Cara's Wood Sculpture
Cara wanted two sculptures for an awards ceremony to be given to two women in Philedelphia who had been positive influences in their communities. The most important thing to be informed of first, is that I made these from a solid 3 inch thick by 7 inch wide bolock of walnut, near impossible to find a single block of walnut in this size. No stack of thin boards glued together here causing striped variations of color and with the potential for glue to soften up and fall apart in a wet/humid environment. The photo bottom right is the pattern to model them after. The photo at bottom left is one of them rubber banded together holding the legs on while glue dries inside of the mortice and tenon joints joining the legs to the solid block of wood forming the body. The upper row of photos shows them from unfinished on the right to finished and varnished on the left. Each one is approximately 14 inches high.
Long-time member
A Maker who has been a valued part of this community for several years.
Fast shipper
Customers say that this Maker ships promptly after completing a project.
Great service
This Maker has consistently demonstrated excellence in craftsmanship and customer service.
Working alone, I state working alone because nearly everything that I design and make are works of art made by me alone and signed by me for 20+ years, Ralph produces furnishings and signs rebelling against "mechanical mediocrity" refusing to work within the limitations imposed by machines and produce objets d'art which can only be accomplished with many hours/days/weeks/months of hand tooling.
To summarize, I am an artisan, not merely a furniture maker. Thank you for your interest in my fascination.
DJDavid Jagger
For Karate God Busaganashi4.8I am extremely pleased with my Busaganashi. Working with Ralph was a pleasure and I would certainly work with him again on other projects and give him a strong recommendation for anyone looking for quality work.
- KS
Karen Stein
For Wooden walking stick Project5.0 - N
Nathaniel
For I owe you an apology4.8Ralph is a true artist. He will go above and beyond what you expect to make the project you really want. For him, quality is best and he will not cut on details.
I will definitely work again with him (I'm actually working with him on a project of 52 chess pieces), and am glad to have him to make this project come to reality.
The value you will get is extraordinary, as well as the professionalism and expertise you will benefit from when working with him. Timeliness and shipping also are on point.
Communication is essential and Ralph will keep you informed. Even when we had a small miscommunication (which wasted some of Ralph's time), he fixed the detail (even if he didn't need to) to give me an amazing piece!
I cannot give 6 stars (unfortunately, even though he deserves them) so I'll have to settle by giving Ralph 5 stars.
- MC
Michael Contus
For Sfakiot cross5.0Ralph of Furnishings of Intoxicating Beauty was amazing to work with. He crafted exactly the piece I wanted -- a custom carved cross in a traditional ethnic design. The finished piece is beautiful, elegantly hand carved with a superb finish. Ralph is a professional and a true artist. He took the time to make sure he understood the requirements of the job and offered suggestions that only made the final project better. Thanks again, Ralph!
- SS
Stacie Soto
For Carved Swagger Stick4.8Ralph was very diligent during the whole process, he explained everything to me including why he chose the wood he did and the type font. It was nice to have the information when presenting this gift. Ralph was professional, friendly, communicative and extraordinarily talented.
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