Free Downloads Carving The Little Guys: Easy Techniques For Beginning Woodcarvers
This skill-building beginner's guide reveals the secrets of capturing humor and expression in caricature carving. Learn to transform small blocks of wood into expressive little people with illustrated cut-by-cut instructions. Basic information is included on wood, tools, sharpening, cutting, safety, finishing, repairs, and more.
Paperback: 32 pages
Publisher: Fox Chapel Publishing (May 1, 2013)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1565237757
ISBN-13: 978-1565237759
Product Dimensions: 7.9 x 0.3 x 11.4 inches
Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars See all reviews (72 customer reviews)
Best Sellers Rank: #56,230 in Books (See Top 100 in Books) #16 in Books > Crafts, Hobbies & Home > Crafts & Hobbies > Wood Crafts & Carving > Carving
When I decided to pick up a caricature carving book I was thrilled by the number of titles available. This excitement soon turned to confusion as I tried to decide which books to add to my cart and which to leave on the .com shelf. A large part of the problem was that most of the books within the field of caricature carving seemed to carry a 4 or 5 star rating which prevented me from enacting Rule No.1 of my RULE OF PURCHASE which states: All things being equal, purchase the item with the highest customer rating. So with Rule No.1 nullified I found myself pouring over page after page of LOOK INSIDE in an attempt to narrow down my choices. Unfortunately, that wasn't much help either so I took the unprecedented step of just buying EVERY caricature carving book I could find that carried a 4 or 5 star rating.10 days and 5 titles later I'm ready to offer you my feedback, based on a few essential criteria, in the hopes that I'll save you both the time and the money I invested. Before I get to my ratings, let me run down the criteria I used to make my assessments:1) Larger books with good color photography trump smaller books with black & white photography.2) Books that provide step-by-step instruction are far superior than photographic collections of finished projects.3) Books that provide complete instruction, from wood selection to painting techniques, are better than books offering scant or piecemeal instruction.4) Because individual carvers have unique styles, I found that the books that contained the works of numerous carvers were far more instructional than those containing the works of just one carver.
... you like to learn the basics, then quickly branch out into doing your own thing, or experimenting. If you are looking for "insert Tab A into Slot B" instructions for every Little Guy pictured on the cover, you may not like this.As other reviewers noted, the book is thin - only 31 pages. But the majority of that is taken up with detailed instructions for how to carve one Little Guy, complete with large, detailed pictures. Then there are several pages of information on how to modify that basic form into anything you want (with more good, clear pictures).That's what I love best about it! I've never been very good at doing the simpler, beginner pieces when learning a new hobby. I always want to jump ahead to something of my own design. It's a curse, and has caused me a lot of grief in the past, as sometimes I'm not ready, skill-wise, to do that, and I end up frustrated. But this book is set up perfectly for that. You learn the basics on the detailed project, then you can take off on your own, modifying and experimenting, with tips from the book.Will I screw up a lot of Little Guys before I start getting them the way I want them? Probably. But that's okay! It's part of the process of learning any new skill. And just to reiterate, it's not a total free-for-all - the basic instructions are very detailed and more than sufficient to get you on your way. I am a brand new carver with no past experience and no particularly inherent skill at it, but my first Little Guy turned out pretty darned good - not as good as the book's example, but way better than I expected - following those first detailed instructions.A note about wood, in case anyone is doing what I did.
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