Seasons Greetings!

This time of year (Christmas) always seems to sneak up on me faster than I anticipate. It is only about 5 weeks until Christmas, and I have not done many things yet to get ready. I better get busy. 

We took a quick trip to Jackson hole, Wyoming, just to get away. It was nice, not having been there for many years, other than just to pass through. We found the cabins we stayed in during our first trip there in the late 80's, but those were now housing for the hospital there now. We stayed for the weekend, and drove through the southern end of the Grand Tetons National Park. I could live there, if it were not for the tourists coming through Jackson Hole. The prices ($44 for a steak dinner) were out of touch with common folks. The local joke is that because of the "Jackson Hole markup", even things at the dollar store cost $3.69! Funny!

So I finished the scarecrows for a club class after our October meeting. They were relief, and I think it was a fairly good class. Lots of attendance. So I decided to make some more elaborate ones. The first 2 for the class were simple relief, then I made another relief with more details. The last one I did was in the round. Those were kind of fun, and I enjoyed them. 

Anyway, thanks for listening! If I don't see you before the holidays, I hope you have lots of good times with family and friends, sharing fun, food and fellowship. Remember the reason for the season, and God bless all of you!

Where does the time go?

     It just seems like yesterday we were starting school and a month has already passed. Whew! What a whirlwind, but fun, four weeks. It is always fun getting a new group of students, getting to know them and helping them grow up. Of course, as a science teacher, I have a lot of fun teaching them about all the science in their lives. It's an incredibly fun ride. I just hope the next 32 weeks goes as well. We shall see.
    It was sort of a whirlwind summer as well. We finally finished he kitchen, after putting in new laminate flooring, bead board, chair rails, new door and window molding, a new under cabinet microwave, and a new fridge. Now all the appliances are matching stainless steel. We even put in new blinds for the window. Looking spiffy, if I do say so myself. Shout out to the wife and kids (2 of them) who helped immensely. 

      

I have been leading a carve-along with some of our club members at our weekly carving meetings. Some time ago I was asked to do a class for the club that went longer than the usual hour after the club meeting, so we put our heads together and came up with cowboy busts, since I had done several of them. So I had 5 heads and busts going to show each step and tried to keep it all separate. Not happening! Eventually, I just finished all of the ones I started. Two of them were carved from pieces of wood at the end of a milled board, so there are some serious cracks in them, but they turned out OK. One had so many cracks that I used some CA glue to hold it together and used some new modeling paste to fill in some of the cracks. It did not paint well, but it turned out all right. 

I hope you enjoy them as much as I did. Thanks for looking and listening! Have a great day and happy carving!

Life, carving, competitions, and general thoughts

     I have to give a shout out to my good friend, Cleve Taylor, author of several carving books such as "Cowboy Carving", "Hanging in There: Creative Cowboy Carving" and "Carving Fishermen and the Tall Tale", among other books. It was his instruction, his friendship, and his carving advice that got me hooked on caricature carving. Carving sessions at our club meeting and carving at his house are some of my absolutely favorite times. You just can't spend time with Cleve without having a great time, laughing, telling stories, and sharing life. Of course, being fellow Southerners (Cleve is from Alabama and I hail from Tennessee) really helped us connect as friends.
     He is completely retired from both woodcarving and woodworking (his two passions, other than Sandy and the grandkids) due to health reasons. We had a great talk the other day, and he feels sad that that part of his life is coming to an end, but understands how life often sends us in directions we never planned. However, he will continue to create art. His drawings and paintings are first-rate and will be prized possessions for those who are lucky enough to receive one. 
     So, if you follow my blog, and you know Cleve, he would appreciate a note or comment from folks who have been inspired by his carvings and his teachings. He downplays his role in inspiring carvers, and I feel he needs to know from everyone how they were inspired to create art by spending time with him. He did not ask me to do this, but I feel he needs to know. I told him that even though he is (his words) "completely removed from that world (carving)", his teaching and friendship will continue to cast long shadows for a very long time, considering all the folks who have benefited from his advice, instruction, encouragement and friendship. Anyway, if you get a chance, drop him a line, give him a call, message him on Facebook. But get in contact with him to let him know how much of an influence he has had on them in the past few decades.
     I received my carvings (Joseph and his coat of many colors, my buckskin mountain man bust and my banged up cowboy; see earlier posts) back from the CCA competition in Converse, Indiana. I did get a participation ribbon for my efforts, but alas, no 1st through 5 place ribbons. It just shows me how much work I need to do to compete at that level. With carvers such as Steve Dunham, Mike Pounders, Chris Morgan, Lynn Doughty, and others who inspire me, I have to get to work, if I want to rise to that level. I better get cracking.
     I will be teaching a Community Education class (through the Boise School District) on October 21 from 6-9 pm. We will be carving a cowboy bolo tie, with boots on the ends of the bolo ties. It should be a fun class. Then in November, I will do a Woodcraft class on a helmet bottle stopper. That one should be a lot of fun, with all sorts of ideas for that class.
     Stop by at Woodcraft (on Overland Road in the Overland Park Shopping Center) on Thursdays from 6:30-8:30pm. Bring some carvings you are working on, share a story, drop by with some cookies, come by to say hello to the members of the Idaho Woodcarvers Guild. We'd love to see you and visit with you for a while. Thank you to those who visited with our members at the Western Idaho Fair this past 10 days. We had a great time demonstrating our hobby and chatting with you. We look forward to next year. We will be participating in the Museum Comes to Life event in Julia Davis Park on Saturday,  September 26. Come by and say hello (I wouldn't mind if you bought one of my carvings as well; Christmas is coming soon!).
     Thanks for listening!

The Latest Carvings from the Carving Bench

     One of the problems with keeping a list (book) of ideas to carve is which ones to do after you finish one. Do I do an older idea or work on one that just came to me last week (or even last night)? I have dozens of caricature ideas to carve, from bottle stoppers to busts to full figure characters and scenes. Somewhere in there I also try to do some Christmas ornaments, any commissions that come up, giveaways, gifts and competition pieces. 
     Below are two of the three pieces I plan on sending to the Caricature Carvers of America competition in August in Converse, Indiana. I hope to do well, but I am OK if I do not place in the ribbons. I will be competing against some of the best out there such as Steve Dunham, Myron Compton, Mike Pounders, and others. I just hope to hold my own, and not be laughed out of the competition. Stay tuned.

     This first one is an idea I have had for some time. I have always been fascinated by mountain men, and decided to do a bust. I titled him "Buckskin Bill". 

  

     This next one is a series of carvings I have started based on biblical characters. I have done 4 or 5 of these guys and I think this last one is the best. I like him. I titled this one "The Coat", as Joseph was very proud of his coat of many colors.

  

     This unfortunate character is one I came up with after a rough day. I thought my guardian angel had abandoned me, at least for an hour or two. Anyway, this guy must feel the same way, what with his leg in a cast, his arm in a sling, his bandaged head and his swollen, puffy, black and blue eyes.

  

     This is a close-up of his face. You kinda feel sorry for this poor sucker. I hope he has better luck tomorrow.

   

Anyway, wish me luck. And thanks for watching. Comments are always welcome. 

Back from vacation

     What a great trip we had, just returning form the northern California and southern Oregon coasts. Temperatures in Idaho were in the 100's. We hit 107 degrees in Redding, California. However, when we crossed the mountains towards the coast, the temperature dropped to the low 60's. What a difference.
     We toured the Redwoods and I had the opportunity to stop at some woodcarving shops and galleries. We stopped at a few in the Redwoods (they are so massive and amazing, you have to use capital letters) and I had the opportunity to chat with Bernie Korbly, with Korbly Wood Products, as well as several others who were carving some great things. I picked up some myrtlewood and some redwood blanks. Redwood is a soft wood, best carved when wet. 

This mountain man carving is one I want to enter in the Caricature Carvers of America competition in August. He was a lot of fun (and hard work) to do.

This fireman is one I did in Gene Fuller's class at our Jamboree in May of this year. It was a great class and a great project.

Here is a picture of the redwoods from our trip. They are so amazing. There is nothing like looking straight up at trees that can be more than 300 feet high.

This hollow redwood tree is still growing!. Apparently, these wooden behemoths can lost most of their inner structure, yet still keep growing. As long as there is a layer of cells that can transport water and nutrients up to the upper levels of the crown, the tree can survive and keep growing. Amazing!

We had a great time on our trip. Thank you, California and Oregon! I had not stepped foot in California since I was 10 years old. It was a good welcome back. Thanks!

2015 IWG Jamboree was a blast!

Our 2015 Jamboree has come and gone and what a great time we had. We met some great folks from Washington, Utah, Montana, and New Mexico, plus our local folks. We had chip carving instruction by Kay Viste and Don Brigham, pliers by Rick Stoddard, bark carving instruction by Larry Crist and Beck Beus, a fireman bust by Gene Fuller, a small caricature logger by Ryan Olsen, and lots of other classes.
     This is a resurrection of a beloved event also called the Jamboree that was held in Twin Falls and then in Boise for almost 20 years. For a number of reasons, it was cancelled last year and was not going to be held again by the last organizers. So our club, with lots of encouragement took it on. After looking back on this weekend, I believe it was a success. Look for bigger and better things in the future of our Jamboree.
     Here are a few pictures of the events and instructors.

In this picture, Thekla Owens is instructing Beryl Bonahoom on the Moravian Star, an 8-sided ornament.

Here, Larry Crist is teaching his bark house night light to Beck Beus and Dale Parsons.

Gene Fuller teaching his fireman bust.

The example from Ryan Olsen's class, a small caricature logger. 

Me, Clare Harkins and Shorty Miller are learning how to carve the fireman bust in Gene Fuller's class.

Beck Beus is having a blast in his bark house class. Seated (with back to camera) is Jack Simmons, Vernette Brauer in the background, Shorty Miller next, then Tara and Casey Jones.

We had a blast hosting this event, and plan on many more in the future. Stay tuned and sign up for the next Jamboree in 2016. See you there!

Getting closer to Jamboree

Our 2015 IWG Jamboree is coming up in only 3 weeks! We are getting so excited to have some great classes and instructors and to meet some of our friends from across the West who love to carve. Come to the Jamboree if you can!

Below is a cowboy I finished for my friend Gary Smith. We are trading a carving for a wood turning. 

  

The bear bottlestopper is one I am doing for a Community Education class. They are fun and enjoyable to do and make great gifts for the imbiber in your family.

  

Enjoy the day!!!

New creations

I completed a few carvings in the past few months. 

 

                       

                  

I guess he has had enough of shoveling snow. Kinda like the rest of us.

                 

The first Joseph I did was just to establish the size and the posture. Not too bad, but still not right. I like the colors, though.

                  

This guy is better. I am still not sure about the right hand. Not enough definition. That's OK. I am working an a few more. Maybe eventually I will get it just right.

Anyway, thanks for looking.

     Our annual Idaho Artistry in Wood Show is coming up at the end of the month. February 21-22, at the Boise Hotel and Conference Center. Come out and see some great artists and their work. Below are a few of mine.

     This first one is one where I thought it was a good idea to see what a dog would do if the fire hydrant was out of commission.

     I just had to add his facial expression as well.

This carving is showing what would happen if a bird ate too much to fit back in his birdhouse. Of course, there is always someone else to point out his mistake. Sound familiar?

Enjoy! Come out and see us at the Idaho Artistry in Wood Show, February 21-22.