(total time today working on actual bowls: 3 hours)
Today was intense. I'm happy but tired. I spent the whole three hours bending one 9' piece of 5/16" round bar. This is my first time working with a piece this long. I held it in a post vise (a very strong blacksmithing vise) but kept needing to reposition the iron to make the loops. I thought I could use a mechanic's vise out in the middle of the room, but quickly found that there's no clear area large enough for even a 6' free swing. (This is something to think about for my Dream Studio.) There were many moments an audience would have found hilarious, as I heated, bent, repositioned, (dropped), heated, bent, (burned finger through welding glove), heated, bent....thought....
I was following the angles and loops in a 1/6 scale aluminum wire model that had been so, so easy to bend (with bare hands and pliers.) Of course this whole idea of making models (or maquettes if I want to sound like a real sculptor) might be a mistake. Then again, it was quick to make a dozen or more wire models, and inexpensive too. It takes a lot longer to make a fullsize piece, and I might still need to make twelve to get to the one I like. So it seems worth trying the model, then fullsize idea.
Therefore I kept up a certain level of peptalk. "Even if this one doesn't work, I'm learning a lot." "I can only learn to do this by doing it, and I'm doing it, so that's enough to be proud of." "Even if it's a bad idea, I'm following through so I'll find out one way or the other." Etc. So that even when baffled, frustrated, or temporarily defeated, I kept my morale going pretty well. Toward the end, I realized I was somehow seeing the piece much better. That's a good sign.
I stopped when I realized that I could work with the long piece much better if I had a second plain roller stand. I'd been propping up the long tail end of the iron with a heavy V-shaped stand. This worked, but it was very heavy to move, and of course the V kept the tail in place right when I wanted to move it to make a bend. With a lightweight straight roller stand, I could move the steel more easily horizontally while still propping it up in the air. Luckily my local hardware store had one in stock, so I spent the rest of the afternoon on a trip to town plus an assembly session. It's put together and looks good, so I'm ready for another go tomorrow morning.
Speaking of which - I've decided to try getting up to an alarm clock again. I've been luxuriating in sleeping till I wake naturally, but I end up waking up when my partner has breakfast. Then I usually get caught up in a wide range of morning distractions. I'm going to try what used to work for me: having breakfast and coffee packed up ready to go to the studio, so I can get up and be out of the cabin within 5 to 15 minutes. I used to have a deft, fast morning routine so I know it's possible. Wish me luck. I can be very dumb in the morning. (Well, yes, it's possible at any time of day....)
10:57:03 PM 
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