The Beacon (and Stockpile) is Back!

Stockpile has taken the backseat for the last six weeks as I worked on my personal website (wrightmonster.com) and took a much-needed family vacation. Now I'm happy to report that the website is done, the family is once again scattered across the continent, and a fat batch of bombshells has arrived in my mailbox. I'm also studying woodworking and metalworking at 3rd Ward in Brooklyn, so I can widen my product range beyond lighting. But for now, I've got some more of the popular Beacon lamps available, and some vintage aircraft posters on the way.

Depleted Stock

I only list on Etsy (for now), but my housewares have been selling very well. Now I'm scrambling to pick up more pieces and supplies, and shore up my inventory before my store becomes empty!

I signed up for 3rd Ward, a great shared workspace in Brooklyn. The tools in their workshop will help me cut down my production time significantly, and they teach a great variety of classes that will open me up to new techniques and processes. Using this space, I plan to have five new Blitz lamps, a Megaton, and a new ceiling fixture available for sale in the next few weeks.

I'm also trying to secure a new set of cluster bomblets for the popular Beacon lamp. My original suppliers have run out, and it seems like cluster bomblets are only sporadically available. I may have located an entire crate of untouched pieces in Montana, so with luck I'll have a major stock soon.

Coming Soon - The Bomblet Necklace

Jewelry made from gunshells is popular, but the Bomblet Necklace will blow it away. (Wordplay!) I use a Vietnam War "Lazy Dog" bomb as a base, and then stripe it with gold leaf. Lazy Dogs, also known as flechettes, are solid pieces of steel with guidance fins attached to the base. PIlots would throw thousands over embedded troops, and by the time they hit the ground they would be traveling quickly enough to cause mortal injury. I can't decide if that is sinister or innovative. The photo is of a bomb halfway through the assembly process - the leaf has been applied, but it hasn't been cleaned up or sealed yet. It's also a crappy picture - I don't have the hang of macro-photography yet, but by the time I've put a few on chains I hope I can take a decent snapshot.

The Friendly Skies

I've been working on major updates to my graphic design website while I wait for the materials for my next round of merch to come in. Until they arrive and I can post photos of amazing new merchandise, enjoy this awesome photo from Happy Chair is Happy.

Wooden Artillery

These practice rounds are huge (30" tall) and weigh as much as a planet. To save metal they were made from oak, then capped with steel and brass. This weekend I'll start building tabletops to transform these into super-industrial cocktail tables.




The rounds were stored in their original boxes for almost 70 years, which naturally darkened the wood to a perfect honey-brown. I wanted to save the boxes, which were covered in interesting logos and military requisition info. Unfortunately, the cardboard was brittle with dry-rot, to which I am extremely allergic. I tried keeping them anyway, but my legs broke out in hives and I had to drop them at the curb. It's a shame, but I've got even more pieces on the way and some great new projects on the horizon.

A New Logo - Version 1

In the rush to design new products, I've sort of ignored Stockpile's graphic branding. It's sad - I've been slapping the header from this blog on my invoice slips. This weekend I spent a few hours with my notebook sketching out logo ideas, and this one is definitely my favorite. Some refinement is in order, but I think it could set a nice tone for the packaging and distributor catalogs.

I haven't made anything with grenades yet, but I have some pretty interesting stuff on the way. Stay tuned!

New Etsy Store and Sundry News

I started Stockpile with an Etsy store attached to my original account. I'm grateful to everyone who hearted the store and checked out the merchandise, but it was a bit confusing to have Stockpile Designs located at 'wrightmonster.etsy.com.' The new store is at stockpiledesigns.etsy.com.

To celebrate the new store (and because of a format change going forward) I've reduced the price of the MIG-15 Fagot prints to $6! Grab 'em while they last - it's an essential entry in the history of things with terrible names.