Chuck Widmer works on an ornament. Widmer casts the ornaments in wood molds that were hand carved by his father Charles Widmer, a well-known carver.


MAKING AN ORNAMENT


The process of taking a single ornament takes days. First the metal is melted and heated to around 700


degrees. As the metal heats, impurities rise to the top and need to be scraped off. While he removes the impurities, the molds and


steel plates that go on the back of the molds are heated too. “Those two things have to be heated up before you


can pour. Once all that is prepared, you pour your metal into the opening of the mold,” explained Linda. It takes about 12 seconds for the metal to set up,


then Chuck opens the mold and see if he has a good pour or not. To be considered a “good pour” every spot of the mold must be filled with metal — he has to make sure he’s not missing an ear or leg. If the metal, steel plate, or mold is not hot enough,


the cast will fail. “There are a lot of things that can go wrong. There


is no end to the number of problems you may have,” Charles said. Chuck holds up several examples, such as a skinny Santa, and another ornament where St. Nick’s face is


faint and undistinguishable. Humidity adversely affects the metal and he can’t


cast when the humidity is high. “The mold being wood will draw moisture in, so you


need a dry environment to do these pours,” said Linda. But most failed pours are due to either the metal,


mold or steel plates not being hot enough. It often takes two to three attempts to get it just


right, said Chuck. Once he’s satisfied with a mold, Chuck removes the


piece. Next, he has to file off all the sprues and that can be a small job, or a significant one. Then the ornaments are polished to bring out the


shine and make them Christmas tree worthy. Tourists from all over visit the shop and the Widmers sell quite a few online. The family says they are living a dream, express-


ing their creativity, carrying on a 100-year dying tradi- tion, and working alongside each other. “I have been wanting to come back for 20 years to


apprentice under this guy,” Chuck said, glancing at his father. “This is my dream. There are so many talented people in Mountain View.”


Living Well i November/December 2017 11


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