New Direction

Custom Etched Mug

Custom Etched Mug

I’ve still been picking Tomatoes and Potatoes, but I’ve posted lots of pictures of them in years past, so here’s something a bit more interesting: Glass Etching.

It all started a few months ago when I ran into a very interesting guy. He needed me to setup a computer and hook it to the internet for him, something I do freelance from time to time. We got along very well, and he offered to teach me Glass Etching. At first I could hear two voices speaking to me, one said “This is a rare opportunity to learn something new”, and the other spoke “What could you ever do with glass etching ?”.

I knew there was some purpose for etching glass, and I knew it would be something I would enjoy, but I wasn’t prepared to see my first creation come unwrapped after my etching lesson. It was absolutely stunning, as you can see above. In the hours which followed my first lesson, I was absorbed and obsessed with the potential I had been given. I laid awake that night and blasted project after project in my mind until I came to the ultimate conclusion: I needed a Sand Blasting setup of my own, and I needed to be able to etch very large pieces of glass.

Air Compressor Before

Air Compressor Before

To etch glass requires something of a sand blasting setup, with modifications. The basic design requires three different pieces of equipment, an Air Compressor, a Sand Blaster, and a Blasting Cabinet.

Davy, (my brother in law) had an Air Compressor that he purchased to build his barn. Once the barn was complete, the compressor was retired to a corner of the barn, where it sat until he offered to give it to me. I immediately accepted, and loaded the compressor into the front seat of my car where if fit a bit awkwardly.

Air Compressor After

Air Compressor After

The next day I began tinkering with the device to find out why it would not build pressure after pumping up to 40 PSI. Davy and I removed many of the components to look for trouble, and I got comfortable with the mechanics. Soon we found the problem was caused by a long extension cord. When the compressor was plugged into a wall outlet in my home it worked without a hitch.

After the compressor was in good working condition, I decided to paint it. I didn’t intend to strip all of the parts off of it and power wash it, but it happened any way. Once again when the work was done I was quite amazed.

Now, I just need a blasting cabinet and a sand blaster.

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4 Responses to New Direction

  1. Kritt L. says:

    I have not see any posts on your goji berries in a while. How are they doing? How many plants do you have now? I love goji berries.

    • itfarmer says:

      Kritt;

      I planted two outside, and left one in my kitchen just in case. The vast majority of my outside plants did not survive this summers extreme heat. I’ve lost lots of elderberries, my gojis, some tart cherries, and I’ve gotten no fruit whatsoever due to a late frost. Global climate change is making gardening and growing in general a losing proposition, lets hope this year was a fluke.

      Luckily, I do have one goji berry plant in a container behind my kitchen sink. It’s growing slowly, but at least it is growing.

      ItFarmer

  2. Gonzalo Blick says:

    The goji berry is also called the wolfberry. It is a bright orange-red berry that comes from a shrub that’s native to China. In Asia, goji berries have been eaten for generations in the hopes of living longer.,”-

    My current web blog http://www.healthmedicinejournal.comev

  3. KRIS says:

    I’m new to developing web sites and I was wanting to know if having your blog title relevant to your articles and other content really that crucial? I see your title, does seem to be spot on with what your blog is about but, I prefer to keep my title less content descriptive and based more around site branding. Would you think this is a good idea or bad idea? Any help would be greatly appreciated.

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