To the Forum regarding the XMTSAS Saltire

[Bugbear]

Oh... I thought he was sending a thingamabob...

[Nighthawk]

May look suspicious with people under 21 IE: me!

Not at all. There is no rule at all that says it has to be filled with something illegal for you to have.

Perhaps one of our forum members who are also USPS employees (Woodsheal comes to mind) might weigh in on regulations concerning liquids in the mail, especially via international post.

I think a quaich is a better vessel, and a historic symbol of Highland hospitality. Scott Chalmers at Gaelic Themes might be able to put one of the Xmarks badges in the bottom of the bowl.

T.

I agree. I stated in my original post that it should be well cleaned and dry before being shipped to the next recipient.

Although I understand why you would make this stipulation (in light of the fate of the Saltire), I still think that it's best if something like this has an actual end goal... (As I mentioned in the thread I started in the Comments & Suggestions forum).

A part of this is because I do agree with Jamie's thoughts about current members doing something that is significant for them... Then, that opens the door for a future "generation" of XMarker friends to exchange and send something else in the future as well... I would really like it if, at some point in the future, once the goal of the thingamebob has been met, to have the option to have a memento (such as a coffee table book that has been printed from the original pages of the logbook and photos).

What do you think?

Yeah. I saw that. I don't agree. At all. Heirlooms create continuity, and that's my idea- an heirloom that can be passed from one generation to the next, unifying "us" to "them" so that there IS no us and them- only us.

[Elliottrohan68]

I agree that the FLASK would be a great Idea - also being the upcoming recipient of the mailed flask from nighthawk - I am anxiously awaiting its arrival.
The log book could contain written and photographic evidence of the journeys the flask takes, Who knows where it might end up - Smallest place largest place - Heck who knows maybe Mt. Everest (just dreaming BIGG) so I vote YEs for the Xmarks Flask and await my turn at hosting the new Thingamabob
John:-pith:

[Whidbey78]

It's not a bad idea at all Nighthawk. A few might not like the "image" of a flask being passed about as much as a cute little blimp, but to each his own. I dig it.

I'd say "Just go for it." I've seen some of your work and I'm confident that it would be a nice product. I would suggest keeping the design relatively simple so it will photograph better. I know you could do the XMTS Clan Badge, but it might not be so easy to identify in a pic unless it's a close-up, and in that case, why have a whole bunch of tight shots of the same item. In the airships threads there were a lot of pics where the ship was a little blue dot in the landscape, which is the whole point--showing where it's been. Even if the main thing becomes pics of people with the flask, it should still be identifiable at a distance. My suggestion would be to do some nice tooling around the body with a blue and white saltire in the center. Maybe black leather, but as the artisan it's up to you(just my preference). It would be easily identified even at a distance, easy to photograph even if the tooling is complex around the flag, and relatively cheap. You can get a stainless steel flask at WalMart for about six bucks in the camping gear area. No point blowing your retirement on it since it could get lost, stolen, or just kept by someone. I'd bet there's a piece of leather around your place somewhere that will work. A bit of work, a nice finish, put it in the mail and we're off to the races, so to speak.

While you're at it, make two and send them my way! One for me and one to send along.(Seriously, when I get a chance I'll PM you about a custom flask. It's on my "gotta have" list.)

[The Barry]

I'm going to throw a wrench into the works here.

Although I think that the idea of a flask is a good start, there's a few issues. Some of us don't drink, some of us are under 21, etc. Also, A flask is a decidedly Celtic item in this context, as it is so strongly associated with whiskey. I don't think that this is necessarily a bad thing, but I think that it detracts from the point of this forum and our community.

Why not something more decisively "Xmarks" instead of Scottish?

How about this for another idea: I like the fact that the blimp didn't really have anything to do with Scotland (other than the obvious paint job). It was an original, out of left field, wee icon of our community. Why don't we build on that.

I propose that we construct a small (no more than 8" in diameter) wooden Xmarks clan badge. I believe that we could easily get the forum's owner's permission, and it could belong to the community, not any one member. I think that it should be shippable in a small or medium USPS priority box, with a small length of Xmarks tartan wrapped around it (and a log book, of course) to shield it from the occasional rough treatment of our mail carriers. Priority boxes ship pretty cheap, wood is light; but this symbol would be unmistakeably "Xmarks" and just big enough to show up well in pictures, especially if it gets painted in some pretty colors.

What thinks the rabble?

[Nighthawk]

I'm going to throw a wrench into the works here.

Although I think that the idea of a flask is a good start, there's a few issues. Some of us don't drink, some of us are under 21, etc. Also, A flask is a decidedly Celtic item in this context, as it is so strongly associated with whiskey. I don't think that this is necessarily a bad thing, but I think that it detracts from the point of this forum and our community.

I have already addressed this issue- flasks have always been used to hold liquid- be it alcohol or not. You don't have to be 21 to carry a flask filled with orange juice.

Why not something more decisively "Xmarks" instead of Scottish?

This is why I proposed a hip flask instead of a sporran flask. ...did I mention that it would be a hip flask? Maybe I didn't. My mistake That was my idea, regardless!

How about this for another idea: I like the fact that the blimp didn't really have anything to do with Scotland (other than the obvious paint job). It was an original, out of left field, wee icon of our community. Why don't we build on that.

I propose that we construct a small (no more than 8" in diameter) wooden Xmarks clan badge. I believe that we could easily get the forum's owner's permission, and it could belong to the community, not any one member. I think that it should be shippable in a small or medium USPS priority box, with a small length of Xmarks tartan wrapped around it (and a log book, of course) to shield it from the occasional rough treatment of our mail carriers. Priority boxes ship pretty cheap, wood is light; but this symbol would be unmistakeably "Xmarks" and just big enough to show up well in pictures, especially if it gets painted in some pretty colors.

What thinks the rabble?

That is a great idea, and that's why I made the proposition that I did. It would be small, it would be easily identifiable, and it would be cheap to ship. I am, however, open to any other ideas!

[The Barry]

I have already addressed this issue- flasks have always been used to hold liquid- be it alcohol or not. You don't have to be 21 to carry a flask filled with orange juice.

I understand the idea, and you're technically correct. I was just pointing out that when I see a flask, the last thing that I think of is OJ. I also don't believe that I'm alone in this. I wasn't saying that it was a bad idea, but I still think that a flask detracts a bit, I would rather the icon (on a sidenote, could we please call it our "standard"? That would be awesome) be an innocuous item, with no extra "baggage" attached to it. Or as little as possible, at least.

Please realize that I'm not trying to be divisive. Just trying to add a new flavor to the idea mill.

[Drac]

Here's a setup we use for the Lamonts. The plaque contains our badge, home and harp -



It was made by one of own.

Here is a pic of it's travel when it came my way -



It will also be heading with me to a Mardi Gras weekend next month.

Is this what you had in mind?

Jim

[The Barry]

Yes! Something along those lines. I was thinking of something a bit smaller to make it easier to ship, but that's very close to what I had in mind.

The only other real difference is that I was thinking of it just being an oversized clan badge looking thingamabob made of wood. So it would strongly resemble the cap badges that some of us (no me, sad face) have.

Thanks for posting those pics, I really like the way it shows up in photos.

[The Barry]

I was thinking of a larger, wooden version of one of these: