Thanksgiving Pilgrim Candle Holders

A friend asked me to come up with some thanksgiving candle holders made out of the antique spools I like to carve.  These make Ideal candle holders and for the most part they are made of maple and carve well.  There are some minor splintering problems on some due to age.

I merged a number of ideas into these pilgrims sticking to a pretty traditional theme and colors.  These were carved using a method called intaglio.  The figures are carved down but the background is left alone.

These old spools have a hole at the top that make them perfect candle holders.  Quite a nifty re-purposing if I do say so my self.

Hope all is well with you.

Go carve something!

Bruce

Snowman Preacher

Snowman I created for a commission.  This is my take on a snowman preacher.

Complete with collection plate and his favorite book.  The hands were carved separately then attached as was the hat.  The nose is bamboo.  He stands 7" tall and is carved from basswood.

I keep thinking that I will take pictures through out the process but then don't once I get started and get focused on completing the carving.  Oh well maybe someday.

Go carve something.

Bruce

One Cool Nurse

Here is a snowman I created for a commission.  She is sporting scrubs and get a load of that needle.

Carved out of basswood (needle and nose are bamboo) and finished in acrylics she is ready to cure what ails you.

Go carve something.

Bruce

Lack of Posts and ETSY Storefront

I haven't posted much lately as I have been busy finishing carvings and rounding up a few odds and ends projects.  One of which was to set up a store front on ETSY.  If you are not familiar with ETSY it is an online community of artists and crafters as well as a few antique fanatics where you can buy directly from the artisan.  Looks easy enough on the face of it but it took me a while to get everything together.

I am steadily posting items and will in the next few days have about 20 online.  The next question is will they sell.

Here is the link

http://www.etsy.com/shop/brucecurran

Hope all is well in your world.

Go create something

Bruce

Bet Your Dentist Isn't This Cool

Snowman Dentist

I carved this snowman for my longtime dentist and his wife.  I knew thew would get a kick out of it as they are also avid crafters and artists. 

The snow man is made in three pieces.  The body was carved from aspen.  The glove and tooth and glove and toothbrush were carved from basswood.  If I do something like this again I will paint it before I glue it together.  The painting turned out to be more of a challenge than carving.  Also a tip the nose and eyes for the snow man were carved from a bamboo chopstick.  I like to use bamboo for those as it is stronger for these small pieces than regular carving wood.

Go carve something.

Bruce

Currently on my Bench

Here are some of the items currently on my bench.

More to come.

Go Carve Something.

Bruce

Angel Cane

A friend is about to undergo foot surgery and will need the use of a cane for a number of months.  I promised her a cane that would be different.  She asked for an Angel on the cane.  Here is what I came up with.  The cane is carved from sugar pine.  I considered other materials but I wanted something that was light but would still be pretty strong.  I came across this at my local Rockler.  It was on a clearance table as scrap.  The piece I bought yielded this cane, a snowman, a Santa, four Santa ornaments, and tow snowman ornaments.  I paid two dollars for the piece of wood.

The cane is finished is Silver and gold wash as well as oak stain and walnut antiquing.  The finishing process was a bit fussy but yielded the result that I wanted.  The cane was then treated with spray lacquer.  It weighs roughly six ounces and I completed it with a rubber tip.

As always if you click the picture it will enlarge.  Hopefully the cane serves my friend well.  It has given me the idea for several more.  However I have to finish more of the items currently on the bench before I can start another cane.

Hope you have a great day.

Go carve something.

Bruce