We designed and fabricated the two signs for Nathan’s Applewood BBQ. The larger of the two was installed on the yet-to-be-completed building. The Vala’s crew was in a mad dash to finish and open the new Apple Cider area of the farm. They made the opening but the A-frame porch was put on hold. The smaller of the two signs was placed in a planter as a stop-gap measure. Last year, the sign was still in the planter as the Vala crew worked on other exciting projects. As I visited the fam this season I was delighted to see the BBQ building had been finished and the smaller of the log signs was in its rightful place. It is nice when a plan comes together - even if it takes a while.
Making signs work
We’ve long defined a ‘sign’ as anything that draws attention to a customer’s product, business or service. This definition includes the landscaping and buildings and the signs in whatever form they might take. A sign is not merely a flat board with letters stuck on it. At Vala’s Pumpkin Patch we’ve designed and built a lot of fun signs which are designed to fit perfectly with their surroundings and look like they’ve been there forever. The Valas of course take it much, much further. The buildings often recycled barns and outbuildings. The planters are fashioned out of large stones quarried locally. And they plant massive flower displays which are beautiful and draw even more attention to the ‘signs’. I love going back to the farm each year and seeing all they have added to the displays and signs. It gets better with every passing year!
Which came first?
The age-old question of which came first (the chicken or the egg) has been solved. I welded up the brackets on Freya’s sign today and mounted it to a work stand to make things easy. Then I created the welded steel armature for the chicken and the egg which looks a lot like a plain egg for now. Lath was then shaped and tied to the pencil rod armature making it ready for the base coat of sculpting epoxy. Kendra did the mixing honours while I applied a generous coat of epoxy. This makes the sign ready for the final sculpt of the egg shell and chick next week. By mid-week, we should be able to kick the sign over to the painting crew so they can work their magic. Stay tuned…
