Sorry I have not posted for so long. (Rumours of my death have been greatly exaggerated.) I have been my usual busy self, but I have occupied my spare time in pursuit of art. In the month of February, besides writing a cool poem called, "Feeling Froggy" for a local party, I have already completed two more pieces of my West Coast Art - and have loved every minute of the creation process. (I'll post the art soon.) Something that has been swirling through my "want to do" list is wood carving, and as of Feb 23, I tried it. In bygone years I have taken out my pocket knife and whittled, but prior to the day before 
yesterday, I have never tried any actual carving. I must tell you that the procedure is awesome!!! I want to push my style of West Coast Art to the next level and use wood as well as paper. The whole thing went something like this:
yesterday, I have never tried any actual carving. I must tell you that the procedure is awesome!!! I want to push my style of West Coast Art to the next level and use wood as well as paper. The whole thing went something like this:Early Saturday morning, while the house was quiet, I rummaged through some old things and laid my hands on a couple of ancient woodworking tools (that I had no idea what to do with). I located my x-acto knife and then procured a small chunk of scrap 3/4 inch thick cedar from my garage. Taking a deep breath, I drew a simple 
design with a pencil and began to cut. As the seconds passed, and the x-acto knife sliced along my pencil lines, I took courage. It actually looked pretty good! One of the old tools was a miniature version of a chisel and it effectively worked to clean out areas between the lines. In under an hour, I had a finished design!
design with a pencil and began to cut. As the seconds passed, and the x-acto knife sliced along my pencil lines, I took courage. It actually looked pretty good! One of the old tools was a miniature version of a chisel and it effectively worked to clean out areas between the lines. In under an hour, I had a finished design!
A mid-day trip to the local House of Tools found me the proud owner of a new tool, and before I retired for the night, I had carved a second design in a scrap piece of 3/4 inch poplar! Are we having fun yet? Oh yeah!!PS. I also put a set of multiple choice questions along the right edge. Don't forget to vote!
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5 comments:
These are really great! It remindes me of being in Ketchikan, going through the Tongas and looking at all of the tribal carvings and totem poles there. Your fledgling effort shows not just promise, but an understanding and interest in working with the wood. Thanks for documenting the creative process, and good luck with it :-)
Hey, I think you ought to make a chair or some other form of furniture for your home, and then, of course, carve something on it.
Your kind words are much appreciated. I will think about the furniture thing. My grandson's third birthday is on the horizon and I'm seriously considering carving his name on a 15 x 7 inch plaque. I'll let you know how (and if)the idea progresses.
Davis, this is way cool! If you do decide to make the plaque, be sure to post pictures.
And don't chop off all your fingers with the Xacto knife, please.
Oooops...
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