What can I start carving as a beginner?

Which carving project would be easy for me as a first-timer?-Basic Entry-Level Carvings

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

Getting started in wood carving is not that difficult. 

Each summer, I visited my grandparents in a tiny Russian village near the Volga river. I recall being six. I snuck inside my grandfather's workshop, and I found one 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. I found a white brick and began to “chisel away”. I had no clue what I was carving. I simply enjoyed the process. At the end of the day, I could identify a human face in that brick. I don't really remember what I felt, joy or frustration, but I know now it was the start of my lifelong journey as a carver.

Then, I worked with wood and preferred it over brick. I decided. I'll carve wood, not brick!

I was clueless about wood types and wood carving methods. What the difference is between chip carving and relief carving? All those technical words were hard for me to understand. I lacked any basic understanding 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.On my dad's side, there's a long history of talented woodworkers and furniture makers. One of my great-grandfathers made furniture for a royal house in Saint Petersburg, Russia.My Grandma talked about her childhood in her father's woodworking shop.

She recalled the songs her father used to sing. He was singing while working with wood.I got my first chisel from my grandfather, and my first whittling knife from my grandmother. It wasn't really a whittling knife; it was a pocket knife from the USSR. 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.

Which carving project would be easy for me as a first-timer?

As a beginner, what should I carve?

Ask yourself first what is more appealing to you: a spoon or relief carvings. Sometimes a beginner doesn't realize how big the difference is between carving a wooden spoon and carving some 3-dimensional sculpture with a gouge and a mallet. Also known as carving in the round.

Nature itself works through the constant interaction of opposites—earth and fire, sun and moon, male and female, dark and light. 

(Based on Robert Greene, Mastery)

 

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Starting my first carving project. What steps should I take?

Ponder another vital question. What carving style do I enjoy? But that's not the only question you need to ask. Another question is: what tools are available to you? Do you have basic carving tools or only a knife? Some folks only have a chainsaw :). You can carve with a chainsaw, but not a spoon.

I suggest trying out different carving styles. Think about it, what hand tools do you have? If you only have a chip carving knife, spoon carving is out, but you can still carve other things.

 

Dopamine functions like transmission fluid: when there’s too little, like in people with ADHD, it’s tough to shift attention or it goes straight 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 – Which carving project would be easy for me as a first-timer?-Basic Entry-Level Carvings

Here is a List of some ideas:

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

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