Carving the Cradleboard

With the figure finished we can now do the Cradleboard. As I'm here in Oklahoma I've decided to do one from a tribe that was resident here.....Kiowa. Here's where a little research will really help you out. With the Net it should be no problem for you to track down photos of cradleboards as there are lots of them out there. I haven't decided on just how much beading I will do on this one so I haven't added it on yet.

-

The photos are pretty clear as to what I did to do this part of the project. I used a 1- 3/8" Forstner bit to drill the hole into the block. You want to drill it deep enough for the head insert to fit naturally. Once you get the hole drilled take a 1/8" bit and drill on through so you can insert something to push out the head as you carve and fit it. Otherwise it will get stuck in there. Make the insert about 1/2" thick so you have plenty to work with. Make it the same size as the hole and then carve it to fit easily into the hole but not so much that there is a lot of space around it. To make the frame I just slabbed off some thin strips of basswood, carved them to remove the saw marks, and epoxied them together, leaving a lot of excess wood to cut away after every thing hardened up.

-

The cradleboard is mounted to the body with a couple of 1/8" dowels but I don't glue the frame to the bag or body until we get it painted.

Squaw With Papoose

As it's been a while since we did a complete project I thought this would be a good one if you want to follow along . It will be quite a colorful carving when done and will require you to do some research. At least I hope you do the research, that's half the fun of doing this type of carving. I'm not going into the actual carving of this except for the head as we've covered carving in other posts. I will devote some time to doing the Papoose as it will require a little construction.
-
The photo giving the pattern can be blown up to give you the correct sizes using the 10" length of the side profile a a guide. The Papoose blank should be at least 1- 3/8" thick.
-
You will note from the associated photos that I do a lot of roughing out on my bandsaw. DON'T DO IT!!! It's a very dangerous shortcut that only a fool would use. I guess because my wife is always telling me that I'm a "fool" I think I can get away with it!! One of these days I'll pay the piper!
-
Once the body was completely carved I burnt in the creases and also the blanket pattern. I used a design called "Circle of Life" out of the latest Pendleton Blanket catalog. Here's the link: http://www.pendleton-usa.com/jump.jsp?itemID=157&itemType=CATEGORY&path=1%2C2%2C6%2C41%2C157 , If you want to use something else that's fine. Just remember....with all the folds and overlays in the blanket you'll have to adjust your pattern to reflect this.

After I carved the head I determined the head position on the body, and then carved, fitted and epoxied the braids into place. Do this one side at a time, that's the easiest way. And remember this very important rule of attaching parts: Always leave enough excess wood on the two pieces to allow you to carve the attachment to look like it's part of the main piece and not just something glued on. Sure, you can try and carve the braids and the head a one piece but I can tell you that you'll never get the head to fit down into the body with those braids in the way. You could also carve the head, braids and body as one piece but it would just not look as good as it will the way we will do it. I use Tuf-Carve epoxy to attach things. It's strong, can be carved and is close in basswood in color. Here's the link in case you want to buy some. It goes a long way so get the smallest amount you can. http://www.freemansupply.com/TUFCarv.htm

More photos in the Gallery section.

Brushpopper Bill

Here's a bust I just completed carving. He's going to Chicago to occupy the top spot on a Bottle-Stopper Christmas tree that another artist is constructing. This guy collects bottlestoppers from all over the world and then assembles these fantastic constructions involving hundreds of different stoppers. This new one will be all Cowboys with old Bill being the "King of the Cowboys"! I'll try and post a photo once it's finished.

Here's old Bill all decked out for the Saturday Night Dance over at the Bandstand. He's got a new prospect all lined up and thought he'd better put on his best shirt to make a good impression. I hope he combed out all those biscuit crumbs from that hairbrush above his lip!!

Move photos after the jump and comments always welcome!

Willy Lone Eagle

Poor Willy! He doesn't look happy at all. Maybe the slots down at the Turtle Stop Casino didn't pay off like he thought. Whatever, this has the makings of a nice looking piece. It's about 15" tall not counting the feather. He'll hopefully be joined by his mate which I plan on starting this afternoon. If things work out she will have Willy's offspring strapped to her back on a cradleboard.

Took me a while to get him finally finished as we've been doing fence work. I've done figures similar to this one several times before but this time I tried a headband. I carved it out of tupelo, bent it to shape and then attached it. I like it! Woodcarving, unlike working in clay to be cast into bronze, has one major drawback or hurdle we have to deal with and that's making things look as they really are with out having the necessary supporting structure overpower the detail. In this instance the headband would have been much to fragile if I tried to carve it as it appears. The way I did it it is extremely strong and will never break unless someone drops him on his head or tries to pick it off. The back feather is not permanently attached for that very reason. People like to touch things so when we carve we have to or should take that into consideration.

To make the headband I bent one circle of tupelo and glued it. To add additional strength to the bond I glued a wood rosette to the junction. I then did another layer of tupelo for the beaded strip and glued it on. This doubel layer allowed me to do some burn detail for the beading that I otherwise couldn't do as the strip would break on the burn lines. I found that out the hard way.

Anyway, hope you like him.

An Early Checkin!

Don't ask me how I came up with this idea....it just happened! I had completed the head a year ago and it just sat on the workbench smiling at me to where I just couldn't take it anymore. Doing it as a Dude from the city showing up for his week at the Happy Landing Guest Ranch seemed a good way put him to use. The dog? Well... let's just not go there!
-
I tried something new with him that I'll probably use in the future now that I know how to do it and that's how to make really good looking glasses. I bent the glass frames from thin cooper and soldered in a nose piece and then attached the ear pieces. I then bent the ear pieces to match the head as doing it once the glasses were finished would be too risky. Putting down a piece of wax paper I mixed up some clear epoxy and while holding the frames level dropped in some of the mixture until the frames were full. Once the glue had gone off I pealed off the paper and then very carefully on my little disc sander sanded off the face of the frame so it was level. This left a frosted look to the plastic lenses which looks good I think. Once the frames were painted and placed on the head a little epoxy to hold them in place. I really like the look!!
-
Lots more photos on the gallery page.

Here is a carving of a Huron warrior that I did back in 2000. It's a fairly detailed piece. I especially like the Flintlock rifle. I made the firing mechnism out of metal wire, pounded flat and then bent to shape. The trigger guard was made the same way. The two little ties on his leggins are also metal. Everything else is wood.
-
Back then I was carving my eyes as only slits as I didn't think the pupils really showed much on the scale I was working. However, as this figure was much bigger, standing at about 22 inches it was clear to me after completing this piece that I couldn't get away with it on a larger sized figure. So, any new figures completed after this one all have their eyes completely visible. I think it was a good decision as it allows a lot more action in a figure by being able to have those eyeballs moving around.
-
Lots of photos after the jump.

Waiitng For A Good One

While this guy might look like he's missing his Harley he's really just leaning against the fence surveying the herd for a good ride for the day. He'll be holding his lasso in one hand and the horses's headstall and bit in the other.
-
This will make a nice little scene but it would have been better had I moved his elbows back over the fence rail farther. It would have made him much more relaxed. Next time!!

More photos after the jump to the Gallery.

Chief Bear Claw

Here's another quick one. I started this yesterday after lunch and wrapped up the carving and burning just before lunch today so I have about 6 hours total into it so far and that includes the base. Some of you ask.....so now you know how fast I work. Now, in no way does this reflect how much time I spend on every piece. This one just seemed to go together.

-
I'm trying something different here....a Bear Claw neckless. You'll note that the claws are missing! I'll add those once the piece is painted as I want the claws to be over the beaded strips but with the beads still clearly visible. I've attached a photo of the claws in a rough shape. Each will be carved and fitted into the cutouts once they're painted. Should be a neat effect and this ought to also be a very colorful piece.

-

I really enjoy doing Native Americans as there is so much color and possibilities for details. It's funny though, I'll do a bunch of them and then they'll just set on the Gallery shelf for months then BANG! they're all gone.

-

Okay...the painting is complete and I think the figure really turned out well. I spent about twice the time painting on this one as I did on carving it. But it was fun and the necklace really turned out just the way I thought it would.

Ol' Brushy Bill

Here is a little bust I did over the past couple of days. It was more an experiment in doing a head with a rather large mustache than anything else. We have a small woodcarvers group that meets once a week at the Grove Community Center and that's where I completed the head. Finished it up once I got home.
-
The eye glasses are made from wire...soldered and painted gold then inserted into holes. The neck medallion is made from wood but I used pounded wire for the leather tassels as I didn't want them to break off over time. I think this is a very important thing to remember for those of us that sell their work....Build as much strength into your pieces as you can so they'll stand up to handling, cleaning or any sort of abuse.
-
A friend made the comment that he looked like Teddy Roosevelt....hmmmmmm.....I'll have to remember that as I've always wanted to do a figure of him. The secret would be to get that toothy smile!
-
More photos in the Gallery!!

Sad End To A Bad Year

Now here is one sad Cowboy! You'd probably feel the same way if you received such a piece of paper in the mail. This piece was a lot of fun to do even though old Tex probably would have preferred being left in the chunk of wood he was born from.

-

I turned the milk can on the lathe and then whittled it to look carved. A few bullet holes and a couple of metal handles finished it up. The mailbox has all the required hardware...the flag and the metal door closure. Would have liked to have made the whole thing from tin so the front door could have been left open but just didn't have the time. Maybe in the future. The letter and the envelope were made from tin so they'd hold up over time.

-

There are lots of photos in the Gallery section.