Returning to a favorite hobby

[boots713]

Hi just a short intro, my name is dani (female version) and i am returning to wood carving after a 15 year hiatus. i was taught by an older italian gentleman (Frank Costa of vallejo, CA)
who was very patient and taught me a lot, especially relief carving. Back then i was too "green" to woodcarving to try 3-d sculptures even though he tried to encourage me to. i wished i would have tried to branch out a bit more.(pardon the pun) i actually went back to visit my home town and to look up my old woodcarving buddies and found out that Frank had passed away a few months earlier, i have to say i miss him he was a wonderful human being willing to give of his time and talent. the wood carvers still in the group gave me Franks empty chair to sit in, damn near brought tears to my eyes, they told me i could keep his chair warm for Frank till he returned. good people woodcarvers are.
now i live near a forest and found wood is plentiful along the smith river and the wood shops nearby, wooohooo!!! and i have a work space that is awesome, so i hope to really get back into the swing of things. hope to read a lot about wood on this message board!!!!! oh well guess the intro wasnt so short after all! smiles

[squbrigg]

Welcome aboard Dani. You will find that this group of carvers is just as friendly as the group you sit with out there. Looking forward to seeing your work and sharing your stories.

Bob

[Hi_Ho_Sliver]

Welcome....Smith river? in Northern Cal. or oregon? Ice Cream

[Bartster]

dani,

welcome back to a wonderful hobby,and to the board. what type of woodcarving are you interested in doing?

bart

[boots713]

thanks for the welcome! ya'all seem like a friendly lot! im in northern CA on 199. i liked relief carving when i first started out, (still do). faces are starting to fascinate me. i am working on a couple of walking sticks right now, a sapling with a pistol grip and the pistol grip end is being carved into an open flower and i will embed a cabachon or crystal in the center of the flower. i like to try to find images/designs in found wood, hopefully i will get better at it, they make it look so darn easy in the books! lol
again thanks for the warm welcome! dani

[whitecree]

Ah, a fellow Left Coaster. Greetings!

I agree, those books always make it look so easy, but when you or I try it, somehow it doesn't come out quite the same way. Makes me want to chuck the book out the window.

The trick is to read the article over and over and over, and study the pictures while holding tools in your hand. Think of how the tool must be held in order to make the cut that is being described.


As always, practice & more practice.

[Mottles]

Welcome, boots wood carving is a wonderful hobby and made even more wonderful by those woodcarvers who take us under their wings.
Kathy