Loon with baby chick aboard

[Gleber]

If you are on Instagram, you should check out @wood.dub's work. Very prolific, so there should be a lot of examples of techniques. Worth signing up for, if just for that alone.

Tom...

[Gleber]

Thanks. That's a great suggestion.

Tom...

[Gleber]

My loon was looking homesick sitting on a wooden shelf, so I decided I needed to mount in on some water. I did some searching for recreating water and didn't find too much. I'm sure there must be more, but I guess I'm not using the right words - "water" does not turn up as much as I was...

[Gleber]

The final touch is complete. I added a drop of Urethane to each eye for a glossy look.

Thanks for all the compliments.

Tom

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[Gleber]

Almost finished. I'm going to add a drop of Urethane to each eye to make them look glossy.

I'll have to look for examples of how to mount this to look like they are silently gliding across a smooth lake in Maine in an early morning fog. Any suggestions are welcome...

Tom...

[Gleber]

I got some new paint and am making more progress. It looks more complete, but still have to finish the white on the breast and the eyes.

Tom

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[Gleber]

Progress update. I ran out of paint in my DecoDolor extra fine paint pen... But, I think it's looking pretty good. Still have more to go.

Tom

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[Gleber]

I like carving birds, but the thought of carving feather details makes me procrastinate, so I thought about doing a smooth finished loon since most of their detail is in their spotted pattern anyway. After I started, I saw some photos of baby chicks riding on the backs of their parents and thought...

[Gleber]

Thanks. My brother works for Disney and he sketched my profile pic with is finger on his iPhone. It's actually a pretty good caricature likeness.

Tom...

[Gleber]

Thanks for the compliments. Carving fretwork would be an interesting project. I think with carving, you could create a very intricate 3D design. Perhaps I will try a hybrid and cut out the open areas a little on the smaller side and then carve the remaining fretwork.

To answer the questions,...

[Gleber]

I'm not sure if this qualifies as carving, but I just completed my first fretwork and ebonizing project. It is a piece made for the top of a tall case clock. Photos show the unfinished piece, after ebonizing and installed in the clock.





Tom...

[Gleber]

Yes, practically museum quality and I haven't even started to clean it yet. All of the carvings are 100% intact, which I find somewhat amazing given its age. It has been well cared for.

Tom

[Gleber]

Update. I have stripped and repainted the base coat for each piece and I thought I'd show a behind the scenes look.

Here are the pieces. There is a rectangular back in addition to these that will show the sky and horizon. The first row of waves has a very short tab, the second row has a...

[Gleber]

"the image I had in my mind of a small, feathered, running dinobird making a sharp turn is coming to life."

I'd say you did a great job of that! An interesting subject - what color(s) do you plan to paint it?

Tom

[Gleber]

That's an interesting idea for future reference. Thanks.

Tom