This month’s Platinum member webinar was a real treat—literally! With Halloween just around the corner, I decided to carve a few free-form spooky patterns and tackle some unique challenges along the way. While time only allowed me to finish most of one pattern and start another, it was fun from start to finish.
Halloween Carving Challenges
One of the patterns featured webbing with both straight and curved lines. To avoid chip out, I started with the straight lines, then moved to the outside curves, and finally the inside curves.
If you’ve ever struggled with webbing, this order can really help keep things clean. The lettering was another fun challenge: ‘TRICK’ was carved in a blocky font with tricky flares on the R, C, and K, while ‘Treat’ was done in a cursive style that required connecting the letters smoothly—a great exercise in flowing cuts!
The other pattern was a pumpkin sporting a witch hat. It was a mix of large and small chips, and the hat itself had several straight cuts with a few easy curves. For the smile, I carved a basic curved chip and then notched out the teeth, which helped everything come together in a nice, even valley.
What Are You Carving for Halloween?
I’d love to see what
you’re working on. It doesn’t have to be chip carving—any Halloween-themed project is welcome! Send your photos or stories to troy@mychipcarving.com. It’s always great to see the creativity out there, and I’ll feature some of my favorites in an upcoming newsletter.
October's Monthly Project
Trivet : Zentangle Pattern
The Zenangle pattern has a mix of small and large chips for contrast. The side accents can be carved Old World Style (as shown) or Swiss-style. Add color, stain, or keep it natural - it's sure to get noticed!
Trivet's are a 7.5 " Basswood square with 4 button feet, and are 7/8" thick. They are available with or without a pattern applied.
Check out Andrei's latest Masterpiece! It's a wall plaque featuring a Wayne Barton Rosette.
I especially appreciate and enjoy the precision and symmetry of the rosette. All of the curves and ridges line up, and the consistent depth of the cuts is impressive. He had a lot of practice doing
'flip-flop' cuts on the border with all of the crosses. It always looks like a simple thing to me, but I have to focus to keep them uniform. Well done!
Large Desk Coasters are Available!
A great looking coaster for beverages of all sizes!
Ready to carve large desk coasters are made from clear northern grown basswood. Buy 2 and SAVE!
Includes: Basswood coaster blank Self adhesive cork Pattern application is available
