217 articles in the archive · page 16 of 19
WOOD for Wood CarvingAugust 19, 2024
Is Basswood good for carving?
Two boards sold to you as basswood will not carve the same. What the wood is, the jobs it is right for, the four it is wrong for, and how to read a plank before you pay.
August 15, 2024
Wood carving tips for beginners, and the order the problems arrive
A hundred people a year start carving in front of me, and the mistakes arrive in the same order every time. Bench height, light, a pattern that slipped, an edge that went dull two hours ago. Here is the list I would hand you across the bench.
August 11, 2024
Pointing Machine for Wood Carving
The old tool that lets a carver copy any model exactly. How a pointing machine works, the five step setup, and what Michelangelo really did with his models.
August 7, 2024
Wood carving pictures, and how to read one before you carve it
A photograph gives you the outline and the proportion honestly, then lies about depth every time. Here is how I read a picture on paid work, the paper and glue transfer that has not changed in twenty years, and why your leaf keeps coming out flat.
August 7, 2024
Wood carving for beginners, and which of the four to start with
Four kinds of carving exist, and the tools only make sense once you have picked one. What each needs in steel, which wood goes under it, and the one I would hand you if you walked into my shop today.
August 5, 2024
How to make money from wood carving, and how much
No dollar figure, because anyone who hands you one is guessing. What you get instead is how the money behaves in this trade, taken from forty years of paid work, a cabinet shop I ran, and one order for fifteen rosettes that taught me more about pricing than any book.
Everything above is free and stays free. The courses are where I put your hands on the gouge and watch what they do.
See what is inside →
August 4, 2024
Wood Carving for Beginners, and How to Cut Your First Clean Groove
Your first cut tore instead of slicing, and the fix takes ten minutes. Which wood to buy, which tools earn their place, how to read the number stamped on a gouge, and why your first project should not be a spoon.
August 3, 2024
Wood carving classes for beginners, and how to tell a good one
The question underneath most emails about classes is whether the money will be wasted. Here is what I look for when somebody sends me a course to check, what I built into my own beginner course after students asked for one, and the two questions worth asking before you pay anybody.
August 1, 2024
Small wood carving ideas you can finish with one knife
One knife, a corner of the kitchen table, and five projects worth carving. I cut a whole coffered ceiling with a single blade against a one month deadline, so the tool count is not what stops anybody.
July 31, 2024
What a carving knife is, and the one I put in a beginner's hand
One short blade, about an inch of edge, and it follows whatever you drew. Here is the knife I hand every beginner, the three grips nobody teaches, and the two jobs it will never do for you.
July 23, 2024
What Causes Wood Warping and Cupping?(WOODCARING)
Mastering Wood Warping and Cupping Introduction: Join us on a journey to understand how wood movement affects your projects and how …
July 21, 2024
Beginner wood carving, the first year in the order it really happens
One knife, one basswood board, and a year of short evenings. Here is the whole first year in the order it really happens, from the three angles you practise in week one to the panel that finally reads from across a room.