Becky and I are wondering if YOU, our members, who make this forum a wonderful and FUN place to be, have any suggestions for our monthly contest and challenge? Is there something you're itching to do and just keep putting it off? Maybe if it was a contest or challenge, it would happen. Please post any projects you would like to do here. Don't be shy! Tell us what you would love to be working on.

We would also like your opinion on our monthly contest and challenge. Are two projects a month too much? Not enough? Tell us what you think.

We also know the last two months of the year are so busy for many folks. Those of us in the Christmas exchange already have this as a project to do. Is this enough for November and December? Should we have more? Let us know.

Thank you SO MUCH for being a part of this fun and joyful forum. We do have FUN, don't we?

We look forward to your input!

Becky and Vic

Yes, we do look forward to your input! It's all of ours . . . this Garden Art Forum . . . and we love being here together. Thanks for the questions, Vic!

I just love this place and the two of you are awesome and all the rest of the members are too.

Anyway, like you all said the holidays are coming up pretty quick and the Christmas exchange is one of the projects that we are doing, how about one contest for Nov and Dec. Build a Santa, snowman, elf, or reindeer and give us until mid Dec. to finish. No pressure, it still keeps us addicted and we do something for ourselves for Christmas or a use it for gift

How about a change from the norm and do something not Christmas related? Since folks will be all busy with Christmas give them something unrelated to take their minds off of it.

We're listening

C'mon everybody! Chime in - everyone has a voice here

How about doing something for January that makes us all look forward to spring?

Sometime in the next week I'll show you how to make the nutcracker as I promised some time ago. Since you already made the tin man, and it followed the same methods I showed you earlier on the Stack/Totem thread, there's not much reason to go into basic detail, but I will show you how you can finish the tin man so that it becomes a nutcracker, if that's something you want to do. Not a challenge or contest at all, just one more thing to do if you want.

It wouldn't be suitable for outside, but would be nice on a front porch or beside an indoor Christmas tree.

Thanks to you Sharon. Only two people made a tin man and I know I for one, need help!

PS:
I think some of us (me!!! ) need the basic instruction lesson. Working with tin is really new to me.

Just throwing this out: what if we made something that could be created either way: for everyday use or for Christmas or any Holiday?

Decorating a tree for the birds?
Vic's apple comes to mind.

Thank you Sharon for showing us how to do this

Well... there's s few projects I'm almost working on that might fit this catagory... but they aren't ready for prime time yet... one is a whirley gig... one of the wind driven twirley objects... ..a decade ago someone left one for me in my street planter ..a flying american eagle... I kept it there for years... all the childrren would stop on their way by and show it off to their parents.. and visit daily..every few years I'd improve or repair it.. sometimes painting the eagle.. so I have a good working idea.. one time it was stolen in a big wind storm... I figure it got their attention as it likely was spinning so fast... but I later found in in the bushes at the park... I figure they were carrying it about and the metal wings clipped them and they threw it away after being hit.. [ I can only hope ] but i got it back.. and it was there for another few years.. then it was taken again.. never to be found... at first the kids would stop and ask where it went... had to explain to a 3-4 year old why someone would steal our eagle...and I've always wanted to replace it... a great introduction to wind power...for them... but I've about decided I wanted to make it turn a small power generator... that might power a small LED light .. when it was spinning... to get across to them the connection of the wind and power/light ... but I've yet to come upon the right mix of tiny and cheep ..durable and easy wind adaptable generator... perhaps one that would light more lights as the speed increased... maybe turning it into a wind speed guage somehow... but if I get a material suplier list for it together I'll post a tutorial for it... hopefully with as much character cuteness as Charlene's fish pond.. great for holidays.. or any garden theme as anything can be made to fly.. not only eagles..
OH..nothing like expanding a small simple project to an extreme end to keep it unstarted..

Those little bicycle light generator thingies work well for that Gordon. The ones that attach to the wheels? As the wheel spins they generate enough power to light up a marker light for the bicycle. I had one once in my yard attached to a small windmill. When the blades turned the little generator lit a light on top of it.

"Mushrooming" = starting with the spore of an idea and having it grow into a huge multi-phased project. That is one of my worst problems...

Gordon, We would love you to do a tutorial, how Exciting...
I know you will come up with something.

me too