OK Penny, here’s a little too late: Polish the antlers BEFORE
the scrimshaw work is done next time. Then only minor touch up
will be required afterword. This is not my field of expertise,
but I seem to recall having put a pretty nice polish on antler
with standard jewelers finishing tools. I would definitely
recommend going around the scrimshaw part with hard flex shaft
buffs so as not to distort the pattern. After that standard
tripoli or greystar and then rouge buffs. Good luck, Mike
How did you get the antlers??? Killing an animal just to make a
decorative object is cruel. I can understand killing an animal
for survival - like food and then AFTER the meat has been used
up- using the fur/skin for practical purposes (I think killing
an animal just for its fur like those evil mink farms is pure
EVIL- by the way I don’t eat meat or wear animal skins and no I
am not a birkenstock wearing idealist who lives in the backwoods
somewhere…). I am sorry I just had to put my two cents in on
this one. As artists, I think we should take into serious
consideration the materials we use and how it effects the world
around us whether it is a poisonous chemical or an animal (they
have souls too). The deer have no where to go because we have
taken over their land to build supermarkets and condos - in
return we treat them like rodents for being in our way!!!
Wow Dede, I’m kinda with you on this one, but keep in mind, the
jewelry industry subsists on land raping mines and slave
labor…yours in hypocrasy, Mike
PLEASE calm down. Deer(elk,moose) shed their antlers every
year in order to grow new ones. Most of this stock comes from
India where they are raised for their antlers just like corn and
beans. Cattle are regularly dehorned with a saw. It doesn’t
hurt them either. Are you calmed down now? Good! I’m going to
go finish my steak now and hope I don’t get any mor venison
grease on buckskins!
Skip
Skip Meister
NRA Endowment and
Instructor
@Skip_Meister
09/03/9701:47:11
First, antlers are not the same as horns or tusks; you do not
have to kill the animal to get antlers, they are shed every fall
then regrow in the spring.
Second, I freely admit to being a tree hugger, pantheist, animal
rights activist and I find nothing more despicable than trophy
hunting - except perhaps ignorance. Have you ever seen what
happens to animals when herds have not been culled by predators,
be they human or wolf, mountain lion, etc? Would you prefer a
lingering death of disease and starvation to a quick, clean kill
that you didn’t even know was coming? Not all hunters are good
shots, but watch any animal in the wild hunt - the prey is taken
down and eaten alive. Not too “humane”, eh? More land is
cleared & habitat is destroyed for farming & mining than for
anything else. Do you know where and under what conditions all
the stones you use were mined, cut and sold? The ages of the
miners & cutters? The conditions they work under? Are you
always ecologically responsible in the way you dispose of or
recycle chemicals? Do you know that Chesapeake Bay is dying
because of farming? Stop watching Bambi. Antlers are a
renewable resource - no one should be upset by their use as
decoration, tool or utensil. Blessed Be, Kat
How did you get the antlers??? Killing an animal just to make a
decorative object is cruel.
I agree. I think using found objects is ok. A friend of mine
won’t take anything from nature–like casting a pine cone. He
says the art is in creating your own version. I tend to agree but
I like to include some natural found objects into my designs not
just a carbo copy.
by the way I don’t eat meat or wear animal skins and no I
am not a birkenstock wearing idealist who lives in the backwoods
somewhere…).
Me either. Well, ok, so I’m an idealist – got my Birkies on as
we speak but I haven’t made it to the backwoods yet
I am sorry I just had to put my two cents in on
this one. As artists, I think we should take into serious
consideration the materials we use and how it effects the world
around us whether it is a poisonous chemical or an animal (they
have souls too). The deer have no where to go because we have
taken over their land to build supermarkets and condos - in
return we treat them like rodents for being in our way!!!
Hey?!! You shouldn’t apologize for having integrity! We all need
to live responsibly in every area of our lives including melting
metal and whacking things with a hammer =-) (My job description
I wholeheartedly agree Mike. I hope future religous flames are
weeded out prior to broadcast. I can’t see anything wrong with
using the parts of animals that have already been slaughtered
for food.
jewelry industry subsists on land raping mines and slave
labor.....yours in hypocrasy, Mike
Just think of the Environmental Hazards that are created by the
manufacturing of the machine you are staring at right now,
uncounted creatures are dead as a result of it, How much more can
Mother Earth take…A guilty party to all the destruction
Jim Blumer
Also being a vegetarian I share similar views re: killing of
animals but I am not trying to be preachy or off topic. In fact
deer shed their antlers annually (I found a pair in my back
yard…- I am a back woods kind of guy). Anyhow the bottom line
is that there is no harm to the animal unless it is killed for
that purpose.
antlers are shed by the deer eack season . they grow a new set
each time with more “points” each time they grow a set. so you
can walk around in the woods at certain times of the years and
sometimes if you’re very lucky find deer antlers on the
ground…thats if the mice haven’t eaten them first (no kidding)
so no you don’t have to kill a deer to get antlers. wsh
Wow Dede, I’m kinda with you on this one, but keep in mind, the
jewelry industry subsists on land raping mines and slave
labor…yours in hypocrasy, Mike
Dear Mike:
First off I need to apologize for my rant - I blame it partially
on PMS. Anyway in our Society anything we do is connected to some
kind of destructive force to our environment and ourselves- every
industry breeds some kind of evil- whether its excessive
waste/garbage/ exploiting workers/ needless slaughter-but I at
least try to make better decisions so the havoc I wreak is not as
destructive.
It is impossible in our world NOT to be a hippocrate unless you
move to some remote Island, wear grass skirts and live off the
land-even then the fires you burn for heat and food will still
add to our Global warming problem…
Basically I feel everything in our modern world is connected to
some kind of destructive force and it is up to each individual to
make an educated decision so the havoc they wreak is little less
destructive . In regard to stone mining- I rarely ever use
stones in my work- I work in metals only… In regard to animals
being killed by other animals well thats called the FOOD CHAIN
and can’t even be compared to what humans do to animals (raise
them in extremely cramped quarters, not allowing them to
excersise, pumped up with hormones- you call that a clean kill?)
I am first generation American and my parent’s parent’s were
farmers-they barely raised enough food for themselves and the
local markets- and sure once a week a chicken would get killed
for dinner - but at least they were FREE RANGE. You think Perdue
is that kind?..and in regard to MASS farming the kind that is
killing our planet- 90% of what I eat is organic-and I don’t
think the crops my food has come from is killing us half as much
as the giant “corporate” farms that are hosed down with various
substances… Yes I know antlers are a renewable source- but lots
of people hunt deer just for the trophy aspect - and I was
interested in knowing if the antlers were apart of someone’s
trophy thats all and that got me going and yes I got a little out
of control…I share a studio space with a trophy animal hunter
and I guess I was releasing steam from stories of his I have
been subjected to- but hey I wanted to make a point.
It is impossible to be perfect- I only hope that all of us at
least from time to time think about what we are doing and how it
effects other things around us. Blame it on my hippie parents - I
have been raised -to think this way - I just think its sad you
mistake my concerns for ignorance…
Whiting is calcium carbonate. The unabribged dictionary at the
library says that chalk is calcium carbonate. Sounds like a
midnight run on the kids chalk box.
i’m really trying to refrain from saying anything about other
people telling other people how to think. if i chose to be a
veggie that is my business, if i like my hamberger rare, that is
my business. if one chooses one thing for another, bully! let’s
not get hysterical (again).
i'm really trying to refrain from saying anything about other
people telling other people how to think. if i chose to be a
veggie that is my business, if i like my hamberger rare, that
is my business. if one chooses one thing for another, bully!
let's not get hysterical (again).
I very much agree. Fortunately, not everyone feels the same
about everything. And I sure would hate to live in a place
where they did!!! Steve D.
I reacted so vehemently because using Antlers is a GOOD thing
for jewelry. They are an excellent organic replacement for ivory
which we can all agree is a bad thing unless it is prehistoric
mastodon or from an animal that died from natural cause or was
harvested for food & the animal is being fully utilized as it
should be. Death should never be a waste or taken lightly. By
jumping someone who is being responsible you set back “the
cause”. A trophy hunter wouldn’t use the antlers for scrimshaw
or anything but display of the full rack - that is the trophy.
If anyone needs antlers BTW, the Boy Scouts gather them and sell
them of annually near Yellow Stone- mostly Elk I believe.
Don’t think metals are mined in a clean holistic manner unless
you are doing the placer mining, no dredging, and packing out
your wastes. If you doubt it, I’ll show you parts of Colorado,
Canada and anywhere else Gold & Silver are mined and the
destruction that is left behind.
I am an old hippie & have practiced recycling & environmental
awareness probably since before you were born. Some of my
ancestors were here when the Europeans came (Iroquois married a
Dutch settler in 1600’s; Sauk & Fox greatgrandfather married
Norwegian greatgrandmother) and all passed a heritage down to
take what you need and give back all you can, defend those who
can’t defend themselves. I’m sorry you feel forced to share
studio space with someone whose views you dislike, but jump down
his throat rather than passing negativity on to someone who
doesn’t merit it. None of the things you mention about being
injected with hormones, caged, etc pertain to Elk or Deer which
is what I was referring to. Vegitarinism does not make one a
paragon of virtue -remember Hitler was one. Please educate
yourself & read more carefully before attacking some one or
their practices.
If you you desire to further explore belief systems or mining
practices, etc I will be happy to communicate with you off
list. Peace & Goodwill to all, Kat @Kathleen
sorry, but closer scrutiny to historical fact has proven that
Hitler was not a vegetarian despite popular belief to the
contrary. He had some peculiar eating habits but abstainance to
meat wasn’t total by any means. He was just a fidgity eater.
…getting a bit off topic but needed clearing up.
Hi Darryl
I stand corrected. Thank you. Can you give me the source of the
refutation? It’s such a marvelous bit of Irony, I rather hate to
let it go…
Thanks, Kat-
Hi Dede, About the poor bambi’s (deer). Every season the deer
shed their horns and grow a new set for the next season with one
extra spike. Usually the porcupines, mice, etc., eat them for the
calcium content. So it’s okay if you what to make stuff out of
them. I think in Michigan there is some 4 Million in the herd,
and Ontario has a herd of 6-8 Million. If you walk thru the
wood in the winter should be able to trip over at least one rack.
I don’t think the porcies will miss one but you have to use it
or put it right back where you found it. Because someone with
beady eyes and wiskers is watching you and they know where you
live. And if leave it on shelf to long it will begin to
disappear a little at a time until poof it’s gone. Jim alpine@hay.net
Jim