Forum Replies Created
-
AuthorPosts
-
Kevin Weaver
ParticipantThat is very nice work! The finish came out really well as well. Using a water-based coloured varnish what did you use to seal the piece first to get such consistent coloration with the basswood? The motto you used is a great sentiment. A wonderful gift for your friends.
Kevin Weaver
ParticipantThat’s a really good idea Keith. I’ll have to keep that in mind and I really like the design you carved. Very well done!.
Kevin Weaver
ParticipantThanks Jim!
Kevin Weaver
ParticipantThanks Julie. Coming up with design was fun in and of itself. I could have finished the piece with just a natural look but as this was a bit of a family crest I wanted the features to really stand out like the Welsh red dragon.
If you like Celtic knot work then you’ll definitely like dong the clock pattern. But you don’t have to do it on just a clock. I have applied many of Marty’s patterns to projects other than what they were originally designed for. As an example, I was thinking that particular pattern wood work well on a flat board that for a weather station. Simply cut out the center hole and add a fancy brass thermometer or barometer and voila!
Enjoy carving.
Kevin.
Kevin Weaver
ParticipantThat is excellent work Nancy. Looks fantastic!
Kevin Weaver
Participantvery nice work on the cradle Laszlo! I take it as the cradle is made from walnut, you use chisels and gouges for the chip carving. You must have been carving for many years to develop such craftsmanship.
I look forward to you sharing more of your work.
Kevin.
Kevin Weaver
ParticipantPatterns radiating out from a center point can be tricky and have, in the past, resulted in some rather creative outbursts from me on more than one occasion (fortunately no one was in ear shot to hear me on those occassions). But there are a few things you can do to avoid chip out at the centre.
First off, make sure your knife is, as Marty says, scary sharp. For tight patterns like at the centre of the luggage tag I find using the modified knife works best.
Now you don’t need to have every chip radiating out from the very center of the pattern. Trying to have each trip starting from the very center is guaranteed to result in chip out (and probably some creative loud outbursts). Instead you want to offset some of the chips away from the center point. I find offsetting every other chip has worked for me but I don’t know if there is a hard and fast rule on a sequence for staggering offset chips. I try to randomly stagger the offsets to avoid creating a pattern and taking away from the center effect.
Of course you also want to remember to smoothly draw the tip of the blade out (go shallow) as you cut towards the center to avoid undercutting.
The final thing to do is plan out your order of cuts from your very first cut of your first chip so that as you work around the radiating pattern the last cut of your last chip will be with the grain.
With a bit of practice I have found that I don’t need to worry about creative outbursts or Super Glue at all. For a great example of this technique, check out Marty’s video for carving a swirl rosette.
Hope this helps.
Kevin Weaver
ParticipantKevin Weaver
ParticipantKevin Weaver
ParticipantLooks great Andrei! The design is really eye catching and I love the combination of the blue and yellow. Did you use a spray-on or brushed-on shellac?
Kevin Weaver
ParticipantThanks Andrei. I made three of these ornaments as Christmas keepsakes for two new great-neices born this year and a great-nephew born a few years ago. Each ornament has the child’s initials and year of birth carved on the back. It was a fun little project and I am happy with the way it turned out particularly the bit of festive colour I added with the gel stain.
Kevin Weaver
Participant -
AuthorPosts