Whew -- I Finally Made Something!

I've been really stressed out lately about not getting anything made (not really the "I can't eat" kind of stressed out, just the "this is really bugging me" kind). Not so much because I desperately needed things made, it was more about not having anything to post on my blog and just generally falling behind. Life get's busy! And I can't even blame it on spring break vacation (didn't go anywhere), family illness (we're all fat and happy! -- sadly, literally on the fat part), or some unforseen event (nope -- same ol', same ol'). It just seems hard to keep up with everything sometimes. And, yes, I could post things other than finished projects -- and I do -- but I don't want to go that long without "something".



You might have seen this or something similar in one of my previous posts. They are the inside parts of a piano -- 2 of them actually. They are called the hammers, because they are the 88 "hammers" that whack each piano string when you press down on a key. I haven't been totally devoid of junk action the past couple months. In addition to gathering more junk, holding a few classes, helping a friend with a home improvement project, and some speaking engagements, I've been doing a LOT of dismantling. I harvested MANY bedsprings (posting soon), taken apart some typewriters, and deconstructed a beautiful piano (more of that also posting soon).
The result was I now had THREE of these gorgeous, but clunky sets of hammers and no good ideas on what to do with them. And them it hit me like.....well....like a hammer on middle C......

Why not cut it into smaller pieces?

So that's exactly what I did. I cut one set of hammers into thirds. There was a little bit of metal which was a little tricky to cut, and some tight spaces, but my trusty sawzall handled it all and everything stayed intact. And after mulling it over for a few days, I decided the best use for one would be as a display piece with ways to attach photos.

I mounted it on the wall, but it also can stand on its own, too. And I mounted a board on the wall first. The board provides enough space so the hammers can actually move. By pressing on the hammer base below, the hammer itself springs forward -- big fun! I tacked a few photos to hammers and wedged a popsicle stick behind to keep those hammers permanently (sort of) forward. The bottom area of the piece has a lot of screws, so all you have to do is loosen one, slip in picture and retighten screw. There are a lot of nooks and crannies, so photos could also be hung from the parts with strings or ribbons.

I actually spent a lot of time playing with threading the ribbon through the center area. I thought it would be a nice contrast to the dark, harsh wood, but I'll probably be changing it.-- to what, I don't know. What I DO like are the tags I made for adding a playful ("play"?-- pun not intended, but noticed) element. There is a metal part that juts out and has a hole. So I threaded ribbon through that with some keys (the lock kind, not the musical kind). Then I made tags that hang on it. The tags are made from sheet music and have words that are musical terms -- presto (quickly), allegro (lively), decrescendo (slowing), forte (loudly), etc. They would be fun to accompany some of the pictures.

Anyway, it feels good to FINALLY make something again and to post. I'll try to stay more on track.

Midge

P.S. Oh, yeah. The "RUBATO" tag? The word means a suspension of rules so you can expressly yourself freely! Now that's a word that would make any junker's heart skip a beat!

I'm linking this up to:

Becky's "Under $100 Linky Party" @ Beyond the Picket Fence

Donna's "Saturday Nite Special #26" @ Funky Junk Interiors