• From Raja Atiyah on Carving a Leaf & Nut Design in Deep Relief - Episode 1

    Excellent, Mary!
    I especially liked the repair.
    Minor suggestion: can the camera be a little further back so we can see your wrist motion as you carve. I, for one, would learn a lot from that.

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    2013/06/09 at 9:33 pm
  • From Bob Easton on Carving a Shell & Acanthus Leaf Design - Episode 1

    Yet another example of a shell and acanthus design: https://pegsandtails.wordpress.com/2013/05/23/picture-this-x/

    Too garish for my taste, yet shows the idea is pervasive.

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    2013/05/24 at 11:26 am
  • From Bob Easton on Carving a Shell & Acanthus Leaf Design - Episode 1

    About the project itself, thanks!

    I see variations of this theme very frequently. Watching the background in a TV program a few evenings ago, I saw the acanthus-shell-acanthus on a fireplace surround. They're everywhere in many different interpretations.

    Thanks for showing how to do one of your interpretations. ...and competently doing it quickly because "it needs to be finished this afternoon."

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    2013/05/16 at 7:04 am
  • From Bob Easton on Carving a Shell & Acanthus Leaf Design - Episode 1

    Sometime in the recent past you've added a second camera and improved the lighting. Both changes bring us more light, clarity and detail. Great improvements! Thank you.

    Seeing you use a gouge to cut curvatures different than its exact sweep is very helpful. Too often, we think we need a precise size and curvature and don't have that exact tool. Learning how to use other gouges as substitutes really helps keep tool costs reasonable. (But, one can never have too many gouges. Right?)

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    2013/05/15 at 8:14 am
    • From Mary May on Carving a Shell & Acanthus Leaf Design - Episode 1

      Thanks!
      So often as I am carving using my right and left hand, my hand gets in the way of the camera. The 2 cameras definitely help in this. Also my husband went to Lowes and rigged up some hallogen lighting that I use in my shop both when I am filming and not - great for carving because the lights come slightly from the side and show good shadow.

      Yes! Make those tools do things they were not made to do!

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      2013/05/15 at 8:31 am
  • From Gerry Mayberry on Carving a Dragon & Acanthus Leaf Design - Episode 1

    Its very interesting to see how you create movement in the carving. You have through years of experience developed at least a reasonable idea of the forms you want to create. This is the tough part for aspiring carvers, at least for me. Pictures in books, etc.,are two dimensional and do not help as much as your videos. I agree after reading your comment about patiently watching the master with whom you studied to see things that occurred without words. I will keep that in mind as I watch later segments. Patience and repetition are the words to keep in mind!

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    2013/04/24 at 10:17 pm
    • From Mary May on Carving a Dragon & Acanthus Leaf Design - Episode 1

      One other suggestion is getting something 3-dimensional in front of you to copy while you carve. It's tremendously helpful to be able to view all the "un-knowables" such as depth, subtle cuts, etc. That is why I have the plaster castings available for some of the videos. Also what I do is go to garage sales and get anything that is either resin cast or plaster cast that I could use as a reference. Picture frames, carved shelves, little decorative wall hangings - great to be able to see what the physical shapes are. Photos are not always able to show depth, and quite often shadows create a false illusion of shape.

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      2013/04/29 at 12:47 pm