YOU CAN'T HAVE ONE WITHOUT THE OTHER!😀

Published: Fri, 04/03/20

Hi ,

There are 2 MUST HAVES when it comes to finding success in chip carving.

We talked about one last month - a Scary Sharp Knife! (Click here if you missed it)

And the second MUST HAVE is.........drum roll please..........

Proper Technique!

Scary Sharp + Proper Technique = Success!!

Just like "Love and Marriage"...

Love and marriage, love and marriage,
Go together like a horse and carriage.
This I tell ya, brother, you can't have one without the other.

If you have the sharpest knife in town and don't know how to hold a chip carving knife, good results will be hit and miss.

Switch it around and put a dull knife in the hands of someone with perfect technique and you'll get the same lousy looking chip carving.

you can't have one without the other.

The very first thing I focus on when teaching a class is how to hold a chip carving knife correctly. (The other MUST HAVE is already taken care of as I provide everyone with a Scary Sharp Knife)😀

Now if you've been chip carving for quite awhile, don't tune me out. You may have picked up some bad habits over the years and not even realize it! So read on...

After demonstrating how to hold the knife, I'll help everyone adjust their grip so it's proper. I'll get this quizzical look quite often as I twist the knife and they say, "Really? Like that?"

It just doesn't feel right the first time... and it won't!

The temptation is to hold the knife in the same way we've held a paring or whittling knife. This is brand NEW. It will feel different!

But...eventually...it will feel more and more natural and muscle memory will start to kick in. Give it time. It takes a while!

When muscle memory is working, you'll know without even looking that your knife is just right.

So, why do you think Proper Technique, is the second MUST HAVE?

I'll wait as you mull this over....

Waiting...

Okay, times up.

Proper technique, of which holding the knife correctly is a big part, results in consistent cuts all made at the same angle.

When these consistent cuts meet together in the bottom of the chip, PRESTO!!! The chip comes out! SUCCESS!

As I've helped aspiring chip carvers over the years, there have been certain technique problems and questions that come up over and over again, from class to class.

"My thumb doesn't look like yours?"

"I'm getting a blister on my thumb"

"What's wrong with doing it this way?"

"Why are these cuts not the same angle as my other cuts?"

"How many knuckles should touch the wood?"

I'll be answering these questions, and more, for you next week.

With these two MUST HAVES, you will be able to chip carve like this...really!

Remember...

you can't have one without the other.

P.S. The 10" rim plate shown is the April project, video & pattern available to the Platinum Community. Upgrade here and get 14 days free.

P.S.S. If you missed the last email about the Quick Start Chip Carving Kit, you can find it HERE