Dec 11, 2014 | General
Trust Me, I’m a Professional! Not the best words to come from the mouth of a salesman. Who wouldn’t cringe at the sound of those words or, in my case laugh out loud before making utterance about going and procreating elsewhere.
We all think our jobs suck, right? Well I am sure not everyone does but most of the folk I know would agree. Even my job sucks sometime. Who the hell wants a job (Just Over Broke) but then who the hell wants to hang around the house all day in their underpants watching repeats on TV? It’s not even 7am and I have been sitting here for two hours now and I won’t get finished until 6pm today. In fact every day is like that, running a small business in Britain today is hell but there are good days….. or maybe there are some days less awful that others, depends upon your outlook.
A great day at Kaizen Bonsai is one where new stock arrives. If that stock happens to be yamadori so much the better. I have been forced to become a mercenary old bastard these last few years, paying your way in the world via bonsai will do that to a fella’. I love it when new trees arrive because I have a whole new bunch of stuff to play with. I also love it when I sell those trees because I get a whole bunch of money to play with. However the day after trees arrive i’m back to my grumpy old self because now I have a whole bunch of new stuff to take care of and ultimately try to find new homes for.
Personally I love yamadori, the possibilities resident in wild trees offers so much scope for creativity and a chance to take a battered old wreck and turn it into a jewel, and make something in the world a little better and happier. I bust my hump to sell this stuff but, by and large folk don’t buy it. We can work a tree, put it on Youtube and VERY easily get double the price in a heartbeat. Selling raw material to any but a select few visionary folk is as easy as offering a free tooth extraction with every purchase…. with a hammer.
There are a few astute individuals out there that have figured something out. Buy raw material off me. If I say it’s good then buy it and book a workshop, that way I have to put my reputation on the line. Pay something like 10 or 20% of the cost of the tree for a day and at the end I will either give you a healthy profit to leave the tree behind or you walk out with a tree worth 50% more than you paid. I just can’t figure out why folk are so dense as to not see this. I did it 15 years ago with my mentor Kevin Willson, Paid £400 + £100 for a day. Eighteen months later sold the tree for £1100. Back then that was 3 weeks wages for free and I learned a lot doing it and had fun.
Over the years I have hooked up with a few clever bods. They love bonsai and want the best trees and have figured out how to get them. Last year I had a new delivery of yamadori. I threw a few images up on here and a couple of days later H. phoned me. I was having post delivery blues and so H. quickly turned up ready to give me a kicking and get away with a bargain. This big larch is a strange tree, it’s come from the Alps and is a seedling that set up home is an old dead stump many years ago. H. was pretty keen but had trouble seeing what to do with the tree and so was choking on the price. “Trust Me, I’m a Professional, this will make great bonsai“, probably didn’t help much. However for a quick flip I took a small profit and headed in for a consoling beer.
H. followed my instruction to the letter and a year later rocked up to collect on my promise. We had a beautiful sunny winters day and here’s the result which I failed to secure a deal upon before it was loaded up and carried away. Who’s a happy boy? Not me but Mr H. doubled his money in a year. Maybe my job’s not so bad after all 😉
G.
Dec 2, 2014 | General
You would think that after 50 years I would be getting the hang of life by now. However I still haven’t mastered the art of ignoring the things that annoy me and get me down. I have a good friend that has had his fair share of problems and has massive responsibilities but you would never know. Just like the proverbial water of a ducks back my buddy sails through life, seemingly, without a care. I am sure that’s a skill but not one I have mastered.
At this time of year two things get me down, actually three, well actually more than three but IN PARTICULAR three things get me down, one is a corporation tax bill but, the only thing worse than paying tax in NOT paying tax so I have to suck it up and press on. The second thing that pisses me off is all the B.S surrounding Christmas. It’s an important event from a business point of view but I can’t help thinking it’s all got out of hand. I simply cannot put into words the contempt I have for the modern event sold as Christmas. Seeing as this blog does not have an adult certificate I will move swiftly on….
The third thing that gets me down is the short dark dingy and cold conditions we have to endure here in Blighty. I love my country but at this time of year the weather absolutely SUCKS. What bonsai nut does not love to see their trees growing and doing well. At this time of year autumn colour has gone and it looks like being an absolute age before we see spring heave into view. Thankfully we are normally pretty busy at this time of year so I don’t get much time to wallow in my misery. They tell me every cloud has a silver lining but the only part of a cloud I want to see is the back of them.
Earlier today I was poking around the garden and with a concerted effort managed to find the other half of my half empty glass. I have always found a full glass the best remedy for a gloomy outlook. There are actually a lot of cool things in my garden and I found these two which you may not have seen before.
This one is currently one of my favourite bonsai. Before you all think I have emptied too many of those full glasses and fallen off my perch let me explain. This tiny little tree is a crab apple. I acquired it when the previous owner fell of his perch for the last time. The tree was grown from seed in a pot and has been doing so for over thirty years now. The tree has never been wired and has pretty much just grown exactly as you see it here. Part of what I hate about this time of year is the insane noise and frantic activity that is so unnecessary. Bonsai has always been my chance to escape the tragic insanity that is modern life. However even our fabled pass-time has been sullied to some extent. It’s hard to get a bonsai tree noticed these days unless it’s just insanely impressive and loud. I have certainly been guilty of creating one or two very loud bonsai over the years. I think we all need a tree like this little guy to help keep us grounded, it always reminds me of why I got into bonsai all those years ago, because I love trees.
Just in case you all think I have gone bullshit nuts here is the tree that sits next to my little crab apple and that’s a story for another day 😉
G.
Nov 24, 2014 | General
Over the last few days I have had my good friend Bill here working on some of our nursery trees. The week culminated in a couple of days of workshops. All told we got through a lot of great trees. Here are a few before and after shots.
The juniper was listed on our web site for sale for well over a year now. The pictures show how you double the price of raw material within 24 hours. There are a lot more special trees like this just waiting to be transformed in our Yamadori & Raw Material listing.
Workshops are now finished for the year but I will be getting new dates up early in the new year. Sincere thanks to all those who have supported us throughout 2014.
G.
Nov 21, 2014 | General
Finally after waiting since last April we have received a shipment of Weasels. There is limited availability and a lot of folk have been waiting for these so act quickly. I have no idea how long it might take to get further supplies.
G.
Nov 17, 2014 | General
I was surprised by a knock at the door this weekend. One of my guys rocked up for a workshop that is actually next weekend. Seeing as he had travelled three hours it seemed polite to spend some time.
My friend had taken this juniper to A.N.Other workshop where the advised course of action was to reduce it to the bottom branch, sage advice indeed 😮
After a couple of hours the tree turned out pretty good and everyone was happy.
I do have a couple of workshop places available for Saturday 22 November, just drop me a line.
G.
Nov 14, 2014 | General
I was shocked today to hear of the passing of Paul Goff recently. What a tragic loss. Such a talented man with a depth of appreciation and understanding of bonsai art unmatched in anyone I have met. I was lucky enough to spend a day with Paul a few years back and his unique and quiet manner opened up a whole new world for me. Paul’s quiet and contemplative insight bought me to a new depth of understanding and appreciation of nature that influences every creative decision I make around my trees. A heart breaking loss to everyone who knew him I am sure. Paul’s effect on British bonsai will not be forgotten.
Our thoughts go out to Paul’s partner Vivienne who also let us know….
“All are welcome at the funeral service on 20th November at 3.30 at Milton Malsor crematorium, Northants, NN4 9RN and/or afterwards at the Walnut Tree Inn, Blisworth NN7 3DS so we can celebrate Paul’s amazing life. Donations if desired to Stroke Association www.stroke.org.uk or British Heart Foundation www.bhf.org.uk“
A sad day indeed.
G.
