There is a chance my wife and I will be moving to the Seattle area (Bellevue, Bothell, Redmond and environs) this spring from Chicago. We won’t know for a few weeks, but in the meantime, I’m researching the woodworking/furniture market there. We visited there a couple of years ago and I was ready to move almost as soon as we got off the plane. (I know; it’s cloudy and it rains all the time, but wow- the mountains, the water, the coffee choices.)
I’m looking for input on galleries, wood suppliers, woodworking community,etc. I’m aware of Northwest Fine Woodworking, but that’s really about it. If anyone has suggestions or insights, I’d really appreciate it. Google searches can only do so much.
I’m also considering the idea of teaching or an artist-in-residence gig so I can impart my vast knowledge of how not to do things on unsuspecting students.
Thanks for any advice you can give.
Alan
http://www.alancarterstudio.com
Yeah, I know. I misspelled Seattle in the title.
Edited 3/5/2007 2:20 pm ET by wooddood
Replies
Stunning work you do... I doubt you'll have any trouble.
Once you find out the names of the heavy hitting galleries I think all you'll need to do is forward a link to your website.
Wish I knew more about the art scene in Seattle. Again, I'm sure you will land on your feet.
I moved from Chicago to Seattle in 1981 and stayed for ten years. My wife is the ONLY reason I'm not still out there.
Excellent area for woodworking; the NW gallery in Pioneer Square is a great gallery. The East Side (Bellevue etc.) wasn't much when I first moved out there (Microsoft rented some office space by 520!) but it's a mini-City now. It was always good for the arts.
There used to be the "experimental college" which offered many types of classes, and could be a place where you could teach wwing courses. Maybe Forestgirl knows if this institution is still in operation.
Hope you get to make the move. It may rain a lot, but it's a misty rain for the most part, and hey, if it's raining, it isn't 40 below and snowing, like it does in the Chicago area. Summers are to die for out there.
Welcome to the NW. I'm curious though, aside from the scenery, why Seattle? Was this a business driven decision?
First thing you need to learn here is to tell EVERYONE else you know how miserable it is here and how it rains ALL THE TIME.......;->)
Jeff
It is miserable here. It does rain all the time. It's early March. That is the real bogus deal we're slowly emerging from. For eight months out of the year, it's fine --> spectacular. November through February, it's dank, dark and dismal, with a day or two here and there that are OK. No kidding.
Best defense is a spacious, well-lit and meticulously drained shop. Wish I had one.
I vote the other way round' - eight months of misery and four months of heaven. I'm 64 and have spent a good part of my adult life in either Western Oregon or the Puget Sound area (when I wasn't someplace cozy like Antarctica). I'd give a lot if I could talk my wife into moving to a sunnier place... :-)
Edited 3/5/2007 10:40 pm by polarsea1
It's pretty bad when your climate loses out in a heads-up competition with Antarctica..=)
Hey lagosme,We get less annual rainfall than New York. You can look it up.Tom
And a lot less sun.
http://www.city-data.com/
Hey PS1,Less sun, sure. Less skin cancer too!Seriously, I can't claim that Seattle has any lock on sunny days. But as a native, I find that I'm more comfortable under the high, light overcast, the "Seattle Grey", than I am the blazing sun. It is interesting to watch the transplants wither under the low overcasts of our long dark winters. When they can't take it anymore, they take flight for sunnier places, and Seattle is given back to it's native born.Tom
Besides the grey there's that whole 27 year old curse to deal with. (re: Hendrix, Joplin, Cobain)John O'Connell - JKO Handcrafted Woodworking
The more things change ...
We trained hard, but it seemed that every time we were beginning to form up into teams, we would be reorganized. I was to learn later in life that we tend to meet any new situation by reorganizing; and a wonderful method it can be for creating the illusion of progress while producing confusion, inefficiency, and demoralization.
Petronious Arbiter, 210 BC
It is interesting to watch the transplants wither under the low overcasts of our long dark winters. When they can't take it anymore, they take flight for sunnier places, and Seattle is given back to it's native born.
:-)
Thanks to all who responded to my post. The opportunity to move there, if it does happen, is courtesy of my wife. She has an interview scheduled next week for a position with a large company (not Microsoft). We're keeping our fingers crossed.
One of the reasons were excited about this prospect is the cultural and artistic environment of the area. On our previous trip we were impressed with the number and quality of higher end galleries, not just in Seattle but also the neighboring communities. Lots of glass, of course, but other media as well.
Chicago is a geat city and certainly no slouch when it comes to a strong artistic community, but it seems that handcrafted furniture, especially more contemporary design, is a bit of a hard sell- at least for me. Maybe I need to get out more.
In any event thanks again. Any additional input would be gratefully accepted.
Alan
http://www.alancarterstudio.com
Hi Alan: Boy you make beautiful works of wood! Very impressive. Tons of creativity. I also read your profile and I have lived in Rochester for the last 35 years but was born in Seattle ( 1950 ). Backwards from your travels. The only thing I remember about Seattle is stepping on a snake in the park and I didn't like it( I was very little ). Everyone I know that has been there has loved Seattle. I have lots of Carter ancestors from New York (they go back to Boston to the 1630's ). They were the salt of the earth.
Good luck at Seattle!
Thanks. I'll look out for the snakes.
Alan
Check the Wood Merchant in La Conner. It is an outstanding gallery featuring only wood art and furniture. La Conner is a lovely tourist community about 50 miles north west of Seattle.
Hey Alan,
We'd love to have you! Woodworkers are like grapes and wineries, they tend to do well in bunches. ;-) There are some well knowns, like Gary Rogowski http://www.northwestwoodworking.com/, and Darrell Pert http://www.furnituremaker.com/, and some lesser knowns like Peter Loh http://www.refinerydesign.com/. There are a number of smaller schools for hobbiests, and some larger ones for specialty woodworking, like the Northwest School for Wooden Boatbuilding http://www.nwboatschool.org/ .
The cost of living is relatively high here, but if you're outside the city, it's still reasonable. If you're in town in May, be sure to stop by during our pig roast.
Tom
I went to the Wooden Boat Show in Pt. Townsend a couple-three years ago. Three things really stuck with me. The student built boats from the NWSWBB are simply amazing. A shop that was restoring a 60 ft sail boat was sistering all the bulkheads below the water line with 8/4 Purple Heart! And now I know where all the hippies from Calif went.John O'Connell - JKO Handcrafted Woodworking
The more things change ...
We trained hard, but it seemed that every time we were beginning to form up into teams, we would be reorganized. I was to learn later in life that we tend to meet any new situation by reorganizing; and a wonderful method it can be for creating the illusion of progress while producing confusion, inefficiency, and demoralization.
Petronious Arbiter, 210 BC
Alan - I know I'm off the thread but I was rally impressed with your work. I am a hobbiest and have almost completed a 'contemporary' table in maple and ash. I have been searching for the propoer 'light toned' finish.
If you don't mind, what are the lighter woods in your pieces and how did you finish them?
Frosty
Frosty,
Generally I use maple for for the light end of the color spectrum. Occasionally I'll use ash, but the maple seems to work and finish better, at least for me. One of the things I like about it is that it provides a neutral background pallete for other more colorful and/or figured woods. You can combine it with just about anything and get good contrast and "pop" from the marquee woods.
I've been using spray lacquer as a finish, but am experimenting with shellac as a sealer coat with a top layer of Crystalac. I did some test pieces with both finishes and found little difference between them in terms of appearance and feel. The lacquer is just too nasty, even with good venting. Also, as I understand it, the Crystalac won't yellow the maple over time the way lacquer does. Or at least not as much. Some of the maple pieces I sprayed with lacquer a couple of years ago have really turned amber. Of course, no matter what you do, maple will yellow some over time.
Hope that helps.
Alan
Thanks Alan,I appreciate the information. The basic answer is that you did not use any additional agent to pop figure in the maple. I think I will go that route, I have had great luck with WB, General Finishes, PolyCrylic. I know, Poly is supposed to be awfuk but I have not found this product to be so. (I've tried 10 other brands and they were all pretty bad.) With Abralon pads on a ROS, I run up to 4,000 grit and end with a nice luster.Your work is gorgeous. I'm sure you will do well in Seattle.Frosty
Alan,
Nice work. Interesting designs, and you seem to be able to use contrasting woods to good effect--not just for the sake of contrast.
I'm corresponding with Peter Gedrys in Ask the Experts about this, and maybe you can help. In your use of Purpleheart, do you plan for it to turn reddish-brown over time, or do you know of a product that will stabilize the color over time and allow me to use the true beauty of the wood? I hope you don't mind me asking. I just can't find the answer. Thanks.
Steve
There are two secrets to keeping one's wife happy.
1. Let her think she's having her own way.
2. Let her have her own way. President Lyndon Baines Johnson
Steve,
I don't use purpleheart that much any more, largely because of the color change you mentioned. It's my understanding that there isn't much you can do to keep it from darkening and getting a brownish tint over time. UV rays and all that. Having said that, there's really nothing wrong with the patina it develops as it ages. I built a purpleheart coffee table a few years ago (is that the one you saw on the website?) that has stayed in my possession. It's developed a darker patina over time that is actually quite attractive.
At the time I built it I was using an oil/polyurethane blend as a finish and that may have been a contributing factor, but I think it'll darken no matter what finish you use.
Padauk is also fugitive. It can go from orange to almost black. And we all know what happens to cherry.
As for planning for the inevitable change in color, I think that if you choose contrasting woods that complement one another in their original state, they will still work together over time. Kind of like a good marriage.
Until someone invents a finish that will prevent any color change, I think it's something we just have to accept and sometimes embrace. Change is good, right?
Alan
http://www.alancarterstudio.com
Alan,
I suppose you're right. The table does look nice, but dang it, purpleheart is so unusual in its' native state. I have some Padauk that has aged gracefully to a rich, red-brown, so I suppose we'll just have to accept the change as a part of it.
Again, nice work, and thanks for the reply. Good luck in Seattle.
SteveThere are two secrets to keeping one's wife happy.
1. Let her think she's having her own way.
2. Let her have her own way. President Lyndon Baines Johnson
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