In the Market: “Funky metal trees”

Craft & Design
In the Market: “Funky metal trees”

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I love watching Makers Market filling up each day with amazing new work, with offerings that run the gamut from inexpensive geeky gadgetry to one of a kind pieces of art. One of the discoveries I’ve recently gone gaga over is the wire and wood tree sculptures by Kevin, dba “kaitrees.”

As he explains in the above video, the wires he uses to sculpt the trees are continuous, from root to branches and leaves. The wires in the 21″ sculpture above started out at six feet in length! Kevin humbly describes his creations as “funky metal trees.” Some of them take over a hundred hours to complete. The above piece he estimates at about 160 hours.

Makers Market: Kaitrees

20 thoughts on “In the Market: “Funky metal trees”

  1. Shawn Connally says:

    The stuff I’ve seen is just amazing. What a bunch of great makers!

  2. Gareth Branwyn says:

    I just can’t fathom the amount of patience and dedication it would require to twist hundreds of 6′ wires together to make a piece like this.

    1. Nate says:

      Agreed, Gareth.

      I have a hard enough time staying focused on crocheting a small stuffed animal, let alone something like this. Amazing!

      Plus, I would have thought the individual wires would be longer than 6 feet. (couldn’t watch the vid @ work; does he introduce new wires in the middle?)

      1. kaitrees says:

        There are a few strands that do not run from root to leaves on the very bottom of the tree as I thought I needed some extra, thin roots at the very bottom.

  3. Alan says:

    I’ve seen scale trees made this way by model railroaders, but they don’t carry the technique to such spectacular extremes. This is really amazing work.

    What wire gauge is that, about 5/0?

    1. kaitrees says:

      Hello Alan for this tree I used 17 gauge 1.4mm wire.
      I also use larger and smaller for other trees.

  4. Goli Mohammadi says:

    Insanely gorgeous and cool!!! I’m so glad he posted the video. I had no idea that’s how they are made.

  5. Alan Parekh says:

    Talk about making something from nothing! What some people would just toss out sure makes for a very cool sculpture. Not cheap, but based on his hours he has invested into it I can see the value.

  6. toy4x4 says:

    Amazing! The is nothing else to say. Amazing. If I only had $5k.

  7. Saki says:

    Very kool. When twisting the trunk, do you twist the wires in a bundle altogether by hand or individually wrap it for the flawless coil?

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Gareth Branwyn is a freelance writer and the former Editorial Director of Maker Media. He is the author or editor of over a dozen books on technology, DIY, and geek culture. He is currently a contributor to Boing Boing, Wink Books, and Wink Fun. His free weekly-ish maker tips newsletter can be found at garstipsandtools.com.

View more articles by Gareth Branwyn

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