Persian Cat Functional Art Now A click Away

Having released one dog doorknob as an item that can be purchased online, we needed to placate the cats and have now set the Persian cat to follow in the footsteps of the English Bulldog.

Jackson, our feisty and loving Pitbull is ambivalent when it comes to cats, when stationary he finds them curious but when running his baser instincts show themselves. Martin has rationalized that all a cat needs to do in Jackson’s company is remain still but he failed to tell this to Arlo on a recent outing to Paso Robles but thankfully the diligent cat owner intervened to end the pursuit. Unlike Jackson, Martin Pierce does like cats, and we share a special fondness for the Persian variety.

As with our English Bulldog we are rolling out the  Persian cat door knocker, leash hook, door pull and non-turning dummy knobs  all of which are easily installed using  basic tools and by following our installation guide. The doorknob set at present can only be purchased by contacting us by email or phone as we need to ensure the set is correctly installed by a professional and the correct type of latch is supplied and would prefer to chat with you to trouble shoot the installation. While the simple tubular latch is easy  to install and is included with the door set, customers will first need to check that their door stile is wide enough for the 3” backplate and assess whether their existing knob set has a square or rounded edge faceplate, hence the need for more direct contact with the consumer.

The Persian cat is one of the oldest cat breeds and as its name suggests was bred in Persia the former name for Iran. The breed is distinguished by its snub nose and bulbous cheeks which lend it a comical and youthful countenance. Clearly soft and cuddly, this breed has sturdy legs and a thick body, and seem content  to lounge around  and be indulged by their doting owners.

Bunny Door Handles

If you are fortunate to live in the Hollywood Hills or close to Griffith Park then you will know that our bunny population is thriving. The desert cottontail bunny is our local variety and one I encounter without exception when taking the hill trail east of the Hollywood reservoir. Though they do not have social burrows they tolerate other cottontails which may explain why I often encounter 2 or 3 at a time.

As there name hints these small mammals are able to endure extreme heat and they thermoregulate by staying underground and limiting their foraging to dusk,dawn and night when it is cooler and hopefully they are less visible to predators.

Bunny from the Netsuke Collection of Animal Door Knobs

While they appear prolific they have short life spans or 12 to 18 months and are easy prey for the snakes, bobcats, coyotes owls and other predators whose habitat they share.

In the spring and summer cottontails feed on grasses, green shoots and leaves and the flowers of poppies, bush sunflowers, bluebells and any other flowering plants within their limited reach. In winter they turn to tree bark, seeds and berries and to aid the extraction of nutrients from these cellular fibrous plants they re-consume the food once it has passed through their digestive tract.

Unlike most rabbits, the cottontail does not dig it’s own burrow but appropriates the abandoned dwellings of ground squirrels. Once acquired the burrow for the does will be lined with fur from her body and soft vegetation to form a suitable nest for the 5 litters that the doe typically will have during her short life.

Bird inspired door handles

Even a modest garden can provide an abundance of stimulus for the patient artist. An avid bird watcher knows that patience and stillness are the main requirements for successfully observing and photographing these garden gems. But even stillness may not be enough to take a snapshot  of nesting Bewick wrens who are on their guard for anything suspicious. To take this shot, Martin Pierce had to hold his iPhone to the side of his head and avert his eyes from the subject.

Photograph by Martin Pierce

A long 400mm lens is also useful and allowed Martin to capture this from a safe distance.

Photograph by Martin Pierce

The bird house was made by Martin 10 years ago, but this is the first time Bewick wrens have turned it into a nest. Possibly the dilapidated nature of the box and debris of leaves and spiders’ webs were exactly the type of décor needed to make a less conspicuous  home. As Bewick wrens typically mate for life and return to the same nesting ground Martin is hoping to see the generations that may follow.

While observing and photographing birds is undoubtedly a rewarding past time, they are for Martin an endless source of inspiration.

When I looked back at some of Martin’s old sketch books it came as no surprise to find these quick sketches.

Living in the Hollywood Hills we  often see red tail hawks who prey on rodents and lizards which are abundant. The image below shows a red tail hawk carrying a squirrel in its talons and being pestered by a crow.

Date of Original Sketch 1990’s

Here crows are shown in flight and again mobbing  a red tail hawk.

Date of Original sketch 1990’s

 Bulbuls that are not native to California can now be seen on a regular basis in Hollywood and Martin’s patience paid off recently when he was able to catch this shot.

Photograph by Martin Pierce

While I have not seen any recent additions to his current sketch book he has divulged that a bird may soon make it to his drawing board as a model for a new Netsuke door knob. That said, the blue jay may also be a contender albeit the scale will have to be significantly reduced from the current large door pull.

Art in Nature

The Art in Nature

Were we trying to trace the origins of many of the plants and trees at Huntington Gardens? There were times when our trip to Japan felt like a comparison with the beauty closer to home. 

 We visited Tokyo, Kyoto, Nara and Kanazawa destinations all linked by the respect for nature evident in the countless public gardens regardless of the density of the local population. Case in point being the Shinjuku Gyoen Garden and east gardens that flanked the Imperial Palace in Tokyo, a megalopolis of 37 million inhabitants. 

Japan is correctly regarded as the home of the Cherry tree, hardly surprising for a country that has over 600 varieties of Cherry Tree and that celebrates the blooming in April with “Hanami”  a word that translates to the viewing of Cherry blossom, a custom that the Japanese generously share with many US and European visitors.

 All 4 locations had wonderful examples of the most prolific Yoshiro Cherry tree revered for its smaller pale flowers and of the Kanzan Cherry with dark pink flowers and a tree that we also see in Los Angeles.

Shinjuku Gyoen Garden Tokyo

Yoshiro Cherry Tree Asakusa Area Tokyo

The artistry of the public gardens is made possible by the skill and aesthetic that arborists and gardeners bring to their daily tasks. These artisans have a sensibility that follows the natural inclination of the trees and plants they tend. The gardens that result are organic, balanced and beautiful and do not appear contrived or formal.

Grounds at Todai-ji in Nara

Finer Details

The Buddhist temples from those at Asakusa, Tokyo to Todai-ji in Nara were grand in scale and vividly decorated with lacquer and gold leaf. At the entrance a large bowl of water with wooden ladles was used by many to cleanse their hands and minds before entering. Todai-ji in Nara is one of the largest wooden structures in the world measuring 50 square meters and fittingly is home to one of the largest Buddha statues. The Buddha at Todai-ji is also remarkable from a casting and carving perspective and could only be created by the toil of many skilled carvers and metal workers a feat that took decades to accomplish.

Todai-ji Temple Buddha in bronze

 In Kanazawa we visited a home once occupied by a very high-ranking Samurai. The rank of this Samurai was visible in the artisans he was able to employ to carve freezes and detailed nail head covers the latter being firstly carved in  either wood or clay and then cast in bronze. These small details are very typical of what can be seen widely in the Netsuke art in Japanese antiques from clothing and bag toggles to bottle stoppers to belt buckles. For those who appreciate Netsuke more of these wonderful pieces can be seen in Virginia Atchley’s book “The Virginia Atchley collection of miniature arts”

Dragon nail head covers in bronze

We offer a collection of Netsuke door knobs and while they are not as old they too are cast in bronze and feature a dragon.

The home we visited was 200 years old, its predecessors’ structures having being raised to the ground by aggressor Samurai clans. By contrast the garden within was 400 years old and home to the largest Koi fish we have ever seen.

In Japanese culture koi fish ascend from water to become dragons. It’s water based origin helps explain why Japanese dragons do not breathe fire but fire-killing watery vapor an extremely useful talent in a country that historically built its structures in wood.

Fish Door Pulls

Year of The Wood Dragon

The Chinese Year of the Dragon began on February 10th, 2024, continues until January 28th 2025.The Chinese zodiac follows the moon and is divided into 12 year cycles. Each cycle is represented by an animal which includes a rat, ox, tiger, rabbit, dragon, snake, horse, goat, monkey, rooster, dog, and pig.

 The English word zodiac dates back to the Roman and Greek periods and  the 12 symbols represent the months of the calendar. The word zodiac derives from the Greek word zōdiakòs kýklos meaning circle or cycle of animals. While the zodiac signs do include a ram, bull,crab,lion,scorpion, and goat, the signs actually represent the Greek Gods and rather than following only the moon they follow the paths of different star constellations.

In the Chinese zodiac the 12-year cycles represented by animals are also associated with the five elements; wood, fire, earth, metal and water. In Chinese philosophy the ancient philosophers believed that we could understand our world by looking to these 5 types of energy and how they change. This is the year of the Wood Dragon which is considered the first phase in the cycle of growth and that is aptly depicted by the Chinese symbol for tree.

 Our inspiration for the dragon door knob came from watching Game of Thrones and from Daenary’s wonderfully animated fire- breathing friends. Their depiction as powerful scaled beings was central to our much smaller dragon. At a height of 3” and weighing 2lbs and based on the dragons’ wing length of being 196’ I have guessed our bronze version if scaled to this size would be an impressive 20-ton creature.

In honor of the Wood Dragon, we have created a scene using our Hedgerow trees to form a landscape to celebrate this year.

Yorkshire Terrier – patina artistry

One of the most challenging tasks when making bronze dog door handles is finding a way to capture the appearance of a breed where the hair color is key to the breed’s identity. This is particularly true for Yorkshire Terriers whose colors include the black, blue, tan and gold of the Black and Tan Terriers and Clydesdale Terriers from which they were bred. The color of the Yorkie also changes, with younger dogs showing more black and tan, that in older dogs fades to paler blues and gold.

While it may be possible to capture some of this color range with clever mixing of pigmented patinas the effect would be to create a “painted” contrived dog head which would detract from the beauty of bronze.

By studying many Yorkie photographs, Carlos, our patina expert, applies a dark patina solution of different intensity into the hair folds on the face and neck and highlights areas for contrast. While the patina does not replace the vibrant color of the Yorkies coat it does suggest the different color bands thereby adding realism.

In researching this breed, I happened upon a post “Famous Dogs in History” that documents the history of this small and very popular breed. While it is common knowledge that the breed was used to rid the Yorkshire coal mines and mills of rats they were also used as ratters in the trenches during WW1.

Yorkies today are the distant offspring of Huddersfield Ben, a show dog and productive stud who fathered many offspring until his demise in 1871. In the late 19th century when England’s coal mines and mills were driving the industrial revolution, the Yorkies popularity took off.

 The silky coat, playful disposition and compact 7lb weight help explain why they are so popular and while they are energetic their size makes them less demanding than our large 65 lb. Pit Bull.

Animal Knobs - Bees, Lizard and Dragon Designs

All are part of the Netsuke Collection, named for the contained round shapes of its members that are similar  to their namesake used in clothing as fasteners.

Bee

The shape of the bumble bee is inherently round but in our artistic representation these attributes have been exaggerated for a more whimsical appearance. That said, we share with many a deep respect for this prodigious insect who is central to the pollination of plants and whose honey I enjoy on a daily basis.

Back in March 2019 we observed a swarm of bees that landed and rested in our Brazilian Pepper Tree along their way to create a new nest for their Queen bee.

 Recently we added another smaller bee to our collection of  flying insect cabinet knobs and again have rounded the contours of this piece to create an easy and pleasing to grasp cabinet pull. In an earlier post you can follow the development of this piece from initial sketch to fully fledged casting.

Lizard

The Anole lizard was the specific lizard that we modeled our door knob on. We chose this species as it has beautiful green tones that we could simulate by carefully applying a … patina to the lizards body and tinny toes.  The lizard as with all our Netsuke door knob sets can be mixed with different animals on either side of the door. Many of our door knobs can be used creatively by mixing different styles in one door set. To see how designer Hilary Zeiss playfully mixed 2 different animals please visit our blog posted on June 4th, 2021.

Dragon

The dragon is the most recent addition to this collection and is my personal favorite.

Dragon

The first dragons have emerged from the fiery pit of the foundry and have matured into full fledged beautiful door handles. We have enjoyed seeing these fiery monsters take shape and hope others will enjoy the whimsy of this new piece. A new dragon page has been added to our website and the new family member takes the center spot on our Netsuke page where you will find other animal knobs.

All of our work including our  fanciful pieces must also meet the functional demands of door hardware. To make the dragon casting into a functioning door handle it was fitted with a pre-machined  ferrule that was welded to the open end of the dragon. The inner section of our ferrule is machined to fit an 8mm square spindle. The spindle serves as a connecting rod and allows 2 knobs to be connected to make an interior door set.

The dragon rose will be used as a cylinder, turn piece or knob rose and the center area will be machined according to the size of the center hole needed.

The rose uses scaly dragon knuckles to create 4 decorative rows that meet in the center.

 For the dragon’s turn piece we looked to the Willow collection and found the bundle of Willow leaves to be a perfect match. We were considering a turn piece shaped as a hooked dragon toe but think this may be too kitsch of a statement.

Creating a simple bracket to secure a door lever

Now that Jackson, our latest Pitbull family member has turned one we realize that his name needs to be changed to Houdini! We had thought our front garden gate was a sturdy secure barrier that would keep us safe as it is fortified with a mortise lock made by Accurate, the industry leader in security locks. What we had not foreseen was that the gate could be opened from the inside by a cunning canine capable of standing on his hind legs while using his front paws to depress the gate lever.
If our dog training had been more successful and the commands of “come” and “stay” had worked then we might have been amused by his antics.
We installed Accurate’ s 9148 series mortise a well-designed mechanism that has an egress rocker that allows you to keep the gate unlocked, a useful function when your spouse is at home, and you want to pop out for a stroll. Faced with this unexpected problem our choice was to either replace the lever with a knob set and install a new mortise or find a way to outsmart Jackson. We chose the latter option as we enjoy our lizard entry set and so designed a simple restraining bracket for the inside lever that may help other homeowners facing the same problem.

Our simple restraining bracket works well for a mortise lock that is configured for an exterior thumb-latch and interior lever. The exterior thumb-latch when depressed retracts the latch that keeps the gate closed and when gripped allows you to pull the gate open without using the lever. The same bracket could be made to work on a simple passageway lever using a tubular latch but would only work if the spindle was split so that the exterior lever could retract the latch even when the interior lever is fixed in place by the bracket. The bracket works well for dogs as they lack a thumb to push the bracket down and thus cannot release the lever, but it would not work for dexterous children. The bracket can easily be made by hobbyists using half rod stock which is available at most hardware stores.

Simple bracket hobbyists can make using metal half rod to secure a door lever

While Jackson may be a challenging dog he is a classic Pitbull and his likeness is available as a door knob or pull or door knocker.

Dragon and Netsuke Door Knobs

Dragon and Netsuke Door Knobs

Dragons appear in fictional literature and are brilliantly described in the witty tale “Guards,Guards!” by Terry Pratchett. More recently they were portrayed as loyal protective demons in “Game of Thrones”. So, it will come as no surprise that we are adding a dragon door knob to our Netsuke collection.

Credit also needs to be given to Dr. Lisa Allen who ordered a Netsuke bumble bee and asked if we had plans for a dragon knob. We had not been planning an addition to the Netsuke collection so as an alternative, suggested Lisa order the lizard knob. If one looks at the portrayal of dragons in different times and cultures they range from serpentine winged creatures to horned scaly lizard-like creatures not unlike the Komodo “dragon” lizard found in Indonesia. Lisa was not to be persuaded by my lizard argument, so Martin turned to his sketch pad to wait for dragon inspiration.

Original Pattern Carved in High Density Foam - Finer Details then Carved into Applied Gesso

What follows is an account of how the dragon knob was designed, carved and by use of lost wax casting will soon take flight as a bronze door knob.

As the Dragon knob will become part of the Netsuke collection we used the compactness inherent in this collection as a focal point. This meant that the dragon had to fold in and around itself and cling tightly to the center of the knob to form an ergonomically pleasing shape that had few jagged protrusions. The tight compact and smooth design characterizes the bee, lizard, rabbit and frog knobs and is why the collection is named Netsuke after the early smooth animal toggles used as fasteners for garments and satchels in traditional Japanese clothing.

Cats, bats and frogs as enchanting familiars – Happy Halloween

While cats were often celebrated as symbols of good luck and were revered in Egyptian and Asian cultures, in Europe they took on a sinister role as the companions or familiars of witches who cast malevolent spells. It seems that this undeserved reputation took hold with the advent of the black plaque that devastated Europe in the 1600’s. This is rather ironic given that cats are superb predators of rats and indirectly of the fleas they carry making them extremely useful companions that are good for one’s health.
Witches suffered a similar plight and while the verb bewitched is synonymous with “enchanted” “charmed” “beguiled” it is also used to suggest evil powers and malevolent spells.

The negative image of witches spread to other creatures with which they were associated such as frogs and bats. Frogs and bats are both nocturnal and often live-in swamps, muddy ponds and caves, facts that helped advance their negative place in folklore.
Like many we like all these creatures and have portrayed them more favorably in our animal cabinet pulls and cat themed door knobs.
The 3 cats shown in our banner are Persian, Rag Doll and Common cat. Cast in solid bronze and patinaed and then sealed with an oil rubbed finish.

Our frog and bat cabinet pulls are made as left or right facing which allows for a more creative placement on cabinet doors that open to the left and right.

Scaly breasted munia and Bulbul Sightings Hollywood Hills

In April 2020 we posted our sightings of the Black crested Red-whiskered Bulbul in our garden and this wonderful bird continues to flourish. To our delight this year flowers from our guava tree have been feeding a couple as they build a nest in a fellow birder neighbors tree. One of the few upsides to the pandemic was the time we and other neighbors compared sightings and notes on birds in our Hollywood Hills neighborhood and thanks to one neighbor we have now spotted the Scaly-breasted Munia. The Munia also known as the Spice Finch or Nutmeg Mannikin is a pretty chestnut colored bird with scale like breast feathers and is a gregarious one that tends to be seen in small groups. While we have not noticed this bird until now, it is a well-established non-indigenous species that thrives in sufficient numbers as to be counted on the California State Bird’s List.
As can be seen from the photos here, the Munia is more than happy to eat seeds from a bird feeder and the seed level drops significantly when the flock stop by.

Animal themed door or grand cabinet handle

When we replaced our water starved grass garden with drought resistant vegetation we were concerned that this would reduce the birds who frequent it but the contrary has proven true.
Our prolific honeysuckle and Kangaroo paw plant attracts countless Rufus and Anna Hummingbirds and the magnificent flower of our variegated Agaves attract yellow rumped warblers.
While not as striking in color, our feathered double headed bird door pull does possess drama and texture and is a central piece in our cabinet hardware collection.

What is the best medium for door hardware patterns

There is no correct answer to this question, but your choice will depend on your method of designing and your skill sets. The broad choice is between creating a pattern using traditional carving or modeling techniques versus 3D designing and printing.

Traditional techniques -

You can create a solid pattern by modelling the design in clay and by adding and removing clay to obtain the desired shape. We are sculptors by training and create our patterns using wood or jewelers wax or high-density rigid foam. Basswood carves well as it is a close grained soft wood but the grain is distracting, and its directional nature means you have to be an adept carver changing direction with your chisels as you follow the grain. When the wood pattern has been carved, we typically coat it with a matt grey primer which both fills the grain and helps us see any imperfections that need to be carved out and sanded. While Jewelers blue wax is dense and one can achieve good detail it is not as strong as basswood and is more brittle which makes it less ideal when creating fine deep lines. Moreover, even though free of grain it has a uniform color that has a pronounced sheen both of which make it difficult to see what has been carved.

As both wax and wood have drawbacks, we find ourselves increasingly turning to high density rigid foam a product often used in the film industry by set designers to create props. This medium is light weight, dense, grain-less and matt and carves beautifully. It is available in blocks and easy to cut and glue and moderately priced.

The Hawaiian bird pulls were ordered recently by designer Christina Hilt in Florida in warmer tones to compliment the golden burl wood in her client’s closet. A dark patina accentuates the detail in a piece but if the pattern is carved with a deep relief carving then these details will still be seen even where there is minimal patina and minimal tonal contrast as was the case with Christina’s order.

Pattern in high density foam with foam block

Contemporary 3D pattern making

 If you are adept in digital designing, then you would begin by designing your pattern in illustrator or Painter or other 3D program. On completion the design would need to be output as a STL file which could then be printed as an SLA print which is a photo polymer

Easter Bunny Door Knobs

This bunny may have chocolate tones but being cast in solid bronze it is definitely not edible. Thinking of Easter bunnies, I followed Alice down the rabbit hole also known as the internet to research the origin of this Easter custom. Dependable Wikipedia sets out how the rabbit or rather the hare has possibly several ties to pagan times and has been associated with Eostre the goddess of dawn whose torches may have been carried by hares. Hares it seems have been celebrated by many from prehistoric times onwards as creatures of spring that herald lighter longer days and fertility to crops and mankind.

Our bunny door knob has more earthly origins and is based on a soft interpretation of this very soft animal. As a nod to the preferred diet he/she sits on a wreath of swirling vegetation all of which is cast in solid bronze and typically finished in a light antique brushed and oil rubbed patina. The bunny shape was designed so that all the legs and ears are tight to the body thereby making a round and compact door knob that fits easily in the palm of one’s hand. The bunny design is one of 4 nature inspired door knobs that collectively make-up our Netsuke collection, a collection whose namesake is the compact toggles used to fasten clothing. The Netsuke collection is interchangeable so a rabbit and frog or lizard or bee can happily co-exist on the same door, one on each side of the door. The netsukes can also be mounted on different back-plates to create a truly eclectic interior.

Bunny, Bee and Frog Door Knobs - animal door knobs

Whimsical pairings for a magician - this may sound like the title to a children’s novel but in the context of door hardware perfectly describes an order we have just completed for James Shafer’s magical solutions store opening soon in Columbus, Ohio. A full description of this enchanting enterprise can be found at;

https://www.hierophanyandhedge.com/

As befits a magician, James strayed from the path of “sameness” and instead conjured up a fun set of door handles using the animal knobs from our netsuke collection and the swirling leaf escutcheon plates from our willow collection. The results were beautiful and whimsical and could well have been illustrations for a children’s book.

Bunny knob dark oil rubbed patina

The sets were cast in solid bronze and finished with a dark antique oil-rubbed patina. Each piece was burnished by hand to highlight the bronze tones of the raised sections making the leaf veins and wing and ear details more pronounced and creating a sense of depth through the contrasting light and dark areas.

Burnishing the wing veins to accentuate the golden bronze beneath

We have mixed  and matched  our door styles for other clients and readers will recall the willow knob being used as an entry set with a medium bark back-plate in a very creative residential remodel by Los Angeles Designer Bonnie Mcintyre.

Spring is in the Air

Our Netsuke rabbit door knob is taking a break from vegetables and has turned her appetite towards chocolate eggs that seem to be in abundance at this time of the year. So, we hope you will take a leaf out of her book, yes the pun is intended and turn your appetite towards chocolate Easter eggs or maybe some hot cross buns or other delicacy enjoyed at this time of the year.

From us here to you there have a good Easter.

Christmas Gift Ideas and the Need to Plan Ahead

At this time of year we often receive calls from parents trying to find the perfect gift for their child’s bedroom and so we wanted to share with you some of the choices people have made.

Rabbit Door knob Willow Door Knob

We are currently making a rabbit passageway set for a Santa delivery in New Hampshire. Thankfully Santa enlisted some advice from a local door and lock installer who helped with tricky issues like dealing with a very old and thin door. The installer understood that a narrow 1 1/4” thick door may be a problem for the latch mechanism as the tongue of the latch in this case was 1” but being a skilled professional he felt that with Santa’s good cheer he would be able make a hole in the door with a 1/8” to spare on either side of the latch. Phew, Santa was wise to plan ahead!

Of course there is nothing wrong in a little self-gifting but the adage always plan ahead is equally true. In this instance, as Santa was not involved, the home owner asked for our help in deciding what to order to replace her old very dilapidated kitchen and dining room door knobs. The doors did not have latches but were held shut by a roller catch or closet door ball catch at the top of the door.  The customer did not want to change the catch so we steered her towards dummy knobs that could be attached on each side of the door by screwing through the knob plate into the door, a low tech but good way of adding beautiful knobs to her kitchen and dining room doors.

Color in Nature and Hot Patinas for Door Handles

The green anole lizard was the inspirational basis of Martin Pierce’s lizard door lever. The lizard’s vivid pea green color is however a challenging finish to capture as a bronze patina and one that requires considerable dexterity and access to a blow torch, so hobbyists should proceed with caution.

While the lizard door knob is not of the anole family, as you can see from the photo below he is often specified by customers who want a similar finish to match his mate.

Lizard Door Lever and Lizard door knob

In an earlier post we described how to create an antique patina on bronze by using Birchwood Technologies' M20 product and how this chemical solution, through chemical conversion, creates a brown black patina that penetrates and bonds with the bronze. The cold patina process is a necessary first step that has to be taken before moving on to create a  hot green patina as without it, the green solution will tend to slough of the surface of the bronze. Once the blackened piece has dried it is then gently burnished to remove some of the cold patina from the lizard area. We mix white, pea green and yellow dye oxides, available through Sculpt Nouveau, to create the right shade of green which is applied several times to the handle to achieve the right hue. Throughout the hot patina process the handle is kept at a temperature of about 200° by using a blow torch.

The vivid greens are used by many creatures as camouflage that allow them to blend in with surrounding flora as is the case with this praying mantis that was wonderfully hidden in the variegated tones of this begonia vine.