Getting back to carving

[DMH1112]

Hey,
I haven't been carving for a while now because I've just been really busy. When the recent WCI issue showed up at my house, I looked through it and got inspired to carve again.
For several months now, I've had a snowman carving, like the one in Gene Messer's video, nearly finished. I think that this week I will finally get to finish it, and I will post pictures when I do. I also had a question about painting it. I am worried that the grain will raise when I paint it because of the water. Does basswood not have this reaction with water?
I wanted to let you guys on the forum know because you were always really helpful whenever I had a question and help all of the beginners. Carving is an extremely rewarding hobby that also teaches lots of skills, and I hope that more people start to carve.

[Claude]

Welcome back!
Yes, basswood can have the wood fibers raise up when it gets wet. One way to help with that is to use some water-based varnish on the wood (after you have cleaned it with soap and water - I use white hand soap and an old toothbrush) and let dry. I sometimes have to put the water-based varnish on end grain two or three times to seal it. Once dry, I can then rub the carving all over with a piece of wadded-up brown paper grocery bag, which acts as a mild abrasive. Wipe off the dust, and start painting. After the paint is dry (over night at a minimum), I apply my varnish again to protect the paint. May take a couple of coats... After it has dried over night again, I rub with the brown paper bag. This will get rid of nearly all raised fibers and places where dust may have stuck to the varnish and leave me with a smooth finish.

For something such as a cooking spoon, after sanding smooth with at least 400 grit, I wet the spoon under the faucet and then dry with a hair dryer. Re-sand lightly with a used piece of 400 grit again, then repeat the rinse/dry/sand 2 or 3 more times until after drying the wood still feels smooth. I can then safely apply my oil finish. I use olive oil, since that's what I cook with, but others use food-safe mineral oil (from the pharmacy). Olive oil can get rancid if you throw the spoon in a drawer and don't use if for months, but I use mine constantly!

Claude

[DMH1112]

Thanks Claude! I never could find a good, relatively inexpensive, varnish or seal for my carvings. What do you recommend? Do you prefer using a paint on varnish (like Ceramcoat) or a laquer spray (like Deft)? I also never found something good to antique with, although it seems a lot of people use dark brown paint diluted with water or BLO and Burnt Umber paint. Do you have a recommendation for that because I don't want to have to use any chemicals like BLO or paint thinner that I have to take extra care with? I knew that with the spoons I carved the wood fibers rose, and I could sand and rewet those until the fibers didn't raise up, but I can't do that on a carving with detail. I've found that beeswax is my favorite seal for spoons because it brings out the colors of the wood and grain, gives a very good protection, and is food safe. It smells good too!