Another Collector of Duff Tweed Carvings - New to Blog: Tennis Player and Man w/Life Preserver Ring

Hey there, Hi there, Ho there. . .

Hoping and anticipating August 2010 will be a busy month for Duff Tweed carvings collectors.  I have been holding on to the picture below in hopes of a response from Ed (seller of the Poker Players - see post below), but I can only assume he was unable to get in touch with the owner of these great Duff Tweed carvings. 

If you are the owner of these and wish to be credited with ownership of these carvings, please write to me and I will ammend this post to include any information you would like to see.  I'd love to give you credit for them, especially since you own two carvings (below) I have never seen before.  Cool collection!

On the top far left we have "Sue the Bastards" which I have posted previously in this blog, but do not own in my personal collection.  We saw one of these sell on Ebay earlier this year. 

Then to the top center we have two golfers and a caddy which I do own in both original carvings and resin copies, but not with the wood headed golf club as pictured.  You'll notice one player is missing a golf club and the entire set of three is enclosed in plexi-glass.  I am assuming the original frame was in a state of disrepair, so the owner had them reframed to protect them from any further damage.  They look great! 

Then on the top far right we have Double Jigger Jack Grant.  I own Jack Grant too, but this jacket appears to painted in retro red and black colors differing from the one I own.  Love that jacket!

Now for the two I have never seen.

On the lower left we have a man with a life preserver ring.  The piece is signed by Duff Tweed in the lower left corner.  I attempted to crop and increase the size of this carving to the left, but it's showing up a little blurry.  Gotta love his white and blue striped shirt and matching socks and shoes!

Next we have a really nice decked out tennis player also carved and signed by the man himself, Duff Tweed.  I attempted to crop and resize this one too, but it came out more blurry than the picture above.  Sorry!



















I have heard Duff did many carvings of sports figures and even some carvings related to war. I actually came across a set of trench carvings on Ebay early this year where the owner claimed them to be Duff Tweeds, but after looking at the pictures, did not believe them to be carved by Duff. They did however look more like the Slaughterhouse Four carvings as they were a shiny darker wood, unpainted but with a laquered finish. I kept the pictures of those carvings, so maybe I'll post them in the future and make sure to indicate I do not know their true origin.

So, until the owner contacts me, I am thanking Ed (quack) once again for having shared this picture with us.  As I always say, sharing is the key to increasing awareness of these fantastic carvings.  They truly are fantastic as they almost seem to come to life before your very eyes.  The action portrayed in each piece tells a story all its own.  Often I have people interpretting meaning in my pieces.  Any piece of art that gets you talking and thinking, is true art!

Happy last day of July 2010!  Hoping to share more Duff Tweed finds in August!
Wishing you all the best!
-Joe
P.S. I added link buttons for Google Buzz, Twitter and Facebook along with some others if you wish to share this blog with anyone.  Additionally you can now click one of three boxes to share your reactions to the posts: Funny, Interesting or Cool.

Cards Anyone? Duff Tweed's Poker Players - Wood Carved Figures

This was a pleasant surprise  .  .  .

Yes, another wonderful Ebay find!  Luckily for me the item and seller were located in Southern California, so this wood carving was not damaged in shipping.  I picked it up less than an hour after paying for it. 

One of the aspects I appreciate about collecting Duff Tweed wood carvings is meeting and getting to know the people selling and collecting these obscure items.  I say obscure because very few people are aware of Duff Tweed or his carvings, today.  We're a pretty select group of people who happen to love this man's work. 

I watched two of  Duff Tweed's carvings sell on Ebay this year and I still regret having not aggressively bid on them.  Both can be found in this blog under previous posts.  One was "Sue the Bastards" and the other was "The Low Bidder", so I am thrilled to share this latest Duff Tweed acquisition with you.  I love how 3D they appear.  They look much better and larger in person.

I picked this one up from Ed in Anaheim, California.  A cool, nice guy and a real guy!  We're calling it "Poker Players" since it is not titled, but is signed by Duff with his signature "Pasadena" written below. I had read about this carved set of three card players in a Disneyana forum and had written to the owner.  When I purchased it this week, we figured out that Ed was the same person to whom I had written. 

Ed shared with me that he received several questions on the piece and that each Duff Tweed collector believed it to be a one-of-a-kind.  The only real issues with the piece are some water staining to the linen and some poker chips appear to be missing.  The carvings are in perfect condition.  Each time I purchase one of Duff's wood carved figures, I am amazed at how well they hold up over time. 

Below I have taken close-up pictures so you can see and appreciate the expression on each carved figure's face.

Well that's the show for today folks . . .  Have a wonderful remainder of July 2010 and hopefully I'll have something new to share in August!  Be happy, healthy and safe!
All the best!
-Joe

Newest Addition to the Duff Tweed Family - Chalkware-Resin Caddie

Hello and welcome new bloggies and welcome back to my ever supportive friends and family! 

Even though it has been difficult locating Duff Tweed carvings for sale, I managed to stumble upon one of the copies on Ebay this month.  I am still unsure of the material they used in these.  It appears to be a heavy resin or possibly a ceramic of some sort.  While this golf caddie has some small nicks I was so thankful to have found him because he now is one of three resin figures I have that exactly match a set of three Duff Tweed wood carvings I have on one frame.

As you can see below, here is the original set of three wood carved golfers by Duff Tweed.  The painting is much different and this one is signed by Duff himself. . .

...and the three below which are the resin copies bear no Duff Tweed signature.  So my assumption is Duff must have allowed a company to copy his figures in a resin and then collected a royalty from each sale.  The resin figures are really neat because of the retro looking colors they used in the paint job.  However, they sell for so inexpensive that I believe they hold little to no monetary value at this time. 

As always,  your stories, experiences, pictures and anything additional you wish to share would be greatly appreciated.  Everyone gets credit for their input and I enjoy immortalizing you in the blog! 

One last note: For those collectors who contact me for values on Duff Tweed carvings, I only do so over the phone, so please leave your telephone number when contacting me and I will call you back promptly. 

Happy Duffing and have a great July 2010!

Happy Independence Day!

All the best!

-Joe