As a beginner, what carving should I start with?
Starting with wood carving isn’t tough.
Every summer, I lived with my grandparents in a small village by the Volga river in Russia. I recall being six years old. I sneaked into my grandfather’s workshop and discovered a woodworking chisel. I didn’t know what the tool was, but I knew it had a cutting edge and thought I could cut something with it. Long story short, it was the start of my carving journey. I didn’t carve wood that day. I found a white brick and began to “chisel away”. I really didn’t know what I was carving. I just liked the process. By the end of the day, I saw a human face in that brick. I don’t really remember if I felt joy or frustration, but I know now it was the start of my lifelong journey as a carver.
Later, I tried wood and liked it much more than brick. I made up my mind. I will carve wood instead of brick!
I didn’t understand anything about wood types or carving styles. How do chip carving and relief carving differ? The jargon was all very confusing to me. I was unaware of the fundamental concepts of wood carving.
I was 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 obviously, she knew where to find him.My family on my father’s side has a tradition of excellent woodworkers and furniture makers. One of my great-grandfathers worked as a furniture maker for a royal house in Saint Petersburg, Russia.My Granny shared memories of her childhood in her dad’s woodworking shop.
She recalled the songs her father used to sing. He sang songs 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 then, I didn’t know woodcarving would be so significant in my life. Today, I carve for collectors around the globe and private homes. I didn’t realize woodcarving could be so rewarding.
What should I carve if I’m new to this hobby?
What should I carve as a beginner?
Ask yourself first what is more appealing to you: a spoon or relief carvings. A lot of beginners don’t grasp the big difference between carving a wooden spoon and carving a 3-dimensional sculpture with a gouge and a mallet. This is also called carving in the round.
Nature itself operates through the steady interplay of opposites—earth and fire, sun and moon, male and female, dark and light.
(Based on Robert Greene, Mastery)
Join School of Wood Carving
My first carving project: what should I do?
Consider another crucial question. What carving style do I prefer? Yet, this isn’t the only question to consider. Another question to ask is: what tools are at your disposal? Do you own basic wood carving tools or just a knife? Some of you might only have a chainsaw :). You can carve with a chainsaw but not a spoon.
My advice would be to experiment with different styles. Remember, what hand tools do you have? If you only possess a chip carving knife, you can’t do spoon carving, but you can still carve other things.
Dopamine behaves like transmission fluid: when it’s low, as in ADHD, attention can’t shift easily or it skips to high gear.
(John J. Ratey and Eric Hagerman, Spark)
Dopamine in woodcarving is like oil for your carving tools: without enough, just like those with ADHD, your focus can either get stuck or suddenly become intensely sharp.
WOODCARVING – What should I carve if I’m new to this hobby?-Beginner-Friendly Woodcarving Activities
Here is a List of some ideas:
- Crafting wooden spoons
- Old European Knife Carving
- Relief Carving
- Carving in the round
- Bird and Fish Carving
I’m a woodworker who loves carving. I make fancy carvings for a high end client worldwide. I also teach wood carving. I started the School of Wood Carving, a non-profit to help people learn.
The school’s website has over 3,000 how-to videos. Great for beginners and pros! I’m from Russia but have lived in the USA a long time. Like wood? Join us at the School of Wood Carving. We’d love to have you!