Hey Robert,
Mike and Derek's rules should totally keep your blood on the inside. You
can even get fancy with your bench hook and add a side bar to the design
Mike provided so that you have some thing to push against on the side,
usually the left in my experience (but I'm right handed).
I've also found that body position matters - I discovered the hard way
(3" scar on my knee) that carving on my lap on the couch was a bad
idea...yes I knew it wasn't a good idea before I started but I wanted to
try just one curl of wood with a new carving knife that I was then going
to put down...
If you must there are various safety supplies - for example: carver's
leather aprons and protective finger tape for carver's are both
available at Lee Valley Tools. I've also seen sculptors use tight
fitting leather gloves (an industrial kind) with just the fingertips cut
off to protect their hands.
Lee
hello once again everyone!
Thanks to everyone for their advice on the cutting techniques.
I actually DO use almost all of the techniques mentioned.
Hooked cutting board.
Hori-Dai Caving Bench
cut away
extremely sharp tools and high quality
All the normal and extra stuff.
Like Mike mentioned, I guess I just have a knack for cutting myself. I was just wondering if I was the only one that this seems to happen to.
I am not worried about it.
Happy carving!
rob
Will Sharen Linders please get in touch with me about Nudes a.
Carol Lyons
Robert, are you one of those people who talk with their hands (with
sharp tools in them)? I know someone
(I won't say who) that cut themselves on the end of the nose that way.
Fortunately not deep enough to
bleed all over the place or to cause a scar! :-)
Wanda
Perhaps someone on our list is interested in this paper?
Sharen
> A friend from another mailing list has a Hawaiian problem, trying to
>> save some etching paper from the landfill.
>>
>>> Just passing through on my way to somewhere else. Tried to send this a
>>> few minutes after signing on, didn't work, here it is again.
>>>
>>> Is there anyone here from Oahu, particularly artists or teachers?
>>> There is a huge amount of Hanemuehle, the best etching paper money can
>>> buy - and I mean a HUGE amount, something like 60 full-size sheets -
>>> available free for collection near Honolulu. There's a guy I have been
>>> corresponding with, a digital printmaker, who is moving to Maui and
>>> the bulk trash people are coming to get everything he hasn't packed on
>>> Monday, including this paper. I would hate to see this lot go to waste
>>> and the only person I know in Hawaii is a printmaker who lives on
>>> Maui, who can't apparently get to Oahu in time.
>>>
>>> The guy is not going to have the time to pack this paper for shipping.
>>> Someone needs to go and fetch it. If my wife's car engine hadn't gone
>>> foom last week I would be paying to ship this lot to myself in
>>> Australia, it's that good. I would hate it to go to waste.
>>>
>>> Email me off-list if you can collect it. Even if you don't want the
>>> paper, but can get there, please go save it from landfill and I will
>>> find someone to take it off your hands in short order.
>>>
>>> K.
mailto:k@THIRDANGEL.COM
I think I have the best wood cut bloody body story. My husband Jack and I
were in Yosemite staying at the Awahnee - very expensive, very wonderful and
it took us a year to of save enough for a three day stay. We had
reservations for dinner and had a wonderful room with a beautiful view of
the blooming dogwoods. We were very happy! We went for a walk in the
woods and Jack lay down on the pine needles and I sat on the ground with my
legs crossed making a good table. I took my tools out of my tote bag and
put my wood in my lap. I drew a picture of Jack sleeping with a marking
pen. Then I took my carving tools out and started cutting the wood. The
wood was pine the tools were not sharp enough. I used a very tiny gouge and
was pushing it to cut a small V and Woops! It slipped and poked a little v
shaped cut in my thigh. It didn't hurt, it was small and shouldn't have
been a problem but the cut started bleeding with a pump like action. It
went blip, blip, blip and I couldn't stop the bleeding. Finally I decided I
needed to wake Jack. He got worried and said we needed to get me to the
Yosemite Medical Center. He found a Ranger who got people to take me on a
stretcher to an official car and they drove me to the hospital. The medical
staff could not get the bleeding to stop! Blip, blip, blip. My tool had
nicked an artery. I was kept on a gurney for the next three hours with my
leg kept up in the air. I was finally sent back to the hotel with
instructions to stay in bed with my leg kept above my heart. No restaurant
dinner that night. We had room service and I ate in bed while Jack kept
telling me how dangerous wood cutting was! By that time I had been cutting
wood for 50 years and that was my only accident. My recommendation is
"Don't cut wood on your unprotected lap and don't use dull tools but if you
will get cut don't do it when you are on a very special vacation!"
I don't even use a bench hook, I use a rubber shelf matt and after over a
year of near constant carving I have yet to cut myself. Mike's rules are
rules to live by.
--
~marissa lee
www.mleefineart.com