Posted by Dave Bull at 7:14 AM, September 20, 2010 [Permalink]
I have the two designs ready for the next pair now, so next step is to get a block ready for them. One of the images has an area with some very fine detail - too much so to be carved confidently on cherrywood - so I'm inlaying a bit of boxwood in that part of the block.
It came out basically OK, not perfect, as you can see at the corner, but undetectable by touch, which is what counts:
As I have mentioned before, I avoid using sandpaper to smooth this out. That always leaves the surface microscopically 'torn', and thinly carved lines then always seem to expand when you hit them with the water-based pigment. But if the wood is finished by scraping, rather than by sanding, the lines stay as carved.
I use a blade removed from a Japanese plane ...
... and draw it across the surface (after normal planing to get close). This leaves the surface very nice and smooth.
So carving is underway. Should I show images of the blocks, or keep the designs under wraps?
