The idea for the cane in this book came from the author's good friend and fellow carver Claude Bolton. Both belong to the Caricature Carvers of America, and the group was looking for some way to honor a friend and supporter. Claude hit upon the idea of a cane made up of many segments to be carved by various members. In addition to Tom and Claude they include: Jack Price; Peter Ortel; Steve Prescott; Harley Schmitzen; Rich Wetherbee; Bob Travis; Dave Dunham; Dave Stetson; Keith Morrill; Joe Wannamaker; Tex Haase; Doug Raine; Marv Kaisersatt; Dave Rasmussen; Harley Refsal; Harold Enlow; Claude Bolton; Gary Batte; Desiree Hajny; Pete LeClair; and Randy Landen. In the gallery of this book you will see the results of their enormous talents. Tom Wolfe takes the reader through the process of creating a four-face segment for a cane. What you learn there can be applied to any of your caricature carving or can be used to create your own friendship cane, by yourself or in your carving club. The cane you create will be a true token of friendship and will be cherished for many years to come.

This "how to" book in woodcarving guides us through a hands on, educational journey of snowmen designs and cuttings, including "Igloo Snowman," and "Snowbank Snowman," both rich in color and full of life. Filled with numerous ideas and designs, it presents a fun and easy way to learn decorative woodcarving while perfecting your creative skills. The easy-to-follow instructions define the shape, style of arm you wish to use, traditional or elaborate face, and so on. The "saw out and glue up" technique is explained and displayed in step-by-step carving instructions. The painting techniques are fun and easy to follow and allow for imaginative designs. The finishing touches add details that you, too, will be able to make.

The cowboy was an integral part of the old west. Much of life in those times revolved around him. Not only did he act as a cow nurse, herding, driving, and branding, but he also stacked hay, and built corrals and barns. He should be remembered too for his dedicated defense of the brand he rode for, even in the face of death. The Saturday night shindigs wouldn't have been the same without him either. Most cowboys couldn't dance a lick, but as long as that little gal was in his arms, who cared what the feet were doing! These cowboys were tough men. They were independent but when needed they were there. A rare breed! To carve these qualities into a face is indeed a challenge. Bob Lundy takes the carver through three projects, The Cowboy, The Indian, and The Mountain Man. With informative instructions (laced with a good deal of humor) and clear photographs he goes from the raw wood to a finished, realistic portrayal of these characters of the old west. A gallery of 16 other figures is included to give the reader other ideas. This book is written for both the beginner, who is looking for complete how-to information from start to finish, and for the veteran, who is interested only in a tip here and there to improve their work. Lundy approaches his work with an eye for the personality of the characters. He will instill that sensitivity to the reader, giving the carver a feeling of closeness and intimacy with the people who emerge from the wood.

Love working with gourds, but hate all the dust? This new book offers an alternative technique. Step-by-step instructions, along with 176 color photographs, show how to chip and chisel a gourd into a decorative piece for the house or outside. Best of all, only basic, simple tools are needed; no electric cords, no noise, no dust. Create a stunning array of bowls, birdhouses, and ornaments. A gallery of 16 color photographs provides ideas for your own creations. Chip-carving on Gourds is a gentle, relaxing handcraft that any beginner or seasoned gourd crafter can learn and enjoy.

Elijah Pierce (1892-1984) was born the youngest son of a former slave on a Mississippi farm. He began carving at an early age when his father gave him his first pocketknife. Pierce became known for his wood carvings nationally and then internationally for the first time in the 1970s. Accompanying a major exhibition at the Barnes Foundation, Philadelphia, this publication seeks to revisit the art of Elijah Pierce and see it in its own right, not simply as 'naive'. Elijah Pierce made his living as a barber; he was also a qualified preacher. Just as his barber shop was a place for gossip and meeting, so his art reflects his own and his community's concerns, but also universal themes. Through his carvings Pierce told his own life story and chronicled the African-American experience. His subjects ranged from politics to religious stories but he seldom distinguished the race of his figures - he thought of them as everyman. His secular carvings show his love of baseball, boxing, comics and the movies, and also reflect his appreciation for American heroes who fought for justice and liberty. In 1932, Pierce completed 'the Book of Wood', which he considered his best work. Originally carved as individual scenes, the completed 'Book' tells the story of Jesus carved in bas-relief. He and his wife Cornelia held "sacred art demonstrations" to explain the meaning of the Book of Wood. Pierce's work was first appreciated in the art world thanks to a fellow sculptor, Boris Gruenwald, who saw the expressive power of his work. As a later critic wrote, "There are 500 woodcarvers working today in the United States who are technically as proficient as Pierce, but none can equal the power of Pierce's personal vision". Pierce became known primarily in circles promoting 'naive' art, winning first prize at the International Meeting of Naive Art in Zagreb, Yugoslavia, in 1973. The vast majority of his work is now held in Columbus, Ohio, which had become his home town. This book revisits Pierce's art seeking to see it in its own right, and not simply as 'naive'. Another critic wrote: "He reduces what he wants to say to the simplest forms and compositions. They are decorative, direct, bold and amusing. He uses glitter and all kinds of devices to make his message clear. It gives his work an immediacy that's very appealing" - an appeal arising from a sophisticated art with its own particular voice.

In her book, Sue Waters guides you through the rural landscapes and scenery she knows and loves so well. All of the wood burning tools and techniques necessary to create engaging rural landscapes are detailed within. Working through the five projects provided, you will learn techniques for creating realistic representations of barns with their intricate wood siding, stone walls, rolling meadows and mountainous landscapes. Techniques for even the smallest details of pottery, glass, leaves and grass are included. Full color photographs and step-by-step instructions make exploring and creating these landscapes a joy, even for the novice wood burner. Once you have successfully completed these wood burning projects, you will have the necessary skills and confidence to further explore the rich and varied opportunities for art presented in rural scenes on your own.

Of all the things that Tom Wolfe carves, none is more popular among collectors and students than his canes and walking sticks. Following the success of his fancy cane book last season, Tom is sharing some of his techniques for creating a fancy walking stick. The difference is in the size and shape of the creature. A walking stick is usually longer to provide more support for the hiker, and has a knob at the top rather than a handle. This knob provides the carver with many possibilities. In this book Tom carves a woodsman's head. He takes the reader through the process from the beginning of the carving to the attachment of the head to the shaft and the decoration of the shaft. Each step is illustrated with a color photograph and a clear explanation. The gallery give other ideas for carving the knob, and patterns are provided for several of them. A great book for new carvers and old pros.

With clear, concise instructions and 345 detailed photos, Ron Hampton takes the reader through every step required to turn and finish wooden works of art on the mini-lathe. Eight separate projects are turned and finished here, including a cherry goblet, several mushrooms, a turquoise bowl inlay, potpourri pot, leather Indian pot, stone bowl, Hawaiian bowl, and an ornamental bird house. A gallery of other designs is provided for inspiration. Every tool required is listed and explained along with a variety of tool rests. Tool sharpening techniques are discussed and valuable safety tips are provided. This book is perfect for the beginning and intermediate wood turner and will provide valuable ideas for those more advanced.

A genuine labor of love, Loy Harrell has recognized 61 individual decoy carvers, from past to present, located around Lake Champlain. Listed alphabetically, each carver is briefly discussed and examples of their work are illustrated in 263 beautiful color photographs and 52 black and white. There are 352 decoys featured in all. Dr. Harrell has brought his enthusiasm to the reader through personal interviews with many of these accomplished carvers and adeptly portrays the true personality of decoy enthusiasts of the Lake Champlain area. This book is the first of its kind for the Lake Champlain area and pays a long awaited tribute to its carvers and the decoys they have and still are creating.

In Puritan New England, with its abiding concern for things not of this world and its distrust of forms and ceremonies, one art flourished: the symbolic art of mortuary monument stonecarvers. This carefully researched, beautifully illustrated work was the first to consider this art in depth as a meaningful aesthetic-spiritual expression. It is reissued for today's readers, with a new preface outlining changes in the field since the book appeared in 1966.

Follow along with master carver Jeffrey Moore to create a dramatic and lifelike representation of the striking blue wing teal drake. Jeff starts with a preshaped, duplicated wooden bird to simplify the rough carving process, then demonstrates the use of burning and high speed texturing equipment to achieve wonderful carving detail and realistic features. Once the carving is completed, the book takes the reader through each aspect of the airbrushing and brush painting steps needed to complete the teal's body, tail, head, and outstretched wing. In addition, Jeff demonstrates how to create realistic-looking sand and water for the accompanying habitat base. Throughout, detailed instructions accompany the full color photographs. This is a carving project you will treasure for many years to come.

Based on the strong response from carvers around the world, Al Streeman has drawn together a new book of Santa Claus patterns. 35 new patterns are presented along with helpful tips from Al's many years of carving experience. This book is written more for the carver who has some level of experience, but just needs some basic line drawings/patterns to get started. There are also general tips and recommendations as to wood selection, paint colors, and tools. Some of the patterns appear in their final, carved and painted form. so the reader will have 3-D references. The patterns are printed full-size. This is a valuable resource for carvers and a welcome addition to their library.

Using over 220 beautiful color photographs and clear, concise instructions, Ron Ransom takes the reader through all the steps necessary to carve nine of his favorite "Old World" Santas from wood. Patterns are provided for Santas holding a variety of objects, ranging from angels and Christmas trees to a golf club, messages, fishing poles, and even political emblems! Along with the carving instructions (sprinkled with Ron's unique sense of humor), general tips for painting the completed Santas are provided, as well as answers to carvers most frequently asked questions Also, a gallery of finished Santas is presented for further inspiration. Whether the carver has been working with wood for fifteen years or fifteen minutes, this book will be a new treasure.

This book is the perfect start for anyone interested in learning how to carve detailed faces. Mary Finn uses her practice stick method to show you how to carve each feature - eyes, nose, closed mouth, open mouth - with step by step directions that even beginners will find easy to follow. Then she shows you how to arrange all of these pieces into one wooden egg to make a convincing head! This method has helped hundreds of Mary's students, and is a sure-fire way to get started! Egg head projects included in this book are an old man, a pirate, and the Mad Hatter. Mary shows you how to adapt her carving techniques to flatter surfaces to make jewelry (like a bolo tie project) and how to paint your pieces for maximum impact. This book is terrific for beginners, and a great way for more advanced carvers to enlarge their skills.

Soap carving is a fantastic confidence-builder for novice wood carvers, and a challenge for carving veterans who would like to explore a new medium. This fascinating book takes carvers to an advanced level, showing methods of making multiple-bar soap carvings of selected North American mammals. Beautiful color photographs and the text move step-by-step through the creation of eight animals: a bear and cub, wolf, cougar, prairie dog, harp seal, killer whale, and otter. Art, natural history, and environmental issues are integrated into the instructions to produce a super learning experience. Expert wildlife carver Lila Gilmer also makes an appearance to contribute her different approach to realistic soap carvings.

Create beautiful, lifelike wildfowl cane handles with power tools. Over 145 clear color photographs illustrate each step, from carving the blank and setting the eyes to texturing feathers and painting the completed handle. Every tool necessary is described and displayed in detail. Patterns are provided for fifteen cane handle projects: including the American Flamingo, Bald Eagle, Brown Pelican, Cardinal, Cooper's Hawk, Great Blue Heron, Horned Puffin, Leghorn, two Mallards, Red Breasted Merganser, Ring-Necked Pheasant, Sandhill Crane, Tundra Swan and the Wood Duck. Instructions appear for procuring, sizing, and fastening shafts to the finished handles. This book will be a challenge to the novice and a joy to the expert carver

For hopelessly addicted Santa carvers, this wonderful book will spur them to new heights and depths. Here are 60 of Al Streetman's whimsical, humorous caricature patterns, bringing exciting new dimensions to Santa carving. Al takes the carver step-by-step through the carving of a Santa flying on a candy cane to deliver his goods. It is fun to carve and, from Al's experience, is a good seller at carving shows. It offers a slight but not difficult challenge, and can be executed by novices and pros alike. The book provides some tips and tricks for head and hand carving. All in all, the perfect fix for the Santa craving.

All of the techniques necessary for capturing the sleek beauty and strength of dolphins and whales in wood are presented here. In direct and basic language and color photographs Dale Power takes the carver through each step in the process of creating a dolphin from basswood with a combination of hand and power tools. Once the dolphin is carved, woodburning and painting techniques are explored in detail to add life to the work. Helpful hints for mounting the finished work are included as well. Patterns for three dolphins and two whales are provided as well as a color gallery showing a variety of dolphins and whales in groupings which are sure to inspire. With full color illustrations and explicit directions, this book is invaluable to both the novice and the experienced carver.

Debbie Barr captures the lighter side of women's daily lives in her carvings, lives filled with triumphs and travails. Debbie takes her readers step-by-step through the process of transforming a block of basswood into a lively caricature with concise instructions, sound advice, and over 250 color illustrations. Once the carving is complete, instructions are also provided for painting the figure. Eight patterns accompany the text. A photographic gallery rounds out the presentation, displaying additional figures sure to provide inspiration and insight to every carver. This book will present satisfying challenges to beginners and will be a joy to the more advanced carvers.

Few decorative crafts can claim to be more ancient than stone carving, with the earliest carved objects being dated well into prehistory. The greatest monuments to human civilization, from the temples of ancient Mesopotamia and Egypt to the great cathedrals of Medieval Europe, are richly ornamented with decorative relief and sculpture carved in stone. Alan Micklethwaite, a stone carver with many years' experience in the conservation of historic monuments and sculpture, introduces the reader to the techniques and methodology of restoration stone carving, from simple relief to complex sculpture in the round, set against a sound conservation philosophy. The book provides a thorough understanding of stone as a material and describes its use in sculpture and the agents of its decay, as well as the method by which disfigured carvings can be forensically reconstructed, resulting in the re-emergence of beautifully carved historic architectural sculpture. The book is intended as a detailed introduction to restoration stone carving, and is aimed at those who are learning to carve stone or have an interest in pursuing a career in the conservation of stone sculpture and ancient monuments. While having a depth of detail which will allow it to serve as a reference manual for the professional, it will also inspire the beginner and fuel the interest of those who harbour a desire to pursue traditional crafts.

In this wonderful folk carving book, Shane Campbell takes you step-by-step through the process of carving two attractive wooden figures. The first is an articulated angel named Ruby and the second is a whirligig figure named Angelene. Project patterns and over 260 color photographs accompany the straightforward directions. Shane also provides instructions for both painting folk figures and for aging them using a method that is delightfully simple and effective. A color gallery rounds out the book and provides examples of additional folk figures sure to provide every reader with new ideas. This book has something to offer everyone from the beginner to the most advanced wood carver.

Scenic relief carving is the art of bringing life and depth to a carving that is essentially two dimensional. In the traditional carving of Germany this is an exquisite and beautiful technique, and now Georg Keilhofer, a master woodcarver, shares it with his readers and students. Step-by-step he takes the reader through the carving of a plaque depicting a deer running through the forest. The difficulties and challenges of relief carving and techniques for handling them are explained. Everything is illustrated with full color photographs. This is Georg's second book. His first, Basic Relief Carving, has met with critical and popular success. This new book will take the reader further into the art of traditional wood-carving.

This book grows out of many requests we have received for animal carving books in general, and for Tom Wolfe animals in particular. His raccoons and hounds have graced the pages of his previous books. His bears, in their original form and as reproductions, have found their way into the hearts of people across the nation. Beginning with a plain block of bass wood or white pine Tom creates a menagerie of characters. Bunnies and bears are the epitome of "cuddly," and are a favorite of children and adults alike. These projects are perfect for the person who carves for relaxation. After bandsawing the patterns, they can be completed with the simplest of tools-a knife, a gouge, a veiner, and nailset. Tom helps the less experienced reader with the basic skills required for carving. Those who are more experienced will value a few of the secrets and shortcuts he has learned over the years. The projects can be adapted so that your bear or bunny will take on a different character through its size, position, and/or color. Your imagination is all that is necessary to make the changes.

Gargoyles are an architectural feature designed to throw rainwater clear of the walls of a building. Widely used on medieval churches, these water spouts were often richly decorated, and fashioned as serpents' heads and other fanciful shapes. Today, the term gargoyle is also popularly applied to any carved decorative head or creature high up on a building and this book is an exploration of all of these enchanting features. Written by an academic and stonecarver, it is the perfect introduction to this fascinating subject.
"Gargoyles" aims to provide a concise introduction to the stone carvings often found on religious and secular buildings in Britain from the medieval period to the modern. It will explore the typical imagery, some of the theories put forward to explain them, as well as consider the carvings within their architectural and social contexts. Incorporating recent and current research, the book will nevertheless be accessible to the general reader.

Master Carver Grinling Gibbons (1648-1721) is famous for his breathtakingly delicate, intricate and realistic carvings, both in wood and stone. Tantalising cascades of fruit and flowers, puffy-cheeked cherubs, crowds of figures and flourishes of architecture are all trademark features of his energetic, animated carvings that grace stately homes, palaces, churches and colleges across the country. His work can be found in some of Britain's most beloved buildings, including St Paul's Cathedral and Hampton Court Palace. From his early work in the Low Countries to his 'discovery' by the diarist John Evelyn in London, and his appointment as the king's Master Carver, this book celebrates Grinling Gibbons' unequalled talent, his visionary genius, and his ability to transform humble pieces of wood into some of the most exquisite artworks of his day.