I felt like a Project Runway designer leaving Mood after my trip to Ace this afternoon. SO much more helpful and enthusiastic than the Home Depot folks (sorry). But, after all, ACE is a hardware store and HD is not. The first young guy behind the Services counter listened and seemed to get what I was asking, but I think maybe he is sill sort of new. He called someone named Joe over and Joe was GREAT! Another young guy (slightly older-looking and a bit more familiar with the store/products) Joe is fabulous at thinking outside of the normal hardware uses box. Once we got rolling, he had really wonderful suggestions! And I want/need to say that both of the guys knew what I was talking about when I was describing the smaller double-pointy-ended-roundy-tack thing.
I still need to come up with a counterbalance weight item to replace the container of cat litter -- we just couldn't find anything that would be dead weight AND relatively inexpensive...BUT...while I was at the check out Joe DID get a last-second idea and came back with some metal ribbon-like thing with continuous holes in it...if I get something like a cinder block or anchor or something I can strap it down with this stuff (last photo).
Part of what took me so long to get started tonight was I had to figure out how I could position the croco-creature without needing to bend down and work upside down from my chair (like I did yesterday) and still not hammer into the wood and keep bouncing the table top base on the casters.
This is what I finally came up with and it seems to be working pretty well. IF the croco-creature starts to go off-balance I can catch him easily at this height. It is actually more stable than it looks.
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| I was hoping the cabinet was going to fit in between the casters but it didn't. But the box of foil does! |
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| I know...I know...it does look a bit precarious but it is pretty stable. |
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| THESE smaller, rounder, double-pointed tack things!!! And I have them in black and in silver tone...LOL |
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| This was another idea Joe came up with after I described the situation. The copper bends easily! |
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| I am forcing myself to only do a few at a time to save my hand. It surprises me how much work it still is using the drill to screw the screws into the wood. |
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| This is the stuff that I can use to strap down whatever it is I end up using to replace the container of cat litter. |
Juana and I went to lunch and to LIFT and to the m:tg card shop and had a great time...but first I brought her the Wowl. I've only "owed" her this guy (for her birthday) since probably 2010 because I made him in 2011. A couple of days ago I finally got up the nerve to varnish him.
When I got home and got around to looking at Facebook I found that Juana had already done a photo shoot with the Wowl -- cool! He looks so different to me in a setting other than my studio. I am glad he is a hit. Thanks for taking such cool pics, Juana!
