The Beginning

Glimpses: Behind the Scenes Series
Written By Deborah Rudell

It all started with an idea and a dream, then a model and a bird! This is Tiki, our cockatiel who loved to perch on the model and chew the rigging!

As with some projects, this one began a few years before we knew it did, with a trip to the boatyard on Kauai. On that original visit, Tosh visited with the previous owner. Walking under the stern, he looked up to touch her planking and felt an overwhelming wave of wonder and magic at the beauty and symmetry of her lines. Little did he know how that moment would determine the course of the next chapter of our lives.

To help us decide if we should take on this project, we requested any photos they had of Elixir. The photos arrived of her at anchor, taken from the cliffs overlooking Nawiliwili Harbor before she was dry docked for repairs in the early 1980’s. They were all very long-distance shots, with no detail.  

Tosh spent hours going over them with a magnifying loupe to learn more about her. From these photos he carved a small model to get the spacial arrangements approximated. Surprisingly, this model helped to solve numerous glitches that arose during the course of the project.

Elixir at anchor in Nawiliwili Harbor on Kauai in early 1980's before she was hauled out by the previous owner.

Deborah Rudell

I grew up in a small town in British Columbia, the eldest of four children. Typical of the 60’s and 70’s, there were many children in the neighborhood and plenty of independence and autonomy. My parents were busy with younger siblings and as a child I found solace in my stuffed animals and imaginary friends. As a preteen, my grandmother taught me about reincarnation, Edgar Cayce, yoga and Jesus. As a teen, my coping mechanism for the pain I saw and felt in the world was a reading list that included Max Heindel’s The Rosicrucian Cosmo-Conception, Gina Cerminara’s Many Mansions, Levi Dowling’s The Aquarian Gospel of Jesus the Christ and books about Atlantis.

https://www.deborahrudell.com/
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