What should I try carving first as a beginner?

Can I get a suggestion for a basic carving project suitable for beginners?-Basic Initial Carvings for Newbies

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If I were a beginner, what would be the best carving to do?

It's not hard to begin wood carving. 

Each summer, I stayed with my grandparents in a small Russian village by the Volga river. I remember when I was six years old. I snuck into my grandfather's workshop and saw a woodworking chisel. I didn't know what the tool was, but I knew it had a sharp edge and I could probably cut something with it. To cut a long story short, it was the beginning of my carving journey. I didn't carve wood that day, though. I found a white brick and started to “chisel away”. I really had no idea what I was carving. I just liked the process. At the end of the day, I saw a human face in that brick. I don't remember if I felt joy or frustration, but I know now it was the beginning of my lifelong journey as a carver.

Afterward, I worked with wood and enjoyed it more than brick. I decided. I'll carve wood, not brick anymore!

I didn't understand anything about wood types or carving styles. What's the difference between chip carving and relief carving? Those specialized words didn't make much sense to me. I wasn't familiar with the basics of wood carving.

I felt very blessed with both sides of my family. My grandfather had a small shop and a couple of workbenches, and I could spend time with him and watch how he worked. For him, his shop was a “hiding place” from his wife, my grandmother. But she knew where to find him.The other side of my family, my father's side, is known for their skill in woodworking and furniture making. A great-grandfather of mine was a furniture maker for a royal house in Saint Petersburg, Russia.My Grandma talked about her childhood in her father's woodworking shop.

She remembered the songs of her father. He was singing while working with wood.My grandfather gave me my first chisel, and my grandmother gave me my first whittling knife. It was really a pocket knife from the USSR, not a whittling knife. Pocket knives work well for basic carving. Those two tools were my carving tools. I didn't have a gouge or any power tools. Not even a proper chip carving knife. A simple pocket knife is enough to make something beautiful.

Back in the day, I didn't know woodcarving would be such a big part of my life. Now, I carve for collectors all over the world and private homes. I never thought woodcarving could be so satisfying.

Can I get a suggestion for a basic carving project suitable for beginners?

I'm new to carving, what should I start with?

Think about what you like more: a spoon or relief carvings. Beginners sometimes don't notice how different it is to carve a wooden spoon compared to carving a 3-dimensional sculpture with a gouge and a mallet. This is also called carving in the round.

Nature itself functions by the ongoing interaction of opposites—earth and fire, sun and moon, male and female, dark and light. 

(Based on Robert Greene, Mastery)

 

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I'm starting my first carving project. What should I do?

Reflect on another significant question. What is my favorite carving style? Though, this isn't the only question to think about. Another question is: what tools do you have? Do you have basic wood carving tools or just a knife? Some of you have only a chainsaw :). You can do a chainsaw carving but with a chainsaw, you can't carve a spoon.

My recommendation is to try various styles. So, what hand tools do you possess? With just a chip carving knife, spoon carving isn't possible, but other carvings are.

 

Dopamine is like transmission fluid: not enough of it, as in those with ADHD, makes it hard to shift attention or it jumps to high gear.

(John J. Ratey and Eric Hagerman, Spark)

Dopamine in woodcarving is like the oil for your carving tools: if there’s not enough, similar to individuals with ADHD, your focus can either get stuck or suddenly jump to intense concentration.

WOODCARVING – Can I get a suggestion for a basic carving project suitable for beginners?-Basic Initial Carvings for Newbies

Here is a List of some ideas:

• Carving spoons
• Old European Knife Carving
• Relief Carving
• Carving in the round
• Bird and Fish Carving

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