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Why chip carve a basswood egg?
A chip carved egg is very attractive and easy to display in the home. When placed in a nice basket they make a lovely centerpiece for the dinning room table. A wall hanging shadow box is also an attractive way to display them. Women love them for the natural beauty of the wood and designs. The divine shape of the egg is enhanced when given a chip carved design. They make great gifts when offered along with a natural wood egg cup to set them in. You'll be amazed at how you can turn a simple wooden egg into a lasting work of art. Finally, It's not an overwhelming project! Most hen size eggs can be chip carved in 90 minutes or less, and you'll see just how easy they are to carve!
Basswood eggs are available in a variety of sizes...
Getting started...
Tools and aids you will need to make it easier for you.
Items in photo: The knives, pencil, Sharpening stones, Paper strip, Long pointed pushpins, Flexible Curve, The Warstler Cradle, Compass, Rubber studded gloves, Sandpaper, Egg, Thumb guard.You will need a good standard size Swiss style knife. The Wayne Barton knife or the Moor knife are examples of such a knife. Don't forget the Stab knife to enhance you carvings. If you have a good system to keep your knives sharp, stick with it. The photo shows the standard fine and ultra fine ceramic stones usually used for sharpening.
I am assuming that at this level of carving you already know how to chip carve. There are at least 20 books on the market and plenty of classes that can teach you the basics. After that, start chipping until your up to your knees in practice boards. All of the items in the photo will be talked about as we go.
Buying and preparing the egg
Warning! Chip carving basswood eggs is addictive. Try this only if you are serious about it. You might want to start with the hen size egg. They generally run about .85 cents each if you buy them by the dozen. When you order the eggs tell the supplier your are going to chip carve them. He will make sure you get nice quality eggs.
Basswood eggs generally need sanding. They rarely come in smooth enough to start carving. My sanding method makes quick work of it. Grind off the head of a thin three-inch wood screw and insert into the chuck of your hand drill-driver. Screw it into the center of the bottom of the egg just far enough to hold it firmly. Next you simply hold a small piece of 150 grit sand paper against it as it spins, finish the sanding with a 220 grit. This only takes a few minutes. After sanding remove the egg from the screw and fill the hole that the screw made in the bottom with wood-filler. This is an important step, as you will see. Let the wood-filler dry before you proceed to the next step. In the interest of time I generally prepare about 6 eggs at once.
Marking the chip-carving grid on the egg.
Using the centuries old thin paper strip system you can easily mark the critical areas of the egg. This is a good way to mark the four points of the compass on the sides of the egg. Prepare a thin (1/8-1/4 inch wide) paper strip and wrap it around the widest part of the egg laterally. Bring the ends of the paper to butt up against each other, trim the paper at this point.
Remove the paper strip from the egg and fold it in half. The fold point is half way around the egg. Now fold the strip once again and the new fold point will establish the quarter points. Put a pencil mark at each fold point of the paper so that they can be easily seen. Wrap it once more around the egg and at each fold point make a mark on the egg. You have now precisely quartered the egg. You may skip the paper strip step if you have a good eye-ball, and are real brave and steady.
Marking the vertical grid lines with a flexible curve.
Using a Flexible Curve (available at art or office supply stores) draw 4 vertical lines from the top down across the quarter points and to the center at the bottom. You now have an egg with vertical pencil lines quartering the egg. The Flexible Curve is a plastic covered piece of lead that will bend to any shape you may want and hold its shape.
You may continue to divide the egg using the flexible curve into as many divisions as you wish, or if you find the curve to be awkward to use you may eye-ball it for the remaining vertical divisions. The first four quartering lines are the most important and must be evenly spaced around the egg. Grip the egg with the flexible curve so that you can draw a nice straight vertical lines on the egg from top the bottom on center. I usually section off the egg in at least 8 sections, from there you can freehand it to 16 sections if desired. You now have a partially completed grid. The rest of the design can be free-handed or you can even use a compass to place small rosettes at the four points of the compass for extra pizzazz. I like to use traditional geometric designs or a combination of geometric and freeform. Also it is a wise idea to pre-plan your designs on a sketch-pad before you begin.
Making and using The Warstler Cradle.
This is the heart and soul of the system. The carving is easy, but if you can't mark on a nice clean grid, no amount of good chip carving will help you. You will need to make a simple cradle to hold and spin the egg while you mark on the lateral part of the grid. If you are going to carve several sizes of eggs you will need to make a cradle for each size, or if you are really clever you can make an adjustable cradle to fit any size. My cradle is 7 inches long and 4-1/2 inches wide. Make it on the beefy side so that you are not pushing it all around as you mark the egg. The photo will answer any other questions you may have. This cradle will allow you to make beautiful parallel lateral lines as you begin the grid.
Next take your sanded and filled egg and push into the center of each end (eye-ball it) so that the egg will spin smoothly on a central axis, it need not be perfect. These pins will act as wheels when you place the egg on the cradle and spin it. If you did not fill in the bottom screw hole the pin would be to lose to hold the egg firmly.
Pushing the egg with your fingers in a direction away from you seems to work best for me. Using a standard #2 pencil works best. The mechanical leads are a bit too delicate and break easily. Make sure the egg fits snugly in the cradle sockets against the pushpins. If it is to sloppy in the cradle it will move back and forth as it turns and the lines being marked will be wavy and not parallel. You must hold you hand in the same position as you spin the egg, pencil must not move. Once both vertical and lateral line are drawn it is now possible to free-hand with little x's and diagonals on the rest of your design. One thing to keep in mind as you lay in the design is that you are actually stacking row after row of patterns on top of each other so that when carving, it sometimes becomes a real challenge to your skill. Keep the glue close at hand and keep your carving area clean. You cannot glue back in what you cannot find. I carve on a table top with a 100 watt bulb lamp above and off to my left. I am right handed.
Carving and Finishing
Because the egg is small and round I like to use a rubber- studded glove to hold the egg as I carve. I also use a leather thumb guard on my carving hand to keep my thumbnail from marking the egg, you could use a piece of tape for the same purpose but it doesn't have as much cushion. After carving, lightly sand and stain to suit your fancy or finish natural and give the egg about three or four coats of acrylic spray. I prefer a glossy spray with a light sanding between coats. It's your call.
The Gallery...
I hope this project has inspired you to try it for yourself. You may e-mail me at gary@carversedge.com with your questions and comments. Happy chipping, Gary Back to index...
