Customer Reviews

The Beginner's Handbook of Woodcarving: With Project Patterns for Line Carving, Relief Carving, Carving in the Round, and Bird Carving

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Just as the title says this is a good introductory text for the person interested in starting woodcarving. There is not a lot of in-depth information about each type of carving, but there is enough to get you started in the right direction.

Types of carving included are line, relief, in the round, bird, and carved gifts, with a few patterns of each type. If you already know the basics of your type of woodcarving, a more detailed book would be a better investment. If you are curious about what tools you might need, some basics of types of wood, a few patterns for your first project, how to get your tools really sharp, basic techniques of making cuts, and how to finish your projects this book will serve you well. Also included in this book are sections on starting a woodcarving club and lists of publications, tool and wood suppliers, books, and sources of glass eyes and bird feet.

If you do decide to continue with woodcarving I strongly urge you to find a woodcarving club in your area. The help the members can give you is invaluable.

I have wanted to carve wood for some time, but had no idea how to go about learning. Most of the books I've looked at were either too technical or too advanced for me. Finally, this book has given me the confidence to begin. The discussions are well written at a level that's good for a beginner like me. I read the entire book in about 3 hours and am now going back and starting my first project. The projects look doable and I know what I'm supposed to be learning in each one. Unlike most books, this one doesn't assume a progression from project to project so that you have to do them all--whether they interest you or not. I like being able to focus on whittling or chip work and being able to put off other types until I have a reason to do them.

Like many beginning woodcarving books this book describes the basic cuts you need to practice and it gives some information on wood types. Beyond that, the only reason to purchase this book is if you need the patterns in them.

Being new to wood carving I like the price of the book and I thought I would give it a try. Once I saw the patterns though, I changed my mind and bought another book. This is just a matter of taste but the cutesy mouse and the fisherman weren't what I wanted to carve and I feel that you really need to find carvings that interest you (especially while you are learning) to prevent boredom. Once again, if the patterns on the cover look interesting to you, then by all means get this book (if you are a complete beginner).

I am a carver -- mantle pieces and such -- and bought the book for a young man who wanted to try his hand at carving. It covers all the basics and even has some great patterns.

If I had to pick just one book to get started carving wood this one would be in the running.

A book that will get you started in a hobby for under $8.00? That's almost unheard of. It's true in this case. If you want to learn how to carve there is plenty here to build your skills.

This book gives you projects to get started carving wood right now. Plus, it gives the tools and methods to design your own projects. I really can't ask more of a beginners book than that.

The projects are explained in clear language. The pictures are well done and there's plenty of them.

Most importantly, this book has plenty of patterns and designs to get you started. Yes, there are a few campy and cartoonish patterns, but there are also patterns based on National Wildlife Federation stamps, wild animals, Abe Lincoln, dogs, birds, etc.

I found it useful to see the level of detail for the various patterns in order to design my own projects. There is also a section that talks about pattern making.

I'm giving four stars rather than five because after almost 30 years it could stand a new edition with some updates for the computer age and new resources. All in all though this is a solid book and a steal at $8.00.

If you need an overview of woodcarving and were not very picky about the need for step by step assistance, this book would work for you. It does go over the basic cuts and offers text on a variety of topics in wood carving, i.e. types of woodcarving, tools, materials, painting, etc. It provides a number of patterns, many of them fairly cheesy and probably would not appeal to most starting out. There is a nice selection of bird patterns, but not much pictoral instructions on how to carve them. You would probably be better off with a different beginner's book with more appealing projects and then find books on specific woodcarving interests from there.

A terrific beginner book with lots of variety in types of carving. I've added it to my collection of references.

The biggest negative to this book is the lack of color illustrations. This disappointed me. It would have been nice, in the chapter on birds, to show how color is applied, and what finishes to use.

After reading this, I realized this book is just about carving wood. Wood is wood. You can stain it, paint it, using oils or anything else that sticks to wood. This not about canvas, or glass. The authors use a conversational style, which I liked.

The initial publication was in 1983, before digital photography. The publisher is Dover, and they have a reputation for good books at a low price.

Great starter book for getting started carving. Simple and easy to understand with tips on building your own carving table among other things. Good value.

i bought this to start learning some basic techniques of carving, it made things very simple to start and make some starting peices.