King(s) in Mind

King in Mind

It’s funny how a certain piece of furniture will suddenly draw a lot of interest, sometimes months after I’ve designed and made the first one. That’s the case with “King in Mind,” a stately chair with a high back and leather cushion fashioned in the mid-century modern furniture style. The original “King in Mind” has been depicted on my personal business cards for some time now, but it wasn’t until recently that the piece garnered not only a sale, but also a custom order for two additional “Kings.”

I have to admit, it was hard parting with the original “King in Mind,” as I’d grown quite attached to the guy. But my sincere thanks to J. for adding the original to her home decor. And thanks, as well, to V. and R., who requested black leather for their “Kings” (pictured above). Best wishes that your “Kings” remain a part of your homes as you share good times there with friends and family.

And, for old times’ sake, here’s the original “King in Mind”:

King in Mind

Yo, Fellow Artists (and Authors and Musicians): Love Animals? Donate Your Art

If you’re a Cleveland artist, author or musician, please do consider making a donation of one of your pieces of work to a local animal rescue that’s currently planning a spring “Art, Music and Books” fundraiser. Yep….there are lots of great causes in the area, lots of artsy fundraisers….we “starving artists” can’t donate to them all. Right there with you on that one.

But I am making a donation of one of my wares to the Happy Trails Farm Animal Sanctuary, and here’s why.  Happy Trails serves an animal population that is overlooked, animals such as goats, cows, horses, sheep, ducks and the like. They serve all of Ohio and, as far as I know, they’re the only animal rescue in the state (and one of few in the nation) that addresses the needs of animals that wouldn’t be able to be placed at traditional dog-and-cat rescues. They work to rescue and rehabilitate abandoned, abused and neglected animals, then adopt them out to loving, safe homes.

Over the past 13 years, Happy Trails Farm has helped more than 3,000 animals. Check out some of their amazing success stories at their website. (I especially love the story of  Odessa the goat, who now visits schools and nursing homes as a Happy Trails Farm ambassador.)

Where we artists (and authors and musicians) come in is by donating a piece of art, writing or music to Happy Trails Farm for their March 9 fundraiser. They sell our stuff and get money to continue the fantastic work they do, sweet and simple as that.

Do hope that you Cleveland artists (and animal lovers) will consider this one….it’s the proverbial great cause. Me, I’m giving them a cheese board that I recently made and know that whatever money it brings in will be used toward feed or sleeping bags or crates or hay or….you get the idea.

For info on donating, you can call Happy Trails Farm at 330-296-5914 or email them at annette@happytrailsfarm.org. Executive Director Annette Fisher or one of the volunteers will walk you through the process. They’ll even help make it easy for you by offering to have one of their volunteers pick up your donation. Couldn’t be any easier than that!

#Recycle #Reuse #Christmascard…Mail Your Cards to St. Jude’s Ranch for Children

#Recycle #Reuse #Christmascard

I’m all about green furniture….recycling, reusing, salvaging wood that might otherwise go to the landfill. I get to use old pieces (complete with their respective stories) to create something new; my local landfill is just a wee bit less full; and I’ve done my one small part to keep living trees from being cut down for new furniture.

So, it may come as no surprise that I’m also all about green when it comes to Christmas and holiday cards. Instead of sending my cards to the recycling bin this year (and keeping some, of course, like the one from Granny), I’ll be packing them up and mailing them to St. Jude’s Ranch for Children. For more than 30 years, this nonprofit has been recycling Christmas cards and creating new ones. Children take the donated cards, create new backs for them, and then the recycled cards are sold by St. Jude’s in packs of 10 for $10 to support their programming. They accept year-round donations of other cards, as well: Easter, birthday, thank you and all-occasion greeting cards.

Call it recycling, reusing, what have you – it’s a fabulous way to keep that green Christmas spirit going.

You can find the mailing address and card recycling details at St. Jude’s Ranch for Children website.

Raven's Nest Gallery

Don’t quite have all of your Christmas shopping done? Perplexed as to what to give that one person who is oh-so-hard-to-buy-for?

Salvaged-wood boards by artist Raven Toney might just do the trick. There are still a few left for this holiday season: cutting boards, cheese boards, trivets, and even old-fashioned, rustic chalk boards complete with a handy piece of chalk attached by twine. Wood types vary, as do sizes and finishes. Some boards sport the Chinese symbols for “Peace” or “Love,” while other boards are the proverbial blank slate.

Prices range from $20 to $140.

For details, please contact artist Raven Toney at 865-356-4869 or raventoney2000@yahoo.com. To view his salvaged-wood furniture, visit the Raven Toney website. To see what the hell he’s been up to lately, follow him on Twitter at @RavenToneyArt.

And many thanks to all who have gone out of their way in support of Raven’s Nest Gallery. We’re…

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Raven Toney

Salvaged-wood boards by @RavenToneyArt. Heavy (but nifty) stocking stuffers. Available tonight http://t.co/jxjFvYk1http://t.co/7KYkXYMP — Raven’s Nest Gallery (@RavensNestCLE)

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Salvaged-wood boards by @RavenToneyArt

Salvaged-wood boards by @RavenToneyArt. Heavy (but nifty) stocking stuffers. Available tonight http://t.co/jxjFvYk1 http://t.co/7KYkXYMP — Raven’s Nest Gallery (@RavensNestCLE)

Tonight! Join @RavensNestCLE with @DonCockroft for Preview/Reception

Raven's Nest Gallery

Event: Raven’s Nest Gallery Preview and Reception

Date: December 11, 2012

Time: 5:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m.

Location: Luxe Kitchen and Lounge, 6605 Detroit Avenue, Cleveland (Gordon Square Arts District)

Description: Though we’re not officially open yet due to gallery renovations, we’re still in the holiday spirit. Please join us for a special preview and reception, where we’ll be featuring the salvaged furniture of artist Raven Toney (who will also be bringing a sack full o’ artful stocking stuffers crafted from salvaged wood, such as trivets, cutting boards, cheese boards and the like).

We’re also pleased to present a reception welcoming Don Cockroft (Cleveland Browns, 1968-1980), who will be speaking about and signing his book, The Kardiac Kids. Get some backstage stories about the Cleveland Browns and pick up the perfect Browns’ fan gift. Don “takes the stage” at 6:00 p.m., so be sure you’re…

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@RavensNestCLE Preview & Reception Dec. 11 Featuring @RavenToneyArt and @DonCockroft

Event: Raven’s Nest Gallery Preview and Reception

Date: December 11, 2012

Time: 5:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m.

Location: Luxe Kitchen and Lounge, 6605 Detroit Avenue, Cleveland (Gordon Square Arts District)

Description: Though we’re not officially open yet due to gallery renovations, we’re still in the holiday spirit. Please join us for a special preview and reception, where we’ll be featuring the salvaged furniture of artist Raven Toney (who will also be bringing a sack full o’ artful stocking stuffers crafted from salvaged wood, such as trivets, cutting boards and perhaps even some bird houses).

We’re also pleased to present a reception welcoming Don Cockroft (Cleveland Browns, 1968-1980), who will be speaking about and signing his book, The Kardiac Kids. Get some backstage stories about the Cleveland Browns and pick up the perfect Browns’ fan gift. Don “takes the stage” at 6:00 p.m., so be sure you’re there for what promises to be some terrific stories.

Many thanks to Luxe Kitchen and Lounge, one of Raven Toney’s commercial clients, for hosting this special Raven’s Nest Gallery event. See you there!

Custom Hostess Stand Headed to Old Filling Station (aka Dina’s Pizza and Pub)

Old Filling Stations, Old Sofas….and a Little New Diamond Plate

I’m a dedicated fan of repurposing, whether it’s taking wood from a dilapidated barn and creating a dining table or converting an old-fashioned filling station to a kick-ass pub.

For those who have never visited Dina’s Pizza & Pub in Cleveland’s Old Brooklyn, you’ve missed out on a few things that are pretty fantastic. Dina’s serves tasty pizza, burgers and wings (they’ll even make them extra-crispy for you, if you’re picky like me). They boast one of the best bars in town (Happy Hour is 3-7 p.m. daily), with plenty of TVs for the optimal game-watching experience. There’s even a covered patio and a banquet room for private parties. The staff is super-fun and friendly (with a special shout-out to my gal Lisa and to Smokey).

And, one of the things I most love about Dina’s, it’s all housed in what used to be a filling station. Talk about having a vision for re-use. When you visit, see if you can figure out what the place looked like before the transformation.

Custom Hostess Stand

Dina’s Hostess Stand

I was honored when asked recently to design and build a custom hostess stand for Dina’s. The one thing I was asked to be sure to include in the design was diamond plate. You’ve likely seen diamond plate, though you may not know it by that name. It’s usually made of aluminum, steel or stainless steel, and it’s used a lot in industrial flooring settings (the pattern helps prevent slipping) and in emergency vehicles (think ambulance flooring or fire truck footplates).

And it’s also used for decorative purposes. Dina’s already had lots of diamond plate in the bar area,

Bar Area: Dina’s Pizza and Pub

so I incorporated panels in the hostess stand rather than wrap the entire structure in plating.

The bottom portion of the base, believe it or not, was once part of my dear Auntie Therese’s very solidly-built sofa. When she gifted that sofa to me in the hopes that I could use it for “something artsy,” I had no idea when I took a saw to it that part of it would later be perfect for a hostess stand. (Sofa slats repurposed as shelving in my bathroom, yeah, I saw that before I had even dismantled it all the way.)

Hope you agree that the hostess stand is in keeping with the “former filling station” motif they have going on at Dina’s.

Dina’s Hostess Stand2

Dina’s Hostess Stand3

Many thanks to all at Dina’s for the opportunity to work on your project. And thanks to Auntie Therese for calling me before pitching that great old sofa. Part of it will still get to be surrounded by crazy-loud Browns’ fans every weekend….in an old filling station.

Dina’s Pizza & Pub is located at 5701 Memphis Avenue, Brooklyn, OH. Check out their menu and specials here. Or give them a shout at 216-351-FOOD (3663).

Raven's Nest Gallery

“King in Mind” for a Desk Calendar

“52 Weeks 52 Works,” a desk calendar produced by Cleveland-based Academy Graphic Communication, celebrated its 10th year with the 2012 printing. And that brings to 520 the number of pieces of art that have appeared in the calendar’s pages over the years. (If you’re fortunate enough to own a copy, you already know that the cover contains 520 thumbnail images of each of those pieces of art. Talk about a collage.)

Artist Raven Toney of Raven’s Nest Gallery was selected as one of the artists for the 2012 edition of “52 Weeks 52 Works,” and the week of November 4 is his showcase week. The piece selected was “King in Mind,” a stately chair crafted from salvaged walnut and salvaged cherry….with what we know to be a pretty sumptuous seat covered in white leather. “King in Mind” is sleek, it’s mid-century modern and…

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