Capital City Carvers

Tips and Techniques

"Is your strop heavier now than it was when you bought it?"

If it is, it needs to be cleaned. Or if the strop has a slick black patina, it needs to be cleaned. All that black that rubs off on your fingers and clothing is residue from the knife blade that was left behind as you stropped the blade with whatever compound you are using. It means the compound can no longer work well.

Use the back of the knife blade, or a putty knife, or a metal cabinet scraper to scrape the patina off the strop. Do not use the cutting edge of the knife! It will take a long time to repair the damage to the blade. Collect the scrapings with a paper towel so they don't get onto everything. Then use a paper towel to rub the leather of the strop until the towel looks fairly clean.

Then recharge the strop by using just enough compound to cover the leather lightly. Then work it in as you did when the strop was new. Do not pile on the compound-it will just come off as you use the strop. After a couple months you may have to add a bit of new compound. You probably won't need to clean your strop more than once a year.

Weekend Workshop (cont.)

to 4 or so on Sunday. The site is to be determined. There is a limit of eight students for the workshop. Orchid usually has wood burners for participants to use for the workshop. She will tell us what we need to provide when she is here on February 20. Also, she usually has her books for sale.

Orchid has done workshops with us in the past and is an excellent instructor. Sign-ups will begin on Jan. 9, first come, first served. We will also maintain a waiting list for the workshop.

2017 Florida Roundups

The Florida Woodcarver's Roundup will be held in Clearwater January 31 to February 3. The Central Florida Roundup will be held February 6 to 9 in Arcadia.

These are great opportunities to immerse yourself in several projects at either roundup. You can sign up for a different project and instructor for each day. There is some overlap in instructors and projects at the two roundups. There is a small registration fee for the Roundup, plus instructors fees (amount varies), plus costs for materials from the instructors.

For detailed information check the websites:
Clearwater: webspace.webring.com/people/qj/jeodea
Arcadia: arcadia-roundup.webs.com

Column 2

"It's just wood." Or is it?

Several years ago I was invited to a small town to be a street artist and sell my carvings one Saturday. People enjoyed watching something being carved and we had nice conversations. About an hour before I left, I got a comment from a resident that set me back on my heels searching for a good response: "Why is that so expensive? It's just wood."

Of course a carving is much more than "just wood". It's years of practicing technique. It shows the carver's understanding of the subject matter and ability to put that into the carving. A piece of our humanity goes into that work just as much as an artist puts paint to canvas or a potter throws a lump of clay that becomes a bowl. At some point it ceases being a piece of wood and becomes a piece of art. I'll never forget the comment. It was a beautiful carving with a piece of me in it.