chip carving lettering

[dixie]

I'm working on a relief carving and have also been practicing on chip carving, another first......I need a little help with some lettering I'd like to add to the bottom of the relief carving.....The overall size of the Basswood is 12 high by 15 1/2 long....I have a 13 1/2 inch space I have alloted for lettering along the bottom of the piece......this is inside of a border area that will be sufficient for the carving. I'm pretty sure I want to use Roman style lettering, and need to know what is the proper spacing between letters.....I've been using a book by Dennis Moor called Chip Carvers Workbook to learn this, but in his section on lettering he does not give a rule of thumb for letter spacing for words, other than letters should be carved as close together as possible, but be sure to carve comfortably. If anyone can give me a little better idea on this I'd appreciate any advise.

thanks

dixie

[squbrigg]

My best suggestion is to use your computer to do it. Any simple drawing program will work, use an 8 1/2" X 14" format and paper and size the lettering to suit. That's what I do. Works better for me than friggin' with spaces and letters.....I never get them right.

Bob

[dixie]

thanks for the quick reply bob....I was thinking about using the computer, but since I've never worked with this chip carving format before I wasn't sure that would work for this.......will set it up with one of the programs I have though.......
.......thanks

by the way.....that was a great article in the latest issue of wood carving......I was impressed. Keep up that good work.....and as always, I wish you fair winds and following seas....


dixie

[squbrigg]

Thanks, glad to help....and for the compliment.

Bob

[papasar]

Dixie,
Once you get your letters figured out, I suggest you use rubber cement to past the letters right on the wood and cut thru the pattern. Saves a heck of a lot of time. Any text program allows you to change text and size. Have fun!!
Bill K.

[GILLY]

Originally Posted by papasar

Dixie,
Once you get your letters figured out, I suggest you use rubber cement to past the letters right on the wood and cut thru the pattern. Saves a heck of a lot of time. Any text program allows you to change text and size. Have fun!!
Bill K.

Any brand in particular? and does it stick too much to the wood? I remember reading something like this in another thread.

[papasar]

Gilly,
I use Elmers or Best-test. I generally sand the wood down to 600 grit first. This not only helps it adhere but lessens the chance of any glue being absorbed. Try to get the acid free cement to avoid any conflict with your final finish. I've used the cement without sanding and find I have to apply it on the pattern and the wood for best results due to some of the glue being absorbed. Rather do the sanding! Why take chances?
Bill K.

[dixie]

thanks bill......

I'm using a print art program that gives me good looking letters in a Roman style, but of course they come out all black....since I'm no computer guru, I'm planning on using them in the all black coloring, and glueing them to the wood as you suggest....I've never thought of using Elmers cement for that, I've always used it for plugging car tires, and it holds as well as the regular tire repair cement....I suppose this sould be a very thin application..........and afterwards I guess a little sanding around the lettered area will probably remove any extra cement that is still present ?

dixie

[papasar]

Dixie,
The cement usually comes off with a little hand rubbing. Sometimes use a piece of crepe rubber, the kind used for dressing sanding belts. If you check your software there is generally a way to outline the letters and fill the body with white. This saves your black ink. I hope you not thinking of pasting one letter at a time. Do the whole layout before printing and then paste the whole pattern.
I use Lucida Caligraphy Font if I want a more modern look but it has more curves and makes it a little more tricky for a beginner.
Hope the info helps.
Bill K.

[jmroth75]

I go to my computer and using a wordprocessing program like Word, type out what you want and adjust the font size to get the proper size. Spacing will be done automatically. I don't personally like the Times Roman font for carving; there is no style to that font. Try something like Invitation, Old English, Diploma, etc. Add pizzazz! I then print it out on thin paper (plain cheap notebook paper works best). Then, to transfer the lettering to the board, use graphite transfer paper (not carbon paper) between the printed page and the board and trace over the edges. I seldom cut thru paper glued on the board because you can't see the sides of the cuts as well, hence your carving will not be nearly as clean looking. Just don't be in a hurry; chip carving done well is time consuming. I can only work a couple hours at a time before my back and eyes start to give out.