This here beautiful entryway that I built in 2004 is in Aspen Colorado, the Gamble Oak leaves and acorns are Forged steel and then galvanized I just found these photo's lurking in the bottom of my picasa

 It's been a while since I updated anything on this project in the Sonoma Valley. The Pictures are not very good, I'm still need to have a photographer take some pictures, this is a beautiful home overlooking the valley. As I have said before this is a project of Cole Smith's FAIA and his firm Smith Ekblad & Assoc. out of Dallas Texas, Cole has been a great friend, mentor and client to me for many years, always pushing me to the limits, and to reproduce Antoinio Gaudi style for this home was definitely a chore. I built the entry way, the handrails, the indoor study gates, fireplace doors, outside sconces to name a few of the Items I produced for this house.

Bronze Handrail for residence in Highland Park Texas

These Handrail were built for a project of Cole Smith's FAIA and his firm Smith Ekblad & Assoc. out of Dallas Texas, Cole has been a great friend, mentor and client to me for many years, always pushing me to the limits.

Si Bronze is not the easiest metal to work with , as far as forging, it only comes in a few common sizes, an for this application the posts where only was available in 1.5” round I needed to forge it down to1.25” sq , the cap rail has a cross section of 1”x 2” with a domed top that has a very ergonomic fit for the hand.

Si Bronze forging temperature is between 1400F and 1675F a very small window to work the metal,too hot the metal falls apart, and too cold and it will work harden. Also finishing and polishing is a problem because the bronze is mostly copper and the fine grains coming off the handrails from sanding and polishing is an irritant so you must use respirator and gloves

Hexigon Chandelier For Mineral Wells Tx Home

I was told there was no rules on how I did my blog so I'm going to bounce backwards to a project I did this summer. This chandelier is for a home in Mineral Wells Texas, that overlooks the Brazos River. The chandelier was design by architect Greg Wyatt of Wyatt & Associates Inc., Dallas, Texas. This is one of many lighting and hardware projects I've had the privilege of doing with Greg in the last 5 Years.

The chandelier is 14 ft tall and 7 ft in diameter with 2 tiers. The largest of the twisted bar is one inch square hand twisted hot. There is approx. 400lb of hand forged steel and bronze in this chandelier

I recently have been commissioned to build an entryway and interior doors for a large home in Sonoma Valley California, Using the style of Antoni Gaudí. The above photo is of a entryway at the Casa Mila in Barcelona Spain, this ironwork was done in the early 1900's. So in the fall of 2010 I did quite a bit if studying of the work of Gaudi and making samples to understand the process as well as convince the architect as well as the home owner of what I was about to do. In this posting I will do a very preliminary introduction to who Gaudi was, with some pictures of his work pertaining to this project. Also in this posting will be some sketches from the Architect Cole Smith FAIA of what is proposed for the main entry and interior doors.

Antoni Gaudí i Cornet (Catalan pronunciation: [ənˈtɔni ɣəwˈði]) (Riudoms or Reus,[3] 25 June 1852 – Barcelona, 10 June 1926) was a Spanish Catalan architect and the best-known representative of Catalan Modernism. Gaudí's works are marked by a highly individual style and the vast majority of them are situated in the Catalan capital of Barcelona, including his magnum opus, the Sagrada Família. Much of Gaudí's work was marked by the four passions of his life: architecture, nature, religion and his love for Catalonia.[4] Gaudí meticulously studied every detail of his creations, integrating into his architecture a series of crafts, in which he himself was skilled, such as ceramics, stained glass, wrought ironwork forging and carpentry. He also introduced new techniques in the treatment of the materials, such as his famous trencadís, made of waste ceramic pieces. After a few years under the influence of neo-Gothic art, and certain oriental tendencies, Gaudí became part of the Catalan Modernista movement which was then at its peak, towards the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th. Gaudí's work, however, transcended mainstream Modernisme, culminating in an organic style that was inspired by nature without losing the influence of the experiences gained earlier in his career. Rarely did Gaudí draw detailed plans of his works and instead preferred to create them as three-dimensional scale models, moulding all details as he was conceiving them in his mind. Gaudí’s work has widespread international appeal, and there are innumerable studies devoted to his way of understanding architecture. Today he is admired by both professionals and the general public: his masterpiece, the Sagrada Família, is one of the most visited monuments in Spain.[5] Between 1984 and 2005 seven of his works were declared World Heritage Sites by UNESCO. He awakened to his Roman Catholic faith during his life and many religious images can be seen in his works, a fact which has led to his being nicknamed "God's Architect"[6] and calls for him to be beatified.[7][8][9]

Here is a new Oak Leaf Pendant lampI just made, it's one of a kind, about 18"tall and 12"dia with Amber Mica. The chain is unique as well. This lamp is available just call 970-946-9004.

Attention to Details

With attention to detail, notice the door handles on the Oakleaf Door.The handle and thumb latch are both hand forged from Pattern Welded Steel (15n20 and 1085 carbon steel) to give the impression of weather beaten drift wood. Also the second oakleaf from the top of the handle is hinged to hide the lock. This door is available.