floral carving step by step

[ClayB]

Johanna says things are fixed and we can post pictures again. I am going to start with this short How To. I am working on an in depth one on figure carving too, but want to see how this one goes first. These pictures show how I carved a simple floral pattern. The first picture shows the pattern carved with the swivel knife. You can see that where cuts meet, there is a small gap, the cuts do not meet. Where cuts end, try to lessen the pressure on the knife, letting the cuts fade out instead of ending abruptly.

This picture shows the addition of pear shading. I like to use the pear shader in the center of the leaves and scrolls, leaving a ridge around the edge. Start the shading heavy at the top, and walk the shader down the length of the leaf. Lessen the pressure as you go, fading out the impression as you get to the bottom of the leaf.

A camoflage tool is used on the center of the scroll. It is also used on the outside edge of the scroll. Tilt the tool so only part of the tool impression is left on the leather. Space the impressions evenly down the length of the scroll. I also used the camoflage tool around what would be the stem in the center of the pattern.

The pattern is now beveled. Try and walk your beveler to get even impressions. You can go over your beveling more than once to smooth it out, or smooth out tool marks with a modeling tool.

A veiner was use on the outer edge of the buds. It is also used on one side of the vien on the large leaves. A camoflage tool is used on the opposite side of the vien. Be careful to keep impressions as evenly spaced as possible. Also lean the tool, using one edge of the tool to make the impression.

Now the outside of the pattern is backgrounded. I used a pebble background tool. Try and make your impressions even. (also try not to miss a spot, as I did) In the center of the pattern, I used a matting tool to get a different effect.

Now add decorative cuts with your swivel knife. Some of mine look more like butcher cuts. These take a lot of practice to make them look good and I need more.

I dyed the background with a dark spirit dye then finished with a coat of Tan Kote.

[David Fields]

Is that the correct order of tooling, I'm always confused about which tools to use in what order. I usually start with the beveler (after the swivel knife) around the outside of leaves and scrolls. Then pear shader, camo, veiner, seeder and then bevel the inner areas of leaf and scrolls followed by background.

[cjbleather]

Clay, Great job! As far as order of tool use, I believe Paul Burnett suggests that the blunter tools like a pear shader be used before the sharper tools. He establishes his order with the amount of dampness in the leather. However, like you, I also do beveling first.

I would like to add one thing that may be pertinent in the use of the camo tool along the outside of the scroll. Some one once told me (I can't remember who) that the inside points of the camo tool should be pointed at the imaginary center of the scroll. Thus, the tilt would gradually be dimisheded as you go up the scroll. Carlb

[ClayB]

Dave,

Usually I do it the same way you do, bevel after cutting, then cam, veiner, etc. But that is the way that Jim has been teaching it in his kids classes. It does seem to work better that way for certain things. It's just hard for me to change the order that I have become used to doing them. I think back when I started, by beveling first, I could understand the pattern better. By using the cams and shaders and vieners first though, you seem to get better definition in your patterns. Maybe someone else can better explain why.

[Beaverslayer]

Thanks Clay, I always love looking and reading your "How To Do's" they are an inspiration to keep trying harder.

Ken

[ClayB]

Carl,

Thanks for adding the info on the scrolls. I meant to mention Paul's website too. He has a lot of good tips on when, where, and how to use different tools. Be sure to sign up for Paul's free lessons at Painting Cow

[Don101]

Nice carving Clay i also love your tutorials so do keep them comming, Don

[shirleyz]

Hi Clay, Happy New Year!

Awesome Job on the tutorial! You really are a great guy to do all you do, but I already told you that.

Shirley

[David Genadek]

Is that the correct order of tooling, I'm always confused about which tools to use in what order. I usually start with the beveler (after the swivel knife) around the outside of leaves and scrolls. Then pear shader, camo, veiner, seeder and then bevel the inner areas of leaf and scrolls followed by background.

Dave there is no correct order. I switch depending on the design and the effect I want to get. I will often bevel before I pear shade so the shading can move into the bevel but not always. What you want to think about is what is on top of what,and where is the stem or the line of flow. As you do some tooling you will learn which tools will help hide the mistakes you may have made with the previouse tool and that will dictate the order you use after you focus on the main flow line and what is the closest to you. Play on scrap and feel free to mess up.

David Genadek

[David Fields]

Dave there is no correct order. I switch depending on the design and the effect I want to get. I will often bevel before I pear shade so the shading can move into the bevel but not always. What you want to think about is what is on top of what,and where is the stem or the line of flow. As you do some tooling you will learn which tools will help hide the mistakes you may have made with the previouse tool and that will dictate the order you use after you focus on the main flow line and what is the closest to you. Play on scrap and feel free to mess up.

David Genadek

Thanks for confirming my suspicions. I've been learning from Al Stohlman books and his various books seem to vary as to the order of tooling too. So as you say...there is really no correct order.

[David Genadek]

Thanks for confirming my suspicions. I've been learning from Al Stohlman books and his various books seem to vary as to the order of tooling too. So as you say...there is really no correct order.

As you progress through Stohlmans books you will find rules he sets down early on he breaks in his later books. This does not mean that it is wrong it means that as you advance your skills and gain control you can do more. For instance, keeping the swival knife at a 90* angle; once you get that under control throw that rule out the window. However, if you are haveing trouble telling which line is which and some one says to cut at an angle on a inside curve so you can get a better undercut bevel it would be to much when you are learning. Stohlmans books are excellent!! I learned from them. They got me to a point that I could really learn from others later on.

David Genadek

[David Genadek]

Clay, Great job! As far as order of tool use, I believe Paul Burnett suggests that the blunter tools like a pear shader be used before the sharper tools. He establishes his order with the amount of dampness in the leather. However, like you, I also do beveling first.

I would like to add one thing that may be pertinent in the use of the camo tool along the outside of the scroll. Some one once told me (I can't remember who) that the inside points of the camo tool should be pointed at the imaginary center of the scroll. Thus, the tilt would gradually be dimisheded as you go up the scroll. Carlb

You should place a mental dot in the center of the scroll and the viens or cams should try to point at that dot. The scroll is the major form in this art so it should be studied. Getting the proportions correct there really adds to carveing and later when you daw your own designs the scroll can be used to set the proportions of the design by using a series of scrolls to determine the flow line.

David Genadek

[freak]

I don't know what it is but i'de rather do letters then do floral carving. You, as well as others here, make it look like second nature . I know if i don't practice i'll never be any good at it. It just seems i can always find something else to practice.

Great write up Clay. I'm sure i'll be using it for guidance when i get ready to practice my florals. Thanks for taking the time to do all the write ups you do. It means alot and helps alot.

Edited January 8, 2008 by freak

[jammon]

Very helpful, thanks!

[pete]

I almost always trace, cut and shade for the simple reason that I like to pear shade deeply on the leaf tips and other places and the leather bunches up against the cut line. Then when I bevel after it pushes it back and gets a better "ridge" than if I bevel first. Sometimes that flattens out the bevel and I lose the definition. Do what woiks!

As I say and have heard after years of (professional) music.....it ain't wrong, it's just different.(Although I've jammed with a ton of guys who just play it WRONG>

[pepin1948]

Clear and didactic

Nice center background

[Leather Bum]

Thanks for the how-to, Clay; you did a great job. What are the tool numbers for the cam and veiner you used?

I almost always trace, cut and shade for the simple reason that I like to pear shade deeply on the leaf tips and other places and the leather bunches up against the cut line. Then when I bevel after it pushes it back and gets a better "ridge" than if I bevel first. Sometimes that flattens out the bevel and I lose the definition. Do what woiks!

As I say and have heard after years of (professional) music.....it ain't wrong, it's just different.(Although I've jammed with a ton of guys who just play it WRONG>

This brings me to my question of tool-order. If you pearshade before beveling, don't you find that, as Pete mentioned, the leather "bunches up against the cut line" -- making it more difficult to position the beveler IN the cut? You know, if the pearshader closes the cut, it seems easier to accidentally bevel either in front of or behind the cut (not desirable).

L'Bum

[Warren]

Thanks for the lesson Clay! Maybe I will try my hand at this now that someone has laid it out so well and made it look less intimidating. Warren

[ClayB]

L'Bum,

I am not sure what numbers I used, but I tried to match up the impressions and here's what should work. Veiner 708. You should also be able to use 409, 412, 417 or any on that order. I like the ones that are narrower and flatter. For the cams, I used an 831 to end the spiral on the scroll, but any cam that fits the curve of the spiral will work. On the edge of the scroll I used a 433. Again, a lot of different ones will work. Just make sure with either the veiners or cams you tilt the tools and just make impressions with one edge. Then in the large leaf, opposite the veiner, I used a C432 cam. Dont go buy a bunch of new tools if just because you dont have the same numbers though. See if the ones you have will work first.

[Kani]

Thanks Clay. I think I might give this a try as well. Thanks for posting the tools used as well.

[Cecil]

Thanks for the tutorial Clay. The discussion about the sequence in which you use tools I found very interesting. I have always used the beveler first. I will try alternative sequences.

[jonwatsabaugh]

Many times we get hung up on the order of progression, and the types of tools we use for this or that when all the time we neglect the two most important aspects of Sheridan style tooling. First of all a beginning tooler must practice and master the use of their swivel knife. Each cut must be smooth with perfect transition from increasing to decreasing radius and visa-versa. This is accomplished with properly conditioned leather ( there are some great ideas found elsewhere on this sight regarding the casing of leather), a properly sharpened and polished blade, and of course much practice. Develop the ability to cut long flowing lines in your vine work with one continuous motion, starting with a deep cut and fading the cut to nothing. Secondly is the ability to develop and draw your own designs. You will learn more and much faster by studying the work of the masters such as Chester Hape, Jim Jackson, Keith Seidel, Don Butler and many others. Try and copy their work. I might suggest getting the book "Sheridan Style Carving" by Bob Likewise. This book is worth it's weight in gold. Study and follow the tutorials and the beautiful photos in this book. Everyone with the desire to learn Sheridan style tooling should have this book. It will inspire you!

Happy tooling,

Jon

[knkwoodcrafts]

Clay, Nice carving... I am a newbie and have a few questions. First how do you do the initial pattern transfer? do you case the leather before you transfer the pattern with the stylus? Second how do you get the burnished look with the pear shader and beveler? I think I am working with my leather when it's too wet. Third I don't get much definition with my tools regardless of how hard I strike them. I am using a marble slab setting on my brick fireplace for a work surface so I know it is stable enough for carving. Are my problems with this also because I am working with the leather too wet? Thanks, Kevin

knkwoodcrafts

[ClayB]

Hi Kevin,

It sounds like all your problems can be from your leather being too wet. If you use the search here on the forum, you should find several threads about casing. There are a lot of ways to do it and you might want to try a few and pick what seems to work best for you. Different leather reacts differently, so if you get different leather, you might have to change your procedure. I like to wet my leather front and back (but not soak it) and then put it in a plastic bag for awhile to let the moisture even out throughout the leather. This can be a half an hour to overnight, depends on if you plan in advance or not. Then when you take it out of the plastic, let it start to return to its original color if it hasn't already. If it's darker than when it was dry, it's probably too wet. Trace your pattern with a stylus on the damp leather. Then cut with the swivel knife and start tooling. If your moisture is right, you will get "burnish" (leather turns dark when you stamp it). It will take some practice to know just when it is right. If you have to leave your project while working on it, cover it with plastic again to keep it from drying out. If it starts to dry out while carving, I like to add moisture with a spray bottle. On leather that dries out quickly, I will spray the back more often to keep the moisture level. If your leather is too wet, your stamping will be mushy and your cuts will close up. If your leather is too dry, it will be hard to carve and your stamping impressions wont be deep or sharp. If you dont get good impressions, another thing you might try is rubber cementing a piece of cardboard to the back of your leather (especially on thinner leather). This will keep your leather from stretching, and also tends to make your impressions deeper. There is a lot of good information on this forum so do some searching through the old posts if you have time. Hope this helps a little and good luck!

Clay

[Spinner]

I know this is an old thread, but just wanted to say thanks Clay. I'm going to try the tooling in this order to see if it helps get the definition I seem to be lacking in some areas.