my 2nd bird carving"blue Jay"

[opakitas]

Well this was a little harder then I thought and took me longer. Not totally done as I don't know how I should mount it. Any thoughts??? This is only my 2nd carving first was the chickadee. My next carving I am going to attempt to do my dog breed which is an akita. I first need to draw it out and then figure out how to cut it out then carve it. I also have a loon and goldfish I still have yet to do might start the goldfinch next.

let me know what you all think. I know its not as nice as the pro's but hope to one day be as good as them. I hope

Thanks for letting me share
Tammy

[mtnman4jesus]

Well one day i hope to be as good as you.

[Benjamin]

That's a good looking bird. Only your second one. Outstanding

[dwlind]

Tammy,

Great job on the blue jay. I love the detail and the painting is excellent. I don't have any suggestions for the mount, just wanted to comment on an outstanding carving.

Doug

[opakitas]

thanks everyone. I know they aren't as realistic looking as the pros but hope to one day have them look perfect. I think I might get a cedar post there is an old one down the road and mount part of it on a block of wood and put him on that. Not sure though. I will have to do some researching. Ducks are easy its the song birds I am not sure how to mount.

thanks again

[carver33]

Tammy, that is a phenomenal second effort. I think that you've done a beautiful job.

The only thing that strikes me is that the white is a little too pristine, and unfortunately, I don't have any suggestions on how to tone it down.

[Donna_T]

Tammy,
I think it's a great second effort. You're gonna have so much fun trying other birds.

I rarely use white just as it is. If I want a cool white, I may use tiny, tiny bit of ultramarine blue to just barely tint it. If I want a warm whte, I might use a tiny bit of burnt umber or even get a color that's off white or ivory.

One of the techniques I use to clean up a bird carving that's been woodburned is to use 3-4 Scotch discs on a mandrel in a power carver (I use my battery Dremel Mini-mite for this) and run it over the carving to clean out the char and get the fuzzies gone before I paint. I especially like the white ones. If you do it quickly, you won't ruin your carving and burn lines, but it will soften it and clean it up noticibly. I used to use Scotchbrite filiment, but I like the discs much better. I use them to clean up all of my carvings.

Good luck with the bird carving process. I'm still learning birds and love each one. I've not done a bluejay, but sure would like to attempt one.

Donna_T

[opakitas]

Thanks for the tips what is bad is it was kind of bla so I whitened it up... I shouldn't have. I will go back and try to put a wash over it and see if that will work. I still have some detail to do with the painting. The wood burning I am still trying to get used to. I don't know if I dont go deep enough or what. also the direction of the feathers. Live and learn much better then my chickadee and hope the next will be even better. I think I might attempted the goldfinch. I have a loon too

thanks for the advise. I wish there was a class near me. Is there any online of birds that I can take. I want to do realistic birds.

thanks
Tammy

[Blackjaxe]

Nice work for only being your second attempt Tammy, we all look forward to watching your work progress.

Now if I may give some painting advice. Go over your whites with a light wash of burnt umber mixed with a bit of ultramarine blue, keep your washes very subtle and let each wash coat dry before putting another wash on that way you can see where you need adjustments. Once you get to where the effect is pleasing you may then add a final wash of warm white.

Another area that most novice carvers miss when painting a Bluejay is the CAPE FEATHERS. They are more of a greyish purple with a hint of ultramarine blue. If you get that area fixed it will be a decent paint job, in fact from what I see in the photos I would say you had a good chance of getting a ribbon in novice competition.

Ken

[AlArchie]

That's a really great blue jay rendition.....nice carving and paining. As far as a mount goes, it looks like you've pretty well got what you want. Jays are generally ground feeders, seeking seeds, bugs and carrion. I'd suggest a nice oval or kidney shaped maple or oak base with some of that ground cover you have now. You might check with one of the taxidermy suppliers to see some of their habitat ideas. www.vandyketaxidermy.com is one.

Here's one of their bases similar to what I suggested. These bases are pretty pricy, but there's no reason you couldn't make one like it for under 10 bucks worth of material and paint.

Or a baswood round like this can also be used...nice touch for a wildlife mount.





Al