Well, it has been a week of preparation and business – nothing really to show for it – and I hate to go more than a week without putting in another blog post, so I’m taking some from my archives.
Here is an instruction sheet I put together on how to carve the concave Newport shell. These are easier to do than the convex shell because they don’t have the sharp adges (sort of v-cut edge) that go along the length of the lobes, and they can easily go wrong. Occasionally you will see where these edges are put in the concave shell, but I would say that most of the time you only see them in the convex shells. When you don’t have this detail to worry about, you really do have a lot of lee-way.
I have also changed the category where I explained carving the convex Newport shell to the category “Newport shell”, where before it was under “woodcarving education” because it was a class I taught. I think it is easier to follow and locate this way.
I spent the week basically preparing for heading out of town next week – Boston to teach 2 days (the Samuel McIntire fruit basket), and Saratoga Springs, NY to demonstrate carving the ball and claw and acanthus leaf at the Northeast Woodworking show over the weekend. I hope to be able to put blogs up as I go. I have never been in this area of the country, so I am really looking forward to it.
Today I set up my workbench at the Master of the Building Arts show at the American College of the Building Arts here in Charleston www.buildingartscollege.us/. They are a school that is working on preserving the traditional building trades – timber framing, traditional carpentry, plaster work, wrought iron, masonry, and stone carving. I have taught several classes to the carpentry students, and have helped them in some fund-raising programs, and shows etc. throughout the years. They have had a long struggle in getting known, but it is such an wonderful and unique school where they are really trying to preserve the dying arts. I do hope they succeed, and I am really happy to be involved.
Tomorrow I am expecting about 40 people over at our house because my husband, Stephen, youngest son, Joshua, and neice, Laura are all celebrating their birthdays. So… to say the least, I have had my plate full this past week. Not much carving done, but lots of other things done.
Oh, how could I forget? Roy Almaroad (who has posted the occasional blog response) stopped by my shop Wednesday and really gave me some wonderful advice on carving faces. He has studied classical art – sculpture and drawing – in Italy, and has taught art at high school for many years. So, we spent most of Wednesday going over and adjusting the “classical face” that I carved (my client finally got it back to me with some requested changes) and now I need to carve 3 more. When I am finished doing the adjusting to the first face, I’ll post a before and after photo to show the subtle but very important changes.
Anyway, wow – it looks like I need a vacation. Doesn’t look like that will happen soon – got a notice from SC tax that my husband’s company is being audited – and I do his paperwork – just something more to add to it! It will probably be Wed. or Thursday before I am able to blog again.
I wish I had known earlier you were coming up this way to teach – I just found out last weekend at a Guild of New Hampshire Woodworkers meeting! I might try to get out to Sarasota Springs for the show, if only to meet you in person!
THANKS for yet another pattern and instructions!
While they are lightweight substitutes for your DVDs (plug: the DVDs are great), these are a good substitute to carry into the shop. Thanks.
Condolences about the audit. People in the U.S. already spend over 300 B$ a year complying with tax codes (in addition to what they pay). Who needs the wasted time and money of audits? Good luck with it.