Woodland Wands

Walking Sticks

I do a lot of hiking and one thing I always bring with me is a good walking stick.  I decided to carve some faces into the walking sticks as a good luck charm to keep the trails safe!  Years a go I joined a Cane Making Guild in England and although I never went to any meetings, I was able to talk to other cane makers and learn some of their techniques.  I learned how to season  the wood sticks so that they hold up to a good amount of use including being used for support.  The sticks are strong and flexible making them a good friend on a long hike.

I carved this German Shepard for a a member of the Police Canine Unit as a memory of his dog.
   

The coin is from Ireland.  I made this for my Uncle's 80th birthday.

Wood Spirit penciled in then carved into the stick.

Clear, satin, polyurethane finish is brushed onto the stick.

Sticks are hung to dry.

"Long Claw" from the Game Of Thrones

($75.00)

Celtic themed stick

Dragon Stick

Santa Carvings

                                              Santa and his dog are making gift boxes
                                                 of 607 for the adults Christmas list.

Santa is packing his sleigh with bottles of 607.

Carving a few dogs for the Santa scenes.

Planning the scene.  

Carving A Moonshiner

  After cutting out the blanks on a band saw I begin chipping and cutting away at the figure until I find a moonshiner.  Here are a few pics of the beginning steps.

After carving out the figure I add the arms and then mount to a base.  The base is made from a slice of a maple branch.  

Painting 

Buffalo Plaid Pattern 

Linseed Oil Finish

Moonshiners

As you saw above I am currently carving a series of small characters called Moonshiners.  I plan to arrange some of the characters into small scenes.  Here is a sample of a carving I did on a slightly larger scale.   This caricature is larger than the moonshiner figures above.  I created this carving for a good friend of mine who owns a whiskey distillery in our area.  If you look closely at the jug you may get a clue as to where this whiskey distillery is located. 

Song Birds

                                                            Black Capped Chickadee

Yellow Throat Warbler

                                                                     Tree Swallow

Kayaking in the Adirondack Mountains

I was able to take some great pics of Black Ducks and Loons while kayaking with my son.