[Donna_T]

Hi Ruvane,
Part of the fun of carving is not telling people what you're carving until you're finished. That way, you've left your options open.... Eggplants are good and being flexible is even better when it comes to carving. I've frequently started out with one thing in mind and change as the carving progresses although, rarely do I switch from animal to vegetable.

I agree with the other comments. For a hand held in-the-round carving, a carving glove is a must. And a good knife and a good veiner (gouge) like a 1/8 or 1/4' and possibly a similar sized v-tool, you should be good for most anything you want to carve. The Arkansas stone is a must for knife sharpening--and the Flexcut shaped strop is a super way to touch up shaped tools. Start with just a few things, practice, and then add sizes and shapes as you progress.

One of the things we all recommend is to find a carving club to join or visit. All sorts of support can be found there including the opportunity to try some of their tools to see how they feel and work. Most carvers will tell you anything you ask for...but rarely will they volunteer advice, unless asked.

Good luck and have fun with this new hobby. It's a great way to spend some free time and have something to show for it. And you meet some of the greatest people.

Donna T

[squbrigg]

Welcome to the most relaxing, most rewarding, most enjoyable hobby known to exist, Ruvane. Be prepared to have fun and meet some of the nicest people in the world too.

Congratulations on your first project, a rabbit, good choice, not too difficult, a challenge, but not an impossible one. Most importantly, enjoy what you are doing, starting out at your age, you have so many carvings ahead of you, enjoy them all.

One of the nice thing that I've found about carving, is that you don't need much in the way of tools to do it and enjoy it. You have a whole life time to collect tools, just get what you need to start with. That includes good sharpening stones, a honing strop you have, so if your dad wants to expand your tool selection, a set of three slip stones would be helpful next or a Warren handle with a set of assorted blades would be a good choice. They give you the versatility of a number of nice useful shapes and styles of blades at a modest price. Good way to start out.

What ever you do, enjoy yourself.

Bob

[Captain_Bandaid]

I bought the 5 piece PowerGrip set to travel with and while not as useful as my pfeil tools, I would still recommend it to a beginner. Â*Very few palm tools would be good for LARGE carvings. However, for the folks who can get their hands around the work, the PowerGrips tools will be fine. They are Laminated Japanese steel, come razor sharp and hold a good edge. Â*Remember, palm tools should not be very wide since you are pushing them through the wood. Â*The wider the edge, the harder you have to push. Â*That is why most wide tools are made for a mallet. Â*Also, remember, a carving glove is important but not particularly good against punctures. Â*You still need to keep your brain actively working to keep your hands out of the line of the cutting edges.

[stang]

I agree with that about the glove, 1 trip to the emergence room for 17 stitches and $700 dollars later I could have bought the best glove out and 1 great set of carving tools. One of the cheapest tools and the best is join a carving club, you meet great carvers and see what tools they have and get to try some of them out. I have been carving for 2 years and have learned most of what I know from fellow carvers. They are eager to teach and some clubs have carving libraries that you can check out books. Good luck and ask lots of questions. Mick

[Callynne]

Hi Ruvane, welcome!! Lots of good advice here, I really recommend the carving glove also, learned the hard way myself, now I ALWAYS wear it, plus a thumb guard on the other hand. If you get used to it right from the beginning it feels weird not wearing them!
I started out with a knife and one gouge also, three and half years ago, now I have a FEW more tools! Take your time, you will learn quickly what other tools you need to do what you want to do. I think the biggest mistake we make starting out is buying a lot of different tools that we end up not needing.
Stropping your tools is so important, I do mine about every twenty minutes of carving time, get in the habit of stropping now and you won't be sorry. Good luck, be sure share a picture or two when you're ready, we love seeing each others work! Callynne

[dart]

Welcome. I'd have to agree about the glove. I don't have one, yet. I cut my thumb almost everytime I use my knife. Then I put a bandaid on the thumb and then I don't cut my thumb anymore. The bandaid seems to protect my thumb. I have read that the Kevlar glove only protects against cuts and not punctures. But better to be safe than sorry. I use a piece of leather and jeweler's rouge on it to keep my knife razor sharp. You can get the red jeweler's rouge at Sears and use an old belt for the leather. Have fun and enjoy.

[BasketballJones]

As a relative newbie I'll give you a little carving advice that I'm learning:

I was embarrassed to ask when to use the type of cuts and I finally asked.
Stop Cut is a deep (depth) cut and in various combinations great for creating an optical illusion. Push Stroke for taking larger pieces, Pull stroke for thinner pieces. (Don't underestimate impact of the pull stroke).

Devote time to stropping, you'll spend less time honing. (I underestimated stropping also). There are various products. One specific carver uses stropping compound but also uses rubbing compound quite frequently. (It works fairly well, he is a mechanic).

Learn to read your carving. In other words don't fret over mistakes as you will make many but have the opportunity to turn that mistake around with a little creativity. (I don't know if these pros make mistakes but I've heard tales about mistake that have turned into greater creations than originally intended).

If you join a carving club, spend a lot of time watching. You'll find many have a variety of styles and different ways of doing the same thing. If you ask 'why' rather than 'how' you will grab a piece of the carvers artistic side. 'How' means show me and 'Why' means I'm interested in your work. (A carver in the group actually told me he liked my style of questions and I didn't even know what I was doing. That's where the how/why info came from. But he's also a retired English Teacher).

Carvers like you have different backgrounds, that is a cool thing when they get together. It's also nice to carve with other people rather than always carving alone.

Enjoy the learning experience and check back here often for tips.

[macktruck]

welcome to carving Ruvane.
wood carvers supply has an inexpensive set of detail gouges, set of 8 for under $30. they are a good starter set. also i can't agree enough about the glove. i have a scar on my left thumb that went clean to the bone.
If you are concentrating on wild life in the round a vise or holding device would be good.
macktruck

[lorax]

Since most everybody covered safety equipment, I'll give one tool-- a V gouge. You are extremely limited with few tools, but if all you have is a knife, I would suggest a V tool, before you get other chisels. A V will help you cut in details that are a pain to do with a Knife. Then go to some gouges. A small set of chisels would open up doors for you so much faster than one tool at a time, though. My first set of 6 Footprint palm tools cost me $49, and I still use them.

HI my dad got me trying this whole woodcarving thing but i have no idea how 2 do any thing can any 1 plaese help me thank u all so much