face details

[Howie]

Hi folks,

In my attempt to carve a whale the other day I was successfully able to get a basic shape and snap it in half – go figure. But I've used the tail to make an egg and made the larger chunk into a gnome-type head shape.

The shape has come together well and I've been able to define the head and hat separately. But given its size - about an inch in length total and half an inch at most wide, I'm struggling for detailing the face at all.

Would I be better off smoothing it down and just going for the shape with painting as an option, or should I look at some kind of crazy fine tools? I currently have a roughing knife and a detail knife.

Thanks folks! I'm learning so much here and have found a hobby I really enjoy!

[SlowMover]

Thats a pretty small piece you have left. I like to carve small, but that is smaller than I can hold. One thing about really small carvings..you don't so much carve in a lot of detail, rather you SUGGEST the detail. This is little hard to explain, but the closest I can come is make the shape right, and the viewers mind will fill in a lot of detail that SHOULD be there but really isn't. When we see what we recognize as a gnome, our minds give him the pointy hat, the beard, and other features we associate with a gnome...they don't all have to actually be on the carving, our minds will put them where they belong.

If you want some small tools, which are also really useful in portions of larger carvings, Dockyard makes really good micro tools....but my advice is find a dealer (they are out there...Statlander is one) who sells them individually, like with bigger tools, a set usually contains a tool or two you will seldom uses. buying individually lets you get just what is needed for your stuyle or carving.

hope this helps a little, show us the tiny guy when he is done.

[mpounders]

As tempting as it is to buy more tools, a larger piece of wood would be cheaper!

[Lynn O. Doughty]

I think Mike has a good suggestion. While all of us hate to toss something into the waste basket or wood bin, there comes a time when we have to accept the fact that there's no further hope for the piece and reach for a new, larger chunk and start over.

[chipmunk]

i'v carved a lot of smalls when u get little the work getts fine i use a dremel for MOST all my work and they make very small tips for what i do flat bottom 1/16"-3/32" u can get right fine if u into carvin get b/d tool around $20 and a lot of bits there where the money is i paid around $20 for my tool and $300 in cutters, burs, itching tips but they last a long time it's all in the work u do i bought a tip every time i whent to walmart, lowes. when i had the money but it's worth it if u carve alot and stay into it, i use a small pistol clamp to hold my smalls in to save the fingers u can put it in that and clamp that to a table with a bigger clamp and let the chips fly

[brianrickman]

I do lots of small carvings, usually starting with a block 2 - 3 inches long and 1 inch wide. I don't carve much detail into the face. I make a triangular bump for the nose. Sometimes I cut in eye sockets or a mouth, but mostly I paint on those features.

I do 95% of my carving with a small flexcut knife.

Another option, if the carving is more then just a face, is to leave the face smooth. It's easy and looks artistic.

Here's a link to a thread where I posted a picture of some of my little carvings.