Rosie's Bayou
Owner: slisk250
Illustrations: Alan Crowell
@72o
Inlay Graphic Design: John Faulhaber
@Johnny5
Chip Consultants:
@courage &
@jbutler (Chris & Jack)
Manufacturer: Classic Poker Chips
Mold: B Mold, California Cash Set
This set is a tribute to my mother, Rose, who passed away in 1990. She was an outstanding cook and we shared a special connection in the kitchen. At a very young age, I learned that the way to gain entrance to her famed kitchen (to steal snacks before dinner) was to help her with the work. When I was 17, we went to New Orleans and discovered Cajun food together. I’m the only family member that makes her famous Crawfish Enchiladas today. I used to daydream about opening a Cajun restaurant & bar called “Rosie’s Bayou” in her honor, located on Pirate’s Alley in the French Quarter. I envisioned it including an illicit upstairs card room available to my exclusive clientele. Apparently, it wasn’t meant to be. I often think about that trip and others we took to Louisiana, as they are among my fondest memories spent with her….
When I decided to create this set with
CPC, I knew I wanted to make all of the chips unique. The complexity of spots and colors didn’t lend itself to a progression, rather it was more in-your-face from frac to five hundred. Each inlay would have a special meaning. I had ideas dancing in my head about the images and Rosie’s font, but with no practical illustration abilities I needed to find an artist. I only considered one person and was thrilled when Alan Crowell (
@72o – aka the Knollwood’s daddy) agreed to help. I sent him a poor drawing I scribbled with a pencil and taped on a few pictures.
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In a few days, “Rosie’s Bayou” became a real project, as what he put to paper was very close to what I was looking for. He completed all the illustrations and we sent them to
@Johnny5 (aka J5) for his magic touches. The details of the images are color matched throughout the set (i.e., umbrella, musical notes, etc.) The three add-on chips (i.e., nickel, $19, and $500) were finished by Johnny the following year.
Mom and I also shared a mutual love for the left coast so a California cash set had taken shape in my head. For chip advice, I leaned heavily on Chris (
@courage) and Jack (
@jbutler). We didn’t always agree, and I used the veto a time or two, but the voodoo and crawfish spots are as much theirs as they are mine. I’ll always appreciate their eye for color and spots. We worked in the French flag and the Mardi Gras colors for the workhorse chips.
There is a lot of personal history with every image choice. Starting with the quarter, Mom and I enjoyed a couple Voodoo shops in the city and she bought me a doll. I gifted it to my oldest son last summer. We discovered Crawfish boils together, she collected Mardi Gras masks, and the jazz in the street and bars were a big hit for her. Years later, I took my son on a gator tour. On that trip my brother and I also drank a few too many hurricanes and it is one of the worst hangovers I ever had. That part didn’t make the chip. Lastly, we planted a Magnolia tree in her honor at our family home in Mesa, AZ. It is fitting that a Magnolia blossom be placed on the biggest chip in the set with the dot spots. The $500 is a special chip with some rarely used spots.
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Denominations (with total quantities)
.25 – Voodoo Doll - DG Tiger - 3TA316 – DG Arc Yellow/DG Green/Maroon (200)
$1 – Crayfish - Imperial Blue - 4TA181418 – Retro Blue/Bright White/Retro Red (400)
$5 – Masks - DG Yellow - 8TA14 – Retro Green/Lavender (800)
$25 – Jazz - Blurple - 8D18 – DG Tiger/DG Peacock (200)
$100 – Gator - Bright White - ¼ Pie 4A14 – DG Pink/Retro Red (160)
There was also an add on completed with three additional chips, as well as a tertiary add on.
.05 – Coins - Gray – 6D18A – Black/Bright White (200)
$19 – Hurricane Hangover - Light Chocolate – 6DSA18 – Pink/Light Green (100)
$500 – Magnolia - Light Green – 4V12 w/4 dots Charcoal/DG Peach (40)
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