Customer Reviews

Soap Carving: For Children of All Ages (Schiffer Book for Woodcarvers)

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This book is a gem in the rough. It is not slick or up-to-date looking, but it contains excellent instructions on carving soap as a prelude to carving wood. The author, an engineer, shows you how to create carving tools out of popsicle sticks. This is the one of the coolest craft ideas I have ever seen and it worked very well with a group of children from my church. Not only does he describe how to make a basic carving tool (by cutting a diagonal and then sharpening the "blade" on sandpaper) but he shows how to make a gouge and other tools too.

The main part of the book contains detailed instructions on how to carve several different objects (a heart, a turtle, a dolphin coming out of water, and more), with a picture showing each stage of the carving process. These were great instructions for me; the children I worked with (ages 5-10) could have used easier models/instructions. This book is great because it shows how to introduce a new fun craft activity, carving, in a way that works for groups of kids safely and without much expense. The kids loved it!

I am a teacher and I carve in my free time. I have always regretted that the tools for carving are too sharp and dangerous for kids to use , so sharing my hobby with the children was out of the question until I read this book.
What a nice idea, tools made out of popsicle sticks!!
I made a class set of the tools and my kids happily carved some of the figures suggested in the book.
I did it with a grade three class when the kids learned about Inuits carving soapstone. The kids enjoyed it a lot. Children in higher grades will have as much fun doing it and hopefully they will be as proud of their creations.
I can recommend this book for anyone who would like to carve with kids but is afraid to do so.
One suggestion. Have the children bring a serving tray, or baking sheet and have them carve on that so the chips of soap will stay in the tray rather than fall on the floor!

Bought this for my 12 yr old grandson. He had a lot of fun carving the soap. It is easy and very safe way for him to get started learning to carve.

My 7.5 year old daughter loves this kit. Just bought a giant multi-pack of Ivory so she could make more things. She also loves playing with the shavings.

This is an excellent book! We've used it as a guide for Cub Scout and Girl Scout projects. Well written, easy to follow instructions! It was an inspiration for my son to continue his carving skills and become a wood carver!

Great book, has lots of detail. Especially like the instructions for making your own carving tools out of popsicle sticks.
My 6 yr. old grandson carve a soap owl and it came out good.

Excellent book for carving. The kids enjoyed it. Well written and illustrated.

Bought this for our granddaughter for Christmas in the hopes that she will find it useful for learning carving techniques. Since she was four, she has expressed interest in wood carving and thought, given her age, this would be a good way to encourage her interest.

Book is very easy to follow. 9yr old son was able to follow book, make tools and carve without any help! nice book and nice projects. This is way messier than I expected. The soap is hard to clean up and cakes on to the table and floor so just a sweep up isn't sufficient. Although I like the idea of the non knife tools I probably would have been happier with wood and a childrens wood carving kit/book.