By Roger Beane

Pear-shaped wood turnings allow you to skip the roughing out phase and jump right to carving the details. Plus, the shape offers infinite design possibilities.

I bought two of these turnings at a carving show and carved them both while there. Before the show ended, I’d bought all of the pears the vendor had at his table, and then ordered more to be delivered to me later. The shape is so versatile that you’ll never run out of uses for it. Before you begin carving, check out how to have an easy cleanup with just freezer paper and a few pieces of tape.

Getting Started

Trace or sketch the pattern onto the pear. Carve along the pencil lines with a 1/4″ (6mm) V-tool and make stop cuts in the V-grooves with a knife.

Prepping and Carving

I adapt my typical face-carving techniques to the shape of this blank. Remember that the highest point of the face is the tip of the nose, the deepest part of the face is the eye sockets, and the narrowest part of the face is at the temples.

I add the wrinkles using V-tools and use 5/32″ (4mm) and 3/16″ (5mm) #11 gouges to add the hair and beard texture. When texturing the hair, make sure there are no straight lines. Carve a series of lazy S’s and C’s. Vary the depth of your cuts and do not leave any flat spaces.

Painting and Finishing

Wash your carving with Simple Green and water. Remove the excess water with a soft cloth or paper towels and immediately start painting (while the carving is still wet). Dilute the acrylic paint with water to create a wash. Refer to the Painting Notes for the colors I used.

While the paint dries, squeeze a 2″ (5.1cm)-long strip of burnt sienna oil paint into a pint jar full of mineral spirits to dissolve the paint. Then, add the pint of dissolved paint to a quart of boiled linseed oil. Mix thoroughly and after the paint is dry, dip your carving into the mixture and remove. Let it sit for five minutes, and then wipe off the excess with a paper towel. Dispose of the oil-soaked paper towels carefully; they can spontaneously combust. Allow the carving to dry thoroughly. Then, add the accent colors.

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1st Place: Alex Joiner

2nd Place: Walter Imfeld	3rd Place: Dave Deming

4th Place: Lee Simpkins	5th Place: Mary Beth Blair

Editor’s Picks: Bradley Gusloff and Jim Willis

Bradley Gusloff                                         Jim Willis

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The post The 2023 Great Santa Carve-Off Winners appeared first on Woodcarving Illustrated.

By Tina Toney

This Happy Santa captures the essence of Jolly Old St. Nicholas. He has a straight-forward gaze, symmetrical pose, and his hands are tucked warmly into mittens, which makes this a great project for beginners. I’ve given him a simple coat and undergarment free of embellishments. Any extra decorative painting can be easily incorporated into the banded areas on the sleeves and hat. Simple textures and a basic paint scheme are easily reproduced, but combine to make a pleasant Santa full of holiday cheer. You may reduce or enlarge the pattern to suit the dimensions of your wood. Carve the Santa, using your tools of choice. To carve the Santa easier, attach your blank to a carver’s arm to have better control while carving.

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This web extra accompanies the full article by Don Swartz in Winter 2019

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Santa is a well-traveled individual! As such, we imagine he picks up fashions from some of his favorite places. In Don Swartz’s carving, he is dressed for a Christmas holiday in Scotland. His kilt and cap are tartan, a colorful crisscross pattern that is often associated with specific Scottish clans. Don’s Santa is sporting a modified version of the ancient Clan Munro tartan, with festive red and green alongside bands of blue, yellow, and white.

Painting and Finishing

Before you paint the carving, dunk it in a satin lacquer, such as Deft, and let it sit for 2 minutes. Remove and let the carving drip-dry for 5 minutes. Wipe with a clean cloth and let dry. Then paint the carving with thin washes of acrylic or oil paint (thin acrylics with water and oils with mineral spirits). First, paint the shirt and the base coats for all remaining clothing. Then add the clothing details, boots, stockings, belt, tassels, buckle, skin, hair, and eyes. Drybrush the entire piece with titanium white. Once dry, finish the body and base with satin lacquer and the face with semi-gloss.

Say Yes to the Tartan!

You can customize your own Scottish St. Nick by accessorizing him with the tartan of your choice! Whether you have Scottish ancestry or just want to pick an attractive pattern, there are hundreds to choose from. We selected a few images courtesy of the Highland Kilt Company to make the decision a bit easier:

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By Dylan Goodson

With any carving, it’s important to get the overall anatomy correct. But for me, the fun comes when it’s time to add details. I prefer realistic carvings because I can really add as much detail as I want. Scroll through the gallery of photos to see not only how anatomy affects the pose of the Santa, but also how it’s possible to add all sorts of fun detail to your carvings.

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Carve your own realistic Santa! Look for Dylan’s pattern in Woodcarving Illustrated Winter 2017 (Issue 81). Click here to order.

Prefer a caricature Santa? Click here for step-by-step instructions to carve Dave Sabol’s classic design.

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