# Couldnt part with them....



## Toni (Sep 15, 2013)

I sent an order to exotics.  I could not part with these tubes!! It was a new design I had come up with Green roses with Blue flowers and green flowers and orange butterflies.  I know I know...more flowers but the pattern stopped me in my tracks and I couldnt part with them.  I hope you like it as much as I do. Millefiori tubes are on a Venus, loving this kit!! Really sets off the design, IMO.   Feedback always welcome, even if its...ewww flowers!!













Photos taken by Ed Street!!


----------



## MillerTurnings (Sep 15, 2013)

Toni,
You're blanks are always a pleasure to look at. I am amazed at the designs you are able to put into them. If only I wasn't so chicken to try working with one.....


----------



## Toni (Sep 15, 2013)

Jeff ~ they are super easy.  Light sanding, because they are sized to fit, some Novis polish and you are good to go with a CA coating!! Easy Peasy!! promise....


----------



## bobjackson (Sep 15, 2013)

Toni, You're the Queen. Always beautiful.


----------



## Toni (Sep 15, 2013)

Bob~Thank you so much, means a lot to me!!


----------



## carlmorrell (Sep 15, 2013)

Toni,

Beautiful.  It must be difficult to send off your work.  I know how hard it is for me to part with them! 

Thanks for sharing, Carl

p.s.  When are you going to make some more dragon scales???


----------



## PenPal (Sep 15, 2013)

Toni,
I have heard of taming people congratulations on enlisting Ed to take pics for you a definite plus for mine one of your greatest fans your blanks are outstanding to say the least.
Being almost computer illiterate a recent request on another site to join with you came as a privilige to me still not sure if I pushed the right acceptance buttons.

Kind regards Peter.


----------



## Toni (Sep 15, 2013)

carlmorrell said:


> Toni,
> 
> Beautiful.  It must be difficult to send off your work.  I know how hard it is for me to part with them!
> 
> ...



I put my heart in each and every tube I make, I love making them, thats why its so hard to part but every now and again I make one that I cant part with and this was one of them.

As for the dragon scales, I will show some photos of a new one:wink:


----------



## BRobbins629 (Sep 15, 2013)

Looking very nice Toni.  Even if you did part with it, at least you could make a similar one.


----------



## Toni (Sep 15, 2013)

pwhay said:


> Toni,
> I have heard of taming people congratulations on enlisting Ed to take pics for you a definite plus for mine one of your greatest fans your blanks are outstanding to say the least.
> Being almost computer illiterate a recent request on another site to join with you came as a privilige to me still not sure if I pushed the right acceptance buttons.
> 
> Kind regards Peter.



Oh Peter such high praises!! Thank you so much!! Please message me the name of the site that asked you to join, I am curious!!


----------



## LanceD (Sep 15, 2013)

Great looking pen and photo.


----------



## Ambidex (Sep 15, 2013)

*ewww*

Toni, I'm always amazed at your work! Truly a beautiful work of art!


----------



## Teeball (Sep 15, 2013)

Simply beautiful.:good:


----------



## SteveG (Sep 15, 2013)

I can understand you not wanting to part with those beauties.  BUT...business is business. Send 'em to me and I will pay what-ever price you want! I have high limits on my credit cards!:biggrin:
Seriously...BEAUTIFUL, as usual, but these are surely the cream of the crop. Love your work.:good::good:

Steve


----------



## Dan Masshardt (Sep 15, 2013)

I look at those and can't even conceive of how someone could make them.  Crazy!

I really need to make one of these pens


----------



## Toni (Sep 15, 2013)

SteveG said:


> I can understand you not wanting to part with those beauties.  BUT...business is business. Send 'em to me and I will pay what-ever price you want! I have high limits on my credit cards!:biggrin:
> Seriously...BEAUTIFUL, as usual, but these are surely the cream of the crop. Love your work.:good::good:
> 
> Steve



You can purchase them from Exoticblanks.com, thank you for the complement!!


----------



## robersonjr (Sep 15, 2013)

Beautiful as always Toni.


----------



## walshjp17 (Sep 15, 2013)

I thought you had hit the high mark with your black roses.  These tubes top them.  Outstanding!!

Sent from my iPad using Forum Runner


----------



## dtswebb (Sep 15, 2013)

Beautiful tubes.  I've always enjoyed your ability to make the flowers so lifelike and I know that there are folks out there that would be honored to have a pen with your tubes on prominent display.

A big reason to stop over at the Exotic Blanks site is to see what you've recently created.

I see your notes to others - I've just got to break down and try your tubes.


----------



## edstreet (Sep 15, 2013)

dtswebb said:


> Beautiful tubes.  I've always enjoyed your ability to make the flowers so lifelike and I know that there are folks out there that would be honored to have a pen with your tubes on prominent display.
> 
> A big reason to stop over at the Exotic Blanks site is to see what you've recently created.
> 
> I see your notes to others - I've just got to break down and try your tubes.



 Wait till you see the new shipment of tubes to exotics.


----------



## stonepecker (Sep 15, 2013)

Beautiful work and such a lovely pen.

Someday I hope to be able to get one of your creations.


----------



## Jim15 (Sep 15, 2013)

You do awesome work.


----------



## Karl_99 (Sep 15, 2013)

Beautiful!!!

What is the pen set graced by the flowers?


----------



## edstreet (Sep 15, 2013)

Karl_99 said:


> Beautiful!!!
> 
> What is the pen set graced by the flowers?



The one in the picture is Venus Roller Ball - Rhodium


----------



## its_virgil (Sep 15, 2013)

Beautiful! Each time I see your creations it is like seeing the first ones all over again!! You are so talented!!
Do a good turn daily!
Don


----------



## Brooks803 (Sep 15, 2013)

Can't blame you at all for keeping those Toni. They're awesome!


----------



## Gin N' Tonic (Sep 15, 2013)

WOW!

I'm speechless. Absolutely beautiful.


----------



## longbeard (Sep 15, 2013)

Tease :wink::biggrin:


Great job Toni, they look FANTASTIC!!! :biggrin:


----------



## PenPal (Sep 15, 2013)

Toni,

I dont know how to send pics in pm,s but you can see in this pic with Wilma i am used to georgeous woman and I equate you as having a lovely nature as well. Copy a pic of Wilma and me in 1974 we had been married twenty years then the beard was a few months to support a charity.

Kind regards Peter


----------



## edstreet (Sep 16, 2013)

Anyways ...

For those of you who saw it I took great pains to fix it. 











Now for the other 2 things.


----------



## johncrane (Sep 16, 2013)

That's Stunning Toni i'm a big fan i have the purple and black a green is now on my list,i also would luv to ad a dragon.:biggrin:


----------



## Toni (Sep 16, 2013)

johncrane said:


> That's Stunning Toni i'm a big fan i have the purple and black a green is now on my list,i also would luv to ad a dragon.:biggrin:



John what a complement!! I am glad you love my work!! A dragon scale, well you will have to shell out some bucks for them, only available as a finished pen


----------



## Turned Around (Sep 16, 2013)

beautifully done


----------



## Dan Hintz (Sep 16, 2013)

It's the butterflies that impress me the most... symmetric only on one axis, so you can't push/pull too much without distorting their look.  The feathered wing edges, etc.  All very impressive, and well beyond my perceived skill level.


----------



## lyonsacc (Sep 16, 2013)

Beautiful, as always, Toni.

I think the groups of tiny little white flowers with yellow centers really add to the depth of the pen.

Dave


----------



## SloLouie (Sep 16, 2013)

Toni,
You almost had it right, it's not ewwwww, it ahhhhhh!
Great work!

Rob


----------



## Toni (Sep 16, 2013)

Thank you so much for the complements!!! I do appreciate them!!


----------



## ironman123 (Sep 16, 2013)

Toni, if I made something ad beautiful as those are....I wouldn't part with them either (or is it neither).

Ray


----------



## Smitty37 (Sep 16, 2013)

ironman123 said:


> Toni, if I made something ad beautiful as those are....*I wouldn't part with them either* (or is it neither).
> 
> Ray


Well neither choice is a real good but either is correct.


----------



## joefrog (Sep 19, 2013)

Toni said:


> I sent an order to exotics.  I could not part with these tubes!! It was a new design I had come up with Green roses with Blue flowers and green flowers and orange butterflies.  I know I know...more flowers but the pattern stopped me in my tracks and I couldnt part with them.  I hope you like it as much as I do. Millefiori tubes are on a Venus, loving this kit!! Really sets off the design, IMO.   Feedback always welcome, even if its...ewww flowers!!
> 
> 
> 
> ...



You have won the internet for the day.  Those are oustanding!!  I'd love to try one sometime, but I'm afraid of HULK SMASH!


----------



## edstreet (Sep 19, 2013)

joefrog said:


> You have won the internet for the day.  Those are oustanding!!  I'd love to try one sometime, but I'm afraid of HULK SMASH!




Don't be.  They are up on exotics and it is very easy to finish them.  Just do some very light sanding then a CA coat, trim the ends and you are done.  It is easy as that.  Just go slow, dont rush, take your time and you will see in no time.  If you have any problems or concerns then post here and we will help.

Also what may be of great help in working with them is the post I made here.
http://www.penturners.org/forum/f56/dragon-sceptre;-gent-tube-conversion-114232/


----------



## bjbear76 (Sep 20, 2013)

Sanding - does it matter if you wet sand vs dry?  It seems to me you'd have more visible scratches dry sanding, but I just wanted to make sure the water wouldn't affect the design.


----------



## edstreet (Sep 20, 2013)

bjbear76 said:


> Sanding - does it matter if you wet sand vs dry?  It seems to me you'd have more visible scratches dry sanding, but I just wanted to make sure the water wouldn't affect the design.



For the question of does it matter if you wet or dry sand? The real answer is yes and no.  wet sanding mostly helps reduce buildup on the paper and the paper cuts slightly longer.  Delicate sanding, i.e. automotive painting wet sanding helps greatly as the items being removed is more abrasive than wood dust.

Some times wet sanding is pure evil, like when you have things that can bleed, run and soak, i.e. ink, things that can turn liquid.

Another reason for wet sanding is not really while sanding but when changing grit sizes.  Say you just finished 400 grit and moving to 600 grit. You still have 400 grit particles on the blank and adding the 600 grit paper you are taking those 400 grit particles and they become your deep scratches. so cleaning the blank between grit sizes really helps greatly in this regard.

For Toni's blanks wet sanding is not needed.  Nor will it ruin/damage these tubes. There may be some rough spots and if you run your hand over the blank you can feel them, esp when they are on the lathe and spinning.  I start out at 500-600 grit because any harsher will start removing clay and you can most certainly reshape things with 400 grit. If you start removing clay then yes your pattern will indeed change.

Perhaps I should do a post sometimes on destructive testing on polymer clay when it comes to pen tubes.  Just to show durability and other things.


----------



## sdoerr (Sep 20, 2013)

Toni, your blanks are absolutely amazing.  Shortly after your original post in this thread I went to exoticblanks and ordered your blue floral for Jr Gent II.  I'm getting ready for a show and I thought I would give it a try.  Then last night at our 3rd Thursday art walk I showed a picture of the pink floral for Jr. Gent II to one of my customers that had ordered a pen for his boss for Christmas.  He originally wanted a Venus with pink ivory.  When he saw the picture of the pink floral he was really impressed and asked how much it would be to use the your blanks with the Venus.  I said it was expensive and gave him the price.  Without hesitating he said I'll take it.  Went home after the show and immediately ordered it thru exotic.  Thanks so much for sharing your blanks with the rest of us.  I'm really looking forward to making both of these blanks and am anxious to see how the blue floral does at the show.  Keep up the good work.
Steve


----------



## George417 (Sep 20, 2013)

Outstanding work Toni.


----------



## Toni (Sep 21, 2013)

sdoerr said:


> Toni, your blanks are absolutely amazing.  Shortly after your original post in this thread I went to exoticblanks and ordered your blue floral for Jr Gent II.  I'm getting ready for a show and I thought I would give it a try.  Then last night at our 3rd Thursday art walk I showed a picture of the pink floral for Jr. Gent II to one of my customers that had ordered a pen for his boss for Christmas.  He originally wanted a Venus with pink ivory.  When he saw the picture of the pink floral he was really impressed and asked how much it would be to use the your blanks with the Venus.  I said it was expensive and gave him the price.  Without hesitating he said I'll take it.  Went home after the show and immediately ordered it thru exotic.  Thanks so much for sharing your blanks with the rest of us.  I'm really looking forward to making both of these blanks and am anxious to see how the blue floral does at the show.  Keep up the good work.
> Steve



Steve thank you for sharing your story.  I love to hear them!!  I just love the Venus kit, looks great with my tubes!!


----------



## jeff (Oct 4, 2013)

Looks great on the front page :biggrin:


----------



## chriselle (Oct 4, 2013)

Hey Toni,

  Congratulations on the front page.  That's right where that pen belongs.  

Just to let you know....you have a black rose Jr Gent with Triton accents and a Venus with the yellow roses on display in Tokyo in promotion of an upcoming event in November.  :banana:


----------



## Toni (Oct 4, 2013)

jeff said:


> Looks great on the front page :biggrin:



Oh Wow!! It does look great on the front page!! Thank you!!



chriselle said:


> Hey Toni,
> 
> Congratulations on the front page.  That's right where that pen belongs.
> 
> Just to let you know....you have a black rose Jr Gent with Triton accents and a Venus with the yellow roses on display in Tokyo in promotion of an upcoming event in November.  :banana:



Chris,

Did you take any photos of the pens? How exciting to be in Tokyo  I hope you do well at the pen show!!


----------



## OZturner (Oct 4, 2013)

Toni,
Truly beautiful, looks like the "Flower Power" from the 60's is making a comeback.
Love your work, I must give PC a try.
Brian.


----------



## gerryr (Oct 9, 2013)

Very impressive work.


----------



## ed4copies (Oct 9, 2013)

gerryr said:


> Very impressive work.




There's a county we haven't heard from in a LONG while!!!

Welcome back Gerry!!!!:biggrin::biggrin::biggrin:


----------



## edstreet (Nov 14, 2013)

Dare I bump this by posting the matching non-pen item to this SET?


----------



## PR_Princess (Nov 14, 2013)

I am speechless Ed!! That is gorgeous!!! Class all the way, fit for a queen!

I'm confused though... (lol not a very hard thing to do these days!!:redface 
I've never seen a Venus letter opener kit??  

How did you do that?


----------



## carlmorrell (Nov 14, 2013)

I was just going to ask the same question.  A Venus letter opener?


----------



## edstreet (Nov 14, 2013)

The Venus letter opener is a rare and hard to find item until I learned the ancient Chinese secret from a fortune cookie.


----------



## Dan Masshardt (Nov 14, 2013)

Actually Ed had to place an order of 3000 of them 6 months ago from Dayacom to get one.  ;-p


----------



## edstreet (Nov 15, 2013)

I like the fortune cookie line better than a Dayocom order 

Seriously tho, not for the faint of heart.  Majestic letter opener kit, venus kit.  Both will be chopped up so be prepared to waste the near $100 if you screw up.

First thing is we have the same diameter tube on the majestic letter opener and the gent series.  The length is not really that important in the letter opener so you can use any gent tube for that purpose.

The majestic letter opener center band is near similar to that of the gent series.  Only exception is there is this added bulk on the front if to hold the letter opener in.










After several trial runs I pulled the band apart






Compared the two bands and there is a difference, that gap must be taken into account.





Front screw section of the center band on the inside view with the Venus band showing.





This is the insert into the tube section.  this section is the same for all gent series center bands.  the plastic tube rest on this part.





Re-press and like emerald would say BAM!


----------

