Carving Folk Art Figures

Calling all woodcarvers! Here are complete step-by-step carving and painting demonstrations for a folk-art Santa, a smiling Angel, and more from Santa Carver of the Year, Shawn Cipa. Patterns and photographs for more than a dozen projects include Moon Man, Cupid Cat, Firewood Santa, and others. Have you ever wanted to create your own nostalgic wooden figurines, perhaps of Santa, snowmen, or angels, but never knew where to start? If so, this collection of expert instructions will help you to find your woodcarving groove. Through detailed but easy-to-understand chapters, you will learn about: *Wood choice. Is basswood, white pine, or butternut the best fit for your project, or should you use a hardwood like black walnut or cherry? *Tools and sharpening. Do you really need to own 70 gouges and countless knives to become a great carver? No, but you do need to have the correct ones for each project and to know how to keep them all sharp. *Preparing wood. With all that in place, you then have to transfer the initial outline pattern onto the wood, and cut it into a manageable size to begin. *Basic Knife Cuts. What are the differences between stop cuts, chip cuts and