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Thread: Why do we fall out of love...

  1. #1
    Join Date
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    Why do we fall out of love...

    ...with our pieces? I find that I really like my pieces as they come off the lathe and I finish them. But then I very often I find I am no longer happy with a piece with which I was initially quite pleased. For sure some of this is that as we get more skilled we see the problems with our earlier efforts. But this can happen with me very quickly (so my skill hasn't improved enough for me to feel that I could do substantially better). I think sometimes it is because I am relieved/pleased that the piece has turned out relatively well when it is finished, and then a few weeks later I don't remember all of the effort and everything that I might have screwed up, and I focus on the things I don't like about it as opposed to the successes/pleasure I had producing it. Dunno, but it's one of the more difficult aspects of the hobby. Curious if this is my own craziness or if others feel this way...

    --dan
    Last edited by Dan Gaylin; 04-05-2021 at 4:53 PM.

  2. #2
    Oh sure...I think this is normal. And I also think it's a positive thing. When you are disappointed, it drives you to excel. Just human nature. I have pieces that I absolutely abhor but I keep them and display them. Just a little reminder of the past.
    ~john
    "There's nothing wrong with Quiet" ` Jeremiah Johnson

  3. #3
    Join Date
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    There are turning skills, there are design skills, and there is an artistic flair. So lots of factors that will influence the long term pleasure from a piece.

  4. #4
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    I too think it's human nature. While others look and simply see the beautiful item you just made from a tree, we will always notice the things we think are "wrong" or that you might do differently the next time.
    A wannabe woodworker!

  5. #5
    Happens to me too sometimes. One factor may be that part of what you loved about the piece at first wasn't anything intrsinsic to it, but was that feeling that you made it. That creative rush. Once that fades, the piece is just there - flaws and all. If you'll pardon the comparison, it reminds me a little of something a friend who had been an exotic dancer before I knew her once said - the art is in the reveal, once the clothes are gone you're just a naked body in a spotlight.

  6. #6
    And that is a valid point. You can come up with a beautiful form but have scars that you regret. You can have a perfect finish on a piece that is not pleasing to the eye. Perfection is rarely attained. But when someone picks up your piece...fondles it and loves it...that's where you find joy
    ~john
    "There's nothing wrong with Quiet" ` Jeremiah Johnson

  7. #7
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    These are all very helpful replies. I think you've captured it. I often find myself thinking about putting things back on the lathe to "just fix this or that". I've done it a couple of times too. It's one of the reasons I like recesses in the bottom as opposed to tenons that you remove. And actually sometimes I like the look of a "foot" on the bowl and leaving it there has allowed me to remount something I did earlier and make it better. I may be violating some first rule of turning here, but...

    -dan

  8. #8
    Well, after turning thousands of bowls, it puzzles me when some people ask if there have ever been pieces that I loved so much I just couldn't sell them. Nope, not once. Main reason for me is that I can't wait to see what kind of beauty will be in the next piece. Even with my production pieces. Another part of that is that I never rate anything a perfect 10. There are always details that can be improved.... I am one of those who never seem to be able to do things the same way twice....

    robo hippy

  9. #9
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    I need to remind myself that despite their flaws I still love them. Whatever I make, my eye is immediately drawn to the mistakes and poorly executed bits (I *really* try hard not to do this with my kids or spouse!). My wife constantly assures me that no one else notices them, but I constantly notice such things on stuff that other people make, so I doubt her words. I'm very quick to forgive other makers, not so much myself. After all, I know better.

    Oh yes, a new favorite saying: "Perfect is the enemy of Done"
    Last edited by roger wiegand; 04-06-2021 at 1:29 PM. Reason: afterthought

  10. #10
    I used to turn pieces, then be disappointed, then turn again, until I realized that I just couldn't see the form right when it was horizontal on the lathe. So I started taking pictures and turning the picture vertical. That helped me a lot. I guess it irritated me about the old phrase, "There's never enough time to do it right but there's always enough time to do it twice"
    ~john
    "There's nothing wrong with Quiet" ` Jeremiah Johnson

  11. #11
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    Pieces not up to for sale quality are gifts.
    I also keep pieces that I have made major mistakes on. The first (not the last) bowl that I turned through the bottom, I kept on my desk at work. Just to remind myself to not do it. No, of course it didn't work, I still turned through a few.

  12. #12
    Here's my first bowl. As I recall, I was very proud. And people on the Creek congratulated me. I keep it in a prominent place as a reminder of good and bad.

    20210406_173950.jpg
    ~john
    "There's nothing wrong with Quiet" ` Jeremiah Johnson

  13. #13
    Join Date
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    Thank you all for your replies. They are helpful and funny. Of course there is some demonstration of shared “craziness” in this thread or what we might call human nature I suppose.

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