Ok. So this flute, built for September, took a little longer to build than anticipated. Built from California olive wood, the problems were owing to the checking or cracks that required backfilling. I did so with powdered turquoise from the Sleeping Beauty mine in Globe AZ. Additional woods used in the build included Bethlehem olive, cedar of Lebanon, old growth California redwood, Malaysian black palm, and Oklahoma cedar, with veneers of dyed maple, walnut burl, madrona burl, and mappa burl. to the wings of the bird. The bird, is the macaw, or Zuni symbol for Summer….No it is not a grasshopper, but mine looks like one. The Zuni symbol for winter is the raven, but I’m not real fond of being in anybody’s winter, so I chose the macaw.
Other elements include, a beautiful amalgam of copper, spiny oyster, and turquoise, all in one stone, as well as accents of turquoise, faceted Brazilian mystic topaz, hematite, labradorite, and paua abalone. The Bethlehem olive has some subtle hand colorizing because it’s fun to do, and a permanent 1mm rawhide wrap, added for the same reason. Hope your Summer felt enjoyable. Mine, not so much…..acting more like like fall and early spring here on the Southern California coast. Play nice.
