opinion/question

[workinforwood]

I'm still practicing and playing around with carving to enhance my repetoir. Money's been tight with the almost $4 gas prices, but managed to pick up a harvey refsal book at $7...book on carving in wood you find at the beach or wherever I guess. Anyhow, this female face is in there and I figured I'd give it a try in a piece of Mahogany a relative gave me for christmas. It's a cool book, but low on instructional details, of course it's a small cheap book. Doesn't delve too much into how to make the eyebrows, just says use a v-gouge. I wonder if I need to reduce some more wood to create a raised eybrow and then v-groove it, or do I simply vgroove the somewhat flat surface above the eyes?

I also wonder if I should chisel cut around the entire profile one more time and gouge down into the block more so that the outer area of the block is less flat, if you follow what I"m saying. Kinda like having a face down in a square bowl I guess is what I'm saying.

Otherwise, I'm pretty excited about it. It's not too bad for someone with near zero experience. It is tough to tell in a shiny photo, but my eyes look pretty good. Noses still driving me insane..not wide enough at the nostril area.

[whitecree]

Looks pretty good so far, and yes - noses can be tricky!

I'd go a bit deeper all around the outside, then adjust the rest of the carving to fit. One of the biggest errors a new carver makes is in not going deep enough.

I won't say too much more as I'm still learning about faces myself, but I repeat; looking good!

[Robert Cahill]

I'm not real good on doing faces but I think yours is looking good.
One thing I do for books is go though fox chapel carving books and if I see one I think I want I go to the library. I usually have to ask them to get it through inter-library loan. Then if I find I like it I go ahead and purchase it when funds are available or mention it as a christmas gift.
Robert