Tuesday, October 14, 2014

Wood Carvings - Mermaid Figurehead

Thought I would share my progress in carving a mermaid figurehead for our next sailboat. I've kept the wood chips flying as I try to learn this new skill. I now have a new appreciation for all you true carving artists. Trying to make something look the way you envision it in a block of wood is not as easy as pie. Below is a very rough sketch of the mermaid and scrollwork pedestal. The carving should end up being about 31" long.

I am alternating my carving sessions between producing complete little character people and attempting to carve components of the future mermaid. The little characters are fun to make and each one teaches me a little more about carving techniques. This little original I carved this weekend reminded me of a sailing buddy from New Jersey. Hey Bob, he is a curmudgeon too!

I have practiced carving human eyes with limited success, so I'll continue working on those. I've been happier with the female lips I have created. Here is a sample of those.

My current practice piece is a miniature version of the mermaid's flowing hair. I thought this was going to be an easy component, but I am finding out it is a bit more involved than I assumed. We'll see how the first attempt turns out.

 

1 comment:

  1. Hey- I resemble that! A late comment is better than no comment at all.

    ReplyDelete