How do you practice you caving skills?

[CV3]

How do you Practice your wood carving skills? I have been carving on and off for about 25 years. But really did not get in to it until about 10 years ago. I have learned that for me what skills I have will diminish with out activity. Even a few weeks of no carving will require me getting my head and hands back in the game, before I try working on something that may requires all my skills. For me the solution has been basswood eggs. They are cheap and can be fun to carve. And they can require the use of many carving skills depending on what you are doing with them. I have an old coffee can full of eggs in different stages of carving. When I have not carved for a while I grab one and play with it. They also make neat little gifts for kids or friends. I saw a number of post that encouraged lots of practice. I am sure there are many carvers in the forum with more skills than I have that have their own way of practicing.

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[SlowMover]

I carve little guys in the style of Jack Price, minimal wood and you can complete a guy in a couple of hours after you get up to snuff on your skills. I think little guys are great ways to practice and refine skills.

[Abbott]

I'm a beginner, as I mentioned in both my profile and the post above. I'm unique in that I have the ability to hyper-focus for a long period of time on a project and not get bored with it. Although I don't have a lot of experience the three projects I have done are very different and required me to think about what I wanted the outcome to be, given who I was carving each for. As I'm looking at other people's fine work, I got the ideas and just kept after each one until they were finished. My failure is that I feel if it can be done by someone, there is no reason I can't learn to do it too. The difficulty is the lack of proper tools to do the level of work that I aspire to accomplish and the knowledge of the techniques that can be applied in lay out and process to do a really fine piece.

I guess for me, I practice by doing and attempting new and greater projects than I'm really capable of now. I have learned so much about depth, transition, balance and visual perspective in the three that I have done, I hope that over the next year or two to get better and better. Carving beats television or just spending time doing something that passed without anything accomplished. However, I'm probably the last person to take advise from, as you have infinitely more experience than I do.

[Robson Valley]

I have several western red cedar slabs, maybe 1" x 4" x 24", that I call my "try pieces."
Try to carve several styles of feathers, try to carve a big eye. try a tool to see if I got the edge right. Try some long and short curves. Try a stain, try a saw cut. Takes a little time, nothing lost if the technique doesn't work well (or maybe I'm not working well.) Hook knives: holding them, pushing, pulling.

In the case of the feathers, I liked one but not the others. Learned how to do it with minimal splitting and chipping. . . . went straight to the actual carving project.

[Buffalo Bif]

For me repitition is key. My first gnome did not work out too well, came close to finding the burn barrel. Second one, a little better, third I was actually happy with. Same with a little reindeer I did a bunch of at the holidays. I just finished a sitting pig, first pig first turned head, I can see room for improvement and will try again.

[pallin]

Well, in answer to your actual question, I like to climb into the cave, with a flashlight.

[chisler10]

LOL...Phil that totally caught me off guard, are you a proof reader? Anyway to answer what the question implies....I like to try something that I haven't done before (and there is lots) and just work away until I feel I'm up to speed, then I just dig in...not literally.
Patrick

[Donsexton]

I practice made skills, endeavor to keep my pimp hand strong, carvers better recognize. Peace out Yall.

[Robson Valley]

Looks like it reads "carving" to my old eyes. I wouldn't have done it on porpoise.

[Whittled Thumb]

I like to do Genes stuff!