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When you've completed your carving, you have a choice: leave it as bare wood or 'finish' it in some way.
Almost always I go for a finish, for sealing, preserving and enhancing the carving. In some ways this is the most nerve wracking part of the work. Finishing always makes a big difference to the colour and surface and if it 'goes wrong' can ruin a carving. That's one reason I stick to well tried finishes: beeswax for example, and will test anything I'm not sure of on a spare piece of wood first.
In this carving, I felt the book needed a little colour to bring it out, to contrast a little more with the gloves. I wanted something light, a 'wash' of colour rather than a paint job; and something soft, nostalgic even. I've become a fan of old fashioned milk paints, and this is what I used. Here's a link to the original: http://www.milkpaint.com/
| 23 November 2014 21:33
Pete - There is a little, but very little.You can rub it back by burnishing with a cotton rag. I've always found cherry, lovely wood through it is, physically very hard to carve - but so much depends on how and where the wood grew. As always, try a bit and see!
| 17 November 2014 18:17
Being water based I assume there is a degree of grain lift to be dealt with?
Brilliant piece Chris. Really effective and, of course, well up to your usual impeccable standard. I feel I may even have a go at this myself in the near future. Do you think it would work in European Cherry? something I have several cubic metres of at the moment.
| 23 September 2014 03:05
That is a really interesting piece, and I love how the finish came out with the milk paint and varnish! I can tell you also, the highest praise came from my son, who looked over my shoulder during my watching of this last video and said, "You should carve one like that, Dad, that's really cool!" I show him tons of wood works, from flat work to turning to carving, and he really doesn't like most of what I show him - this piece struck a chord, both with him and with me! I think I will give it a go. Thanks to your excellent lessons, I think it is doable, even with someone of my novice level.
