---- Chris Pye: WOODCARVING - NEWSLETTER ---- December 2002 http://www.chrispye-woodcarving.com "Dedicated to the teaching, learning and love of woodcarving" ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Please forward this newsletter to a woodcarving friend, and anyone else you think might be interested. Thanks! This is an opt-in newsletter and you should only be receiving it because you requested it from the website, or were sent it by a friend. Subscribe or Unsubscribe easily on the home page here: http://www.chrispye-woodcarving.com/index.html or using the link at the end of the newsletter. ****Back issues here: http://www.chrispye-woodcarving.com/intro/pastnews.html including zipfile for 2001 newsletters ============================================================ Replying to this Newsletter? PLEASE CHANGE THE SUBJECT LINE! ============================================================ CONTENTS: 1. Survey Results 2. Slipstones - the Future 3. Website News 1) Teaching 2003 in the USA 2) Teaching 2003 in Canada 3) Teaching 2003 in the UK 4) New Tools 5) Study Casts - Progress Report 4. Quick Carving Questions 1) Lettering Question 2) Joining Wood? 3) Bleaching Wood? 4) Treating Wany Edges? 5. Follow Up: Finishing Limewood 6. Guest Article: Getting Gothic by Joe Chiffler Website Bookmarks at the end. ____________________________________________________________ 1. SURVEY RESULTS ____________________________________________________________ A little under 400 of you answered the survey - thank you all very much! Your response and comments were an eye-opener for me and I found it very reassuring that you were all positive about what you saw me doing. (What AM I doing? Just trying to teach what I love, woodcarving, to a high standard and promoting good, traditional skills.) Here are a few salient results: HOW YOU RATED YOURSELVES AS CARVERS: 27% - have tried some carving and are keen to pursue... 26% - consider themselves competent... 29% - carve fairly consistently and produce some good stuff... 9% - carve a lot and are probably competent enough to do it professionally... 9% - do it professionally... When it came to HOW YOU WANTED TO RECIEVE A DIGITAL MAGAZINE: Email attachment - 57% Get it online - 41% Monthly - 48% Bimonthly - 43% COST - very variable. You often said it 'relates to the benefit for my carving'. Thanks to those of you who acknowledged that I am not a charity but have a life to support! ADVERTS: Very few of you did not want these but they must be relevant, non-popup, and without automatic connecting. For me 2 things stood out: 1) You wanted at least 1 COMPLIMENTARY COPY before taking the plunge, or some way of browsing - as in a bookstore - before buying. 2) CONTENT You wanted direction: *Patterns, plans and designs; simple weekend projects that advance your skills. *Beginners step-by-step guide to carving - ABC - starting a project to completion. *Good quality down to earth information; how to; clear explanations; carving critiques. And much more along these lines. I haven't done thinking yet but I could see immediately how Slipstones could change for the better and to meet the needs of carvers. Some notes follow - I'm still open to feedback... ____________________________________________________________ 2. SLIPSTONES - THE FUTURE ____________________________________________________________ Just an idea of the way I am thinking: * Yearly subscription to Slipstones will end and only individual issues will be for sale. (Subscriptions to Slipstones have already stopped.) There will be no mailing lists other than the free website newsletter. * Issues may be bi-monthly for improved quality and content; downloadable rather than email attachments; cost will vary according to size and content. * Slipstones will be more like the 'workshop manuals' idea that some of you may remember I had on the website for some while. This only manifested as the free ebooks. (Please have a look at them if you haven't already - links at the end of this newsletter). So more 'manual' and less 'magazine'. * Slipstones will still include the opportunity to connect with me, have questions answered and look at my own work and workshop. I'll also be knocking on the door of guest carvers who are good teachers. * But, a major change: Slipstones will become more planned, more directed, with more step-by-step teaching projects for beginners and intermediate levels, with plans and patterns; even forming courses. This, over and over again, is what I have been asked for. * Another major change: The format will no longer be the pdf Reader file which you are looking at now, but that of the eBook style of the free eBooks on the website. * In order for you to have your complimentary copy, you will be able to download and browse a part of each issue rather like 'shareware'. Then, if you like what you see you can pay for the full version. * It also follows that there could easily be an index of past issues, always and individually available in their downloadable, shareware versions. * The eBook format is essentially a self-contained website. Thus, for example, I can eventually include video clips of important techniques. Interesting? It is bound to develop as we go along and will start simply. I am planning out content with a hope to start changes in the New Year. You tell me what you want; I'll try and provide it. What an offer! ____________________________________________________________ 3. WEBSITE NEWS ____________________________________________________________ 1) TEACHING 2003 IN THE USA I am pleased to say that in 2003 I will be teaching 3 classes in woodcarving at the excellent Center for Furniture Craftsmanship, Maine, USA (http:///www.woodschool.org): June 23 - 27 Ornamental Carving June 30 - July 4 Relief Carving July 7 - 11 Carving Tutorial Full details here: http://www.chrispye-woodcarving.com/tuition/t_classesUSA.html This is advanced notice for newsletter readers **** PLEASE NOTE: REGISTRATION BEGINS ON 2ND JANUARY. New course listings are posted to the CFC website (http:///www.woodschool.org) in mid-December before the school year. You can sign up for a brochure, mailed during the last week of that month. =================================== 2) TEACHING 2003 IN CANADA I have also been invited, for the first time, to instruct two, week-long woodcarving courses at the Rosewood Studio for Fine Woodworking, Almonte (20 minutes to Ottawa), Ontario, Canada. (http://www.rosewoodstudio.com) Sep 15 - Sep 19 The Outcome of the Tool: (An Introduction to Decorative Carving) Sep 22 - Sep 26 Relief Carving Full details here: http://www.chrispye-woodcarving.com/tuition/t_classesCAN.html Details of courses are already up on the site Rosewood Studio website (http://www.rosewoodstudio.com) and I believe you can book even now. Apply to the director Ted Brown: ted@rosewoodstudio.com =================================== 3) TEACHING 2003 IN THE UK If you are in the UK and want to spend 1-to-1 time with me at my workbench, doing just what you like (as long as it's woodcarving!), it's easy to arrange. Details here: http://www.chrispye-woodcarving.com/tuition/t_custom.html I am no longer able to run set courses, only this personal tuition, custom-based on what you need. =================================== 4) NEW TOOLS Keep and eye out for some new VERY flat #3 gouges that Ashley Iles are making to my design. They have already appeared in the UK 'Woodcarving' magazine and are being called #2 1/2 Finishing Gouges. Pages detailing them and their use will appear in the New Year on the website. =================================== 5) STUDY CASTS - progress report I have produced the first set of lettering study casts: ROMAN in 6 boards, each 13" x 4" x 1/2" Letter height 1 3/4 inches, 45mm. A-Z, 1-9, and stages for carving junctions and serifs. The quality of reproduction is superb, down to the original grain of the wood. They are arguably works of art in themselves. The casts will be for those following my book 'Lettercarving in Wood' who would like a 3D version to study, or others wanting a fine example of letting to follow. Because of the limited numbers, no casting firm will look at the job, so numbers cannot reduce costs. Including the original drawing out and carving, mould making and other costs, the price of an individual set is likely to be will be around £60, US$95 (£10 or US$15.75 a board). I am using Jesmonite, a non-toxic acrylic resin. The total weight is around 4kg, 8.8lbs. An issue at the moment is the shipping costs to the USA. This weight - nearly 9 pounds (lighter resins giving poorer results with not a lot of gain in shipping costs) - makes surface mail around US$45 and airmail US$55. Don't blame me! If anyone has any thoughts, suggestions, or can help me out here, please let me know! I'll put pages up on the website, probably in the New Year. __________________________________________ 4. QUICK CARVING QUESTIONS __________________________________________ **** QUESTION 1: LETTERING QUESTION **** "I am working on crescents and circles from your lettercarving book. I have a really easy time carving the outside of the crescent, but for some reason carving the inner wall gives me a lot of trouble. I end up with a mess, and ruin the 'outer wall' in the process. I know with practice though it will come (as you stress) but, any suggestions?" **** ANSWER **** For the inner wall the best exercise is still cutting crescents. Get a clean, short crescent, cut both sides, then gradually extend it - 1/8" at a time - into a circle. Some carvers advocate rounding the corners of the gouge. It is meant to prevent accidental digging in. I have never needed to do this - it's really down to tool control - but you might like to try. Repetition is indeed the key. Think about doing 20 a day for a month... =================================== **** QUESTION 2: JOINING WOOD **** "Is there a "trick" to glueing and joining wood and making the piece not look striped and/or checkered? I'm sculpting larger pieces in-the-round and most, if not all the time, I can't find a large enough piece of wood to do this. I figure that there has to be an art to this too. I hope you have some suggestions!" **** ANSWER **** It's a matter of 'reading' your pieces of wood, and this largely comes with experience. * Try and select timber from the same original tree. * Plane the wood up so you can see the colour and grain direction better. * Lay out the boards and mull them over. * Look to bury difficult colour, knots, defects etc within the wood, or place it where it will be cut away. * Put the best wood where it will be most noticed - the face for example - and the worst where it will be least visible - around the back. * Shuffle the boards until you have the best compromise - and it will be such. * Mark them carefully to you keep your order. Some visible joining is fine - it IS wood after all, but you don't want it intruding, and definitely not a first impression. =================================== **** QUESTION 3: BLEACHING WOOD? **** "I have a carving made from laminated Ash planks, about 45mm thick and would like to bleach the block when I am finished. I tried 'Domestos' and 'Nappisan' without effect. Any suggestions." **** ANSWER **** I use a 2-part bleach made by 'Rustin'. I don't know if it is sold outside the UK. Anyone else any ideas? =================================== **** QUESTION 4: TREATING WANY EDGES? **** "I have just acquired two good looking pieces of lime for relief carving each with the bark intact on one edge. What can one do to preserve this edge and, when applying Danish oil or whatever to the finished carving, do I treat the bark in a similar manner?" **** ANSWER **** If the bark has integrity, I just treat it exactly like the rest of the timber. If it's likely to peal away, I glue it on BEFORE any finishing. ____________________________________________________________ 5. FOLLOW UPS (with thanks to the contributors): ____________________________________________________________ FINISHING BASSWOOD (Nov. 02) 1) 'Basswood is more porous that Lime, and tends to absorb finish unevenly, even becoming blotchy. I have been using a sanding sealer first, then the wax (Chris's beeswax/turpentine mixture). This seems to give a very uniform finish. I have also used stain on a couple of occasions, with a Minwax product called "conditioner" first. I did not particularly like the results, though it was better than with nothing first.' (Richard Wright) 2) 'I remember taking a class with Nora Hall and the same question was asked. Her response was that she uses "Briwax." I have subsequently used the product on Basswood and I like it.' (Mike Hauser) 3) 'One of the finishes that can be used for Basswood (also known as Linden wood) is to use Bartley Gel Varnish mixed 50-50 with Mineral Spirits. This will allow the varnish to seal the endgrain of the wood without darkening. Since we are using an oil-based finish you can add Oil colors (Winton) for a monochrome or polychrome finish. I have various examples on my web page: http://216.106.57.170/~cvrscreek/small_busts.html. (Lynn Diel) ____________________________________________________________ 6. GUEST ARTICLE: Getting Gothic by Joe Chiffler ____________________________________________________________ GETTING GOTHIC by Joe Chiffler Standing before the strange beauty of a Gothic cathedral, it's easy to see why writers always wax poetic about the artistry, skill and sacrifice of the medieval stonecutter. Yet despite the heights they achieved, the workaday life of a stonemason most often included haggling over money, complaining about the working conditions, and gossiping about the clergy! They sometimes got along with the other guilds (or not), exhibited varying degrees of talent and were most often well-compensated for their effort - extra if they could carve statues or gargoyles. And from this day-to-day world of chisel hitting stone, professionalism juxtaposed with personal backbiting... the classical architecture of Rome was somehow turned completely on its head. With little if any formal education, the stonecutters brought to the Not So Dark Ages the most creative and original ideas ever known to architecture up to that time. Few medieval masons or carvers thought of themselves as artists, of course, although many knew they were on to something special: ie. It would be four centuries before Europe erected anything higher than the 466-foot high spire of Strasbourg Cathedral, completed in 1439. The politically correct Renaissance era later looked down its nose at the Gothic style for its uncompromising ties to nature - what with its primitive gargoyles, and forests of columns, lit by sunbeams filtered through stained glass. Gothic was in some ways a worldview more in tune with the glories of earth than with those of either mankind or the angels. Today, in the post-postmodern world (when we all should know better, supposedly) it is not the height, the grace, nor the artistry, but the most primeval aspects of Gothic that continue to fascinate. ----------------------------------------------------------- (c) Copyright 2002: Joe Chiffler Joe Chiffler, a professional stone carver, apprenticed at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine and is one of the few Yanks to become certified in stone masonry from London's City & Guilds. His website, NewYorkCarver.com, includes a cybershop of his work along with articles and resources on medieval art and architecture - including an excellent eBook on Gothic Geometry and the Virtual Cathedral project. http://www.newyorkcarver.com ____________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________ That's all for this month! Joy and success in your carving! Chris Pye ------------------------- PS: Another one to ponder at the bench: "In any moment of decision, the best thing you can do is the right thing. The worst thing you can do is nothing." - Theodore Roosevelt SOME WEBSITE BOOKMARKS ____________________________________________________________ WOODCARVING TOOLS * UK TOOLSHOP: Auriou woodcarving tools and other equipment http://www.chrispye-woodcarving.com/toolshop/ts_uktoolshop.html * UKTOOLSHOP Direct Link (missing out introductory page): http://www.chrispye-woodcarving.com/toolshop/uktoolshop/index.html WOODCARVING MANUALS * Learning to Carve - Free eBook http://www.chrispye-woodcarving.com/learncarving/learn_ebook.html * A Guide to Safe Woodcarving - Free eBook http://www.chrispye-woodcarving.com/safecarving/safecarving_index.html * Mistakes and Woodcarving - Free eBook http://www.chrispye-woodcarving.com/mistakes/mistakes_ebook.html * Fundamentals of Woodcarving - Free eBook http://www.chrispye-woodcarving.com/fundamentals/fundamentals_ebook.html TEACHING DATES * USA (Center for Furniture Craftsmanship, Maine) June 23 - 27 Ornamental Carving June 30 - July 4 Relief Carving July 7 - 11 Carving Tutorial Full details here: http://www.chrispye-woodcarving.com/tuition/t_classesUSA.html * CANADA (Rosewood Studio, Almonte, Ontario) Sep 15 - Sep 19 The Outcome of the Tool: Sep 22 - Sep 26 Relief Carving Full details here: http://www.chrispye-woodcarving.com/tuition/t_classesCAN.html * UK (1-to-1 personal tuition) Full details here: http://www.chrispye-woodcarving.com/tuition/t_custom.html ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Copyright (c) Chris Pye 2002 Chris@chrispye-woodcarving.com ------------------------------------------------------------- Chris Pye: Woodcarving Newsletter is listed in the EzinesPlus directory of newsletters and ezines. http://ezinesplus.com -------------------------------------------------------------