Carving Tips and advice please

[deepeetee]

Hi all,

I managed to score a Dremmel for Christmas, i have had a little play on my "testing tree", which was alot of fun.

I have watched most of Graham Potters videos on carving, i was wondering if anybody can point me in the direction of anymore educational videos or literature on carving.

Thanks all

Dave

[alpineart]

Hi deepeetee , mate its like everything you do in this world .Practice practice practice . Watching a video is not going to teach you how to fly a 747 jumbo nor is it going to teach you how to crate a bonsai. You are better off getting a few unusual pieces of wood and having a go at it .Grab some softwood branches and have a little plan or design in mind then begin too carve them .Cut a side branch off and carve the stub , then carve the hollow Its more educational first hand .

Like bonsai carving itself is an art you either have the flair for it or you don't , hence practice Go out and have a look at natural dead wood /Shari's on gum tree's take a few pics then go home and try to replicate it .It not easy but most things worthwhile don't come easy . It all takes time and practice , i'm still practicing after 35 years in the building trade .

Cheers Alpineart

[Bougy Fan]

I agree with Ian - find and old tree/ branch and practice, practice, practice. You have to get used to removing the waste to reveal the finished product. It is also hard to make it look "natural" and not like you have just taken to it with a dremel

Tony

[deepeetee]

Thanks Alpine and Tony. Ill take the advice. Practice, Practice, Practice

[paddles]

a piece of advice I was given, was find a tree (a big one) that needs pruning, and keep the branches (cut into approx 1 ft lengths) these can be put into a vice, and used for experimentation/practice.

ie, if your fave tree is a prunus, find someone with a plum tree that needs pruning, take a large (ie same diameter as the trunk you are thinking of carving) this gives you an idea what the finished product iwll look like

[deepeetee]

Thanks Paddles thats a great tip!

[Paulneill]

Also check out Kevin willson olive . On u tube

[sharemyblessings]

Hi Deepeetee!

There are really no right or wrong ways in deadwood carving. Every piece that is carved by nature is unique and different from the other. I Agree with alpineart go out and look for naturally carved deadwoods and get some ideas on how they decay on a natural environment and you can mimic those. Let your imaginations run wild because they will tend to produce such a unique output. And the most important is to have fun while doing it

This might help, a deadwood refinement of my bougy (http://bongbonsai.blogspot.com/2012/02/ ... a-pre.html). It's not a video though

Bong

[deepeetee]

HI bong,

Thank you for the link you attached, it was a very good read. Your final output is very nice.


So i had my first practice run on the weekend with a privet that had some previous carving on it from its previous owner.
Sorry forgot to take the before photos. Alot of fun, time flew. I can really see how important the practice is.

Dave