is currently up for auction on Ebay. There are several more photos of this piece at the link above.

Beware of Orbit Telecom!!

Just a little FYI!

We've been slammed yet again by a fraudulent telecommunications company through Qwest. this time, it is from "Orbit Telecom" who charged our telephone bill $14.95 for a voice mail service we do not use.

After doing a Google search for this company, I found that many other people are experiencing the same thing on their phone bills. I also found a great link where you can report these types of fraudulent companies online via the FCC.

Use this link to reach the online complaint form for the FCC:
http://esupport.fcc.gov/complaints.htm

Double check your latest phone bill and look for a charge from "Orbit Telecom"! Ours was listed under "Enhanced Telecommunications Services".

We Received Another Award!

It's always so much fun to get an award! Laura, from Any Occasion Boutique, has given our blog the "I Heart Your Blog" award! Thank you so much, Laura! We really appreciate that!

To keep the kindness going, here are 7 blogs that we "Heart":



Rocki's Rock'n Blog

High Desert Diva

Lace-lovin Librarian

Clyde the Mad Tatter

What Rose Made Today

Crazy Aunt Purl

Found Cameras and Orphan Pictures

These are the rules..
1. The winner can put the logo on his/her blog;
2. Link the person you received your award from;
3. Nominate at least 7 other blogs;
4. Put links of those blogs on yours; and
5. Leave a message on the blogs that you’ve nominate

Ancient Ivory Earthenware Pendant

This is a new item for our Good Dirt Jewelry Etsy shop!

This handmade 1 1/4" earthenware pendant is adorned by a beautiful turned cabochon of fossil ivory. The white earthenware clay has been glazed with a dark Malachite green glaze.

A Little Cross Promotion!

We've been doing a little reorganization lately! Our earthenware pendants can now be found in our Good Dirt Jewelry Etsy shop.

Our newest addition to our earthenware line, is our Old Irish Blessing Stone Pendants. These pendants were made to look like the Buckquoy spindle whorl, which was excavated in Buckquoy, Birsay, Orkney, Scotland in 1970. The old Irish Ogham inscription is believed to date back to the 8th century.

If you'd like to see what's coming out of the kiln, please visit our Good Dirt Jewelry Blog!