Woodcarving

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Woodcarving is a is a beginner's handbook for carving letters, basic decorative figures and signs.

Carver David Hassell has made his living for years creating elegant carved wood signs and decorative carvings for boats and businesses.

In this book, he gives the beginning carver the basics of getting started and teaches you the essential steps of carving letters and simple, elegant designs.

He takes you step-by-easy-step through carving simple exercises to eight different nameboard designs, through carving letters both large and small, to three more complex eagles and on through finishing and gold leafing techniques.

Large-sized patterns for each project are provided, as well as complete tool and equipment lists.

From the Author's Introduction:

I love to carve wood. If you've picked up this book, that probably means you feel the same way. If you see a fine piece of wood and even think about carving something into it, that means there's a woodcarver lurking within. Maybe you haven't taken the time to learn how to carve because you think you don't have the knowledge or experience to do it. Maybe you think the tools are too expensive, a workshop is too hard to create, and you can't afford to take so much time for yourself. I am going to change your thinking with this book. If you sincerely want to carve, you can. I've written this book with the untrained woodcarver in mind, but I've also included some more complicated projects for advanced carvers — which is what I want to help you become. My own life experience should encourage you because I am not a formally trained woodcarver, yet I've managed to support my family with this craft for more than a quarter of a century...This book, though, isn't about how you can make a living as a woodcarver. I am just sharing some of the techniques I've developed as a professional in the hope that you will use them to learn a satisfying hobby. Old-school marine woodcarvers may initially resist some of the techniques I've developed, such as the use of power tools along with handtools. I will also make recommendations for modern finishing systems that have proven their superiority to previous methods. All of these adaptations do nothing to dilute the integrity of the end product, they save time and frustration, and their use can actually make a more beautiful and durable project. I hope you'll find this book useful and fun. And I hope you'll discover the special pleasure in marine woodcarving that I've enjoyed for such a long time.