Phaze

Phaze

Gravity Guru
ok, introductions

Hi, I'm Jamie, everyone say hi Jamie.....

So I got an intresting (to me) story to tell ya, since it seems you guys like stories

But first lets get the preliminary's out of the way

I have an Iawata Eclipse and an Iawata Neo bottom feed. I started with a no name that came with a compressor. I wanted to start a hobby so I wanted to build models, but painting was so gross. I'm terrible at it. I bought the cheap airbrush and compressor just to see if I liked it. I did. So I bought the Neo because I thought a bottom feed airbrush would be better. I was wrong. Way harder to clean out the bottle then to mix in a cup. Its still good for bigger sprays because its a 0.5.

So, here I was, watching youtube video's and I came across a guy that was painting these awesome pictures on his model cars. Up to this point I was just painting solid colors on different parts. I didn't really think about painting pictures and such. I got curious and started watching video's on how to paint pictures, which is essentially how I found Airbrushtutor.

I started painting pictures and my models went on the shelf ever since. I am a total beginner and I'm really terrible at it, but I am improving all the time. The hard part is I'm a bit color blind, so that really hurts, I think. My paintings definitely do not look great

So my story. BTW, at the end I'm gonna ask for your help, so hopefully I tell it interesting enough that you feel inclined... lol




I am a journeyman plasterer by trade. Been doing it for about 15 years. A couple of years ago I moved to this smallish city from Calgary, which is fairly big. I was working for a stucco company, but they didn't really have anything to offer me, and they kinda worked backwards and didn't like when I made suggestions on how to work more efficiently. It would frustrate me to see things being done so slowly and quite frankly, the quality of work wasn't that good. It would frustrate them when I suggested they could do better. It was a tough spot to be in so I opted to find a new line of work.

So I looked for other work and I ended up getting this job that is kinda unique. My role is really simple. I'm an employee of 1, so I make my own hours and I don't have a boss looking over my shoulder. I install cultured stone on new homes.

The boss has his real project and its kind of a dream job for him. He makes these really elaborate playhouses. The things are amazing!!! I'm in awe whenever I go to the shop and see what all these craftsmen are making.

Here, take a minute and look at what I'm talking about:
http://www.charmedplayhouses.ca/

Pretty wild, huh?

So the deal is this. I'm on salary so I get guaranteed wages but I have to put so many hours a week in. If it has bad weather I can't work. Then I have to go to the shop and help them make these playhouses. No problem.

I was working about a month and it rained, so I went to the shop to put my hours in. The shop was a mad house. They had all these things they were building to go to China and they were behind schedule. I told the foreman what I can do and what I couldn't, and I told him about my hobby of airbrushing. At the end of the day, the foreman came to me and asked a question. He showed me a stone and brick fireplace they built out of styrofoam. He wanted to know how we could paint the grout line between the stones and brick. I thought of my airbrush, and he asked if I could bring it in the next day and try.

Next day I brought my airbrush and paints and started painting the grout lines... it worked excellent. Cool, now I'm getting paid to airbrush lol

Then I had an idea. It came from Mitch's broken rock tutorial video. I told the foreman that I think I could texture up the rocks and make them look more realistic. He told me to give it a try. Next thing you know, I'm painting rocks..... a lot of them. Want some pics? of course you do

wFeABK7d8qkD7bmZsqBJDMVrlcJ2ZCfhLdoY7nlbuVpBpIZBlEg5OQK0sAYml7EqI2eXVag9XDdwHBfo74zSRzdTAv11sW0GqAnQYDb4poJuVRo7R0AQiDCXJAjMmXtOm296SK3Nt-Y9M0ecgarU8kA2Qi9Nn85fKvfDeWebodd18oUPK2ul96qJYLAcA2jL9_BxoSNdyO-hbvrzqArp2zlt5PBn_6DA2GUizovOxJ7ilxxnVwuaApGB8B06aOh16lgPKuK6Tqx_d7GMq1yiQ6QzLBSl-wG0eg5gr6wimXxC4hr2RaAQr4sNrddIFF0roypO7tQ8nf4CHks8SCpIHMGRtbPtuK94_StEPIcZ4PbgRl7ROuVxkUmnZdMmfoFNgM3T0TQ70W7sR6ZEhSu6Wq7GiE4_dxGcfR3sn_m5o3yZsbEpDCdt25VNBGP3Fn-FUIBjqrqe_cGKqiUbyVuy0b6qAWnrEA7Wh0cSrtBhbIjd1siS2QF9UBNLNsxKTDz0a52ib16_7odf54md5Hvwo33IOBQrJs9BcllBfR2QalX4Udzx7bkTB4OliPKwn2AxdJbC2EvhEiPhs-fpQYzYgweOa_uXrnY=w582-h775-no


This is most of the rocks textured.

BTW, I'm gonna interrupt the story for a second because there is a detail I haven't mentioned. The building of these playhouses is going to be a reality show on TLC. You can actually watch these things being built. In fact, the season premier of the show is on August 23. I think its called Playhouse Masters or something. And its all about the building of these playhouses for pretty famous people, like Steph Curry from the NBA, and Miss USA 1996, Ali Landrey. So the whole time I'm working on this, getting paid to airbrush, there is a tv crew filming silly stuff with the boss.

So I'm painting away on that stone castle there and I noticed a deformity in the big stone piece. You could barely see it, but I thought to myself that it looks like a crack should be there. I mentioned it to a guy I was working with, and he said he thought I should try to airbrush one in. I thought, nahhh, because then there should be more cracks and we shouldn't have time. But this guy thought it was such a good idea that he told the boss. The boss told me to try it and see what it looked like. I never done a crack before, but I went for it. It was a simple black line then a white line to highlight it. Nothing fancy.

The boss is shooting a scene, but he turns around, sees it, gives me the thumbs up, and yells, "Make more!!!"

So now I'm painting cracks lol

Oh. go back to that picture up top. You see at the very top center parapet, there is strange line going down?
Well, we have to ship these things to china, so they all come apart, and are reassembled there. They kinda screwed up right there, and didn't hide the breakaway part on that parapet. So the boss asked if I could make a fake one on the other side.... here is the completed unit:

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Great experience but I'm sure most of you experienced guys would do better. But it was really a cool feeling when I had the camera guy come up to me, saying that he had to touch the cracks I painted to convince his brain that they weren't real. That is a real cool feeling.

Suffice to say, I'm hooked on airbrushing and I want to paint really cool things for people. Someday, hopefully, I will get paid too hahaha



Now for the favor I asked for you. The company I work for got entered into a contest for small businesses by Canada's largest newspaper group, the Globe and Mail.

The company I work for made top 6 new businesses out of 2400 nominees. Now there is a voting process to get the company that most deserves the prize of $100,000. I would really like my boss to keep his dream alive. Its really cool watching someone fullfill such a great thing. If you could just go to the article from the globe and mail and click on the company you think should win the $100,000, I'd appreciate it..... hopefully, after seeing the competition you might still vote for Charmed.... that would be awesome....

Please vote here: http://www.theglobeandmail.com/repo...0000-small-businesschallenge/article30648990/

some more pics.... there was professional photographer and he took a few pics of me working... kinda coool

4R6SpiM4q_A3YrqI6AbQd_41Di7df04lyQR1bKNVt99eNQzBT_lkEpYOgmAigVMOwrZwlUwtew0pk7_RJW4LdWXi1_31PL-kdJRHAg9qtvm23ufISHr5uObx1yptHqpMYILbjcTzcAYhZRPx2seQ01SYQWUU02E1Rf52SzAFubRS6OLNYFffw36xRaS8CVAVAYkVbnQ5Tani593xpKle0pP6q251tgi1A6EV-H9wNja8JptD5YV6DCSdUQ9-sNDEcBSPZHtLq6SBx7_Fj-VF7sm4yEfNKYtjs4rloUvJ88wZzc6Ry5M4dQOmr66r9GhgIp4qOZnJC1lorFVFOkf3oKmJZtIW5BGGJhBB1hozJNPlvxqfZZmILoPoMdyshrzyKp75MPuWhDfOpCMNH0Gp_asQzLC5D7Pg7As3pllCvq8Z9RgC1NkYhQBCpDWdyEEWAD1rMALwBbqHBHpuGDyUzBIiWoHAkIgApzm1dXdRJesLA5fjoZ8ZTmFiVgFj1YWdpqo7Z3EwyB3JgFUZPv-xSeFdKMsGHfo6qKFEMxd7ELbwxRNQOt3aRZJhd_EnaelmKqYx1kl8LafUcfvmNZ_P8oEpSgUEFyw=s775-no
 
Hey Phaze, welcome from New Zealand - great story! Voted... when does the voting close?
 
not sure, it only says the winner will be announced sometime in september. We are pretty much tied with one other company for the last few weeks
 
Now that is an introduction that I can say is one of the best introductions I have ever read and I want one of those play houses it would make me on nice cool looking airbrush shop :D

Oh hell I almost forgot Welcome Home Jamie and "Hi Jamie!"
 
Only problem with the playhouses is they are dang expensive. The average play house as far as I can figure goes for $25,000. I've seen some that exceeded 6 figures. Yikes
 
Only problem with the playhouses is they are dang expensive. The average play house as far as I can figure goes for $25,000. I've seen some that exceeded 6 figures. Yikes
I did not figure they were your average 2,500. 00 dollar 12 X14 sheds but they look well worth the price . It is good you can be creative at work and get paid to practice airbrushing :D
 
Hi Jamie, great playhouses and congratulations that you are able to paint these. I voted 40 v 37 still I hope your company clinches it.

Lee
 
Welcome from Australia...
some very cool play houses there, its always nice when you do something you enjoy and get paid for it, it feels a lot less like work :)

look forward to seeing the program, although Australia probably wont see in on pay tv here until its been around for at least a few years :D


Now that is an introduction that I can say is one of the best introductions I have ever read :D

so you've forgotten my intro then LOL - you're forgiven, it was awhile ago lol


.
 
Hi Jaime,welcome from Dubuque IA, US. I'm gone say we, because we are one of the Very few people that seems to like are job. And enjoy what we do and get payd. Most people stay at there job even when they hate it. I voted to good luck.
 
You got my vote! 40% now. Welcome to the forum! Interesting story too. I wish I was a little kid again, I want to explore one of those. LOL

If your boss wins, he owes you some bucks! LOL
 
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