Hey there!
I’m James, founder of the Wood Carving By Hand website. I am a retired firefighter, author and owner of multiple websites. I also carve wood. Its truly become a passion of mine after taking some classes at a local arts center. There is something about creating art in a medium provided by mother nature that I find incredibly relaxing and rewarding. Let me tell you a bit more about my wood working journey.
In The Beginning
Like a lot of young boys, and girls too, I initially started carving wood as more of a simple whittler. I would use one of my Dad’s old foldable pocket knives (under his supervision) and grab a stick and start shaving off the bark. At the age of 9 or 10 this was a fun and happy way to spend some time, not any artistry to it, but I found it to be relaxing even at that age.
Once I got a stick whittled to a point I was satisfied with and all the bark was removed I’d use it to build something with other sticks or just set it aside. I didn’t realize it then but even at that time it was largely about the process for me, not necessarily the end result.
Bring on the Artistry
Many moons passed as the years went by and wood carving or whittling fell by the wayside. It was decades before I again picked up a stick and started moving some wood off of it.
After a fairly serious back injury brought about an early retirement from a career in the fire service that I loved, I sought out something to fill my time that I had a passion for. During a discussion with my mother about the same topic, she suggested taking a wood carving class at a local arts and nature center. She remembered my fondness for whittling from a young age and I decided to act on that suggestion to see if a fire for carving wood still burned within me.
I knew from my first class project that I was in the right place. The project was carving an eight-pointed star out of a square block of basswood (which is wood from the Linden species of tree). This is a very basic project intended to teach knife skills and comfort of use with some basic techniques. The way time melted away so quickly as I worked and the sense of peace I felt as I carved told me I had found a new hobby to love.
Time to Share
This blog is a combination of two of my passions in one place, writing and wood carving. The goal of woodcarvingbyhand.com is to provide the reader with some knowledge and tips for best practices, safety, and tool selection for hand carving wood. Some project ideas will be shared as well in addition to sharing some other strategies in addition to hand carving, such as using a dremel tool and how to utilize a wood burning tool to name a couple.
The art that you can create out of wood is truly only limited by one’s imagination. Carvings are great to show off in your own home or to give as gifts or even donate to local schools or nature centers. It’s a fantastic way to share something you create with other people and in my experience at least, carvings good and even not so good are appreciated by most everyone.
Thank you much for reading, good luck with your carvings, and I hope you enjoy the content here at the site!
James McDonald
WoodCarvingByHand.com