Thread: Footballing Toad for S.O.A.

Fantastic bit of fun Pete. You've captured the caricature toad head beautifully. Its almost enough to make me think kinder of football in general... a sport that usually leaves me cold as a rule. (sorry to any football fans out there).

I am curious about why you decided to stop at his knees though. Was there a reason for not going all the way to his feet?

I also wonder if maybe the base might take something away from the carving. It is so beautiful a piece of wood and so expertly finished that I'm wondering if maybe it overpowers the poor toad. Sort of combining two radically different styles in one work. (formal/tradional vs caricature). Not sure if they work together.

These are minor points though and just 'food for thought' in anycase... its a great fun piece.

Originally Posted by Whittling

Fantastic bit of fun Pete. You've captured the caricature toad head beautifully. Its almost enough to make me think kinder of football in general... a sport that usually leaves me cold as a rule. (sorry to any football fans out there).

I am curious about why you decided to stop at his knees though. Was there a reason for not going all the way to his feet?

I also wonder if maybe the base might take something away from the carving. It is so beautiful a piece of wood and so expertly finished that I'm wondering if maybe it overpowers the poor toad. Sort of combining two radically different styles in one work. (formal/tradional vs caricature). Not sure if they work together.

These are minor points though and just 'food for thought' in anycase... its a great fun piece.

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Whittling.

Thanks for the replies. The questions you asked are exactly what went through my mind also. I think it is important that I list them out separately so you can understand and possibly give me some pointers of which way to go next.

Firstly, it is important to understand that I am a beginner. This is only my second carving, the first was a little Leprechaun head that almost ended in the kindling box. I am self taught, and trying to gleam as much information from the Internet and carving sites as possible.

1. Yes I did try to capture the Caricature style of wood carving. I sort of sketched out the head and cut out everything that did not look like a toad. I used a Pfiel no1 gauge to form the warts.

2. Originally, it was just going to be a head and bust because I thought that was as good as I was going to get. I had in mind if I could do a reasonable enough job for a beginner I would give it to one of my daughters who is a real Rugby League supporter and who I knew would appreciate it if it was to come out, even ok.

3. Once I had done the head and bust, I thought about putting arms on,with one carrying the ball while the Toad was in a posing frame. This meant I had to shape the arms individually and then see if I could attach them to the bust. I used a meat skewer dowel and inserted it into the arm and into the shoulder and then glued the arms on.

When that came out reasonable for my early carving career, I was then going to put some legs on him as well, but because I had done what I thought was a reasonable job for me I decided to call it quits and not stuff up the rest because I was unsure of the legs.

4. Then there was the painting. First it was a disaster, because I have no artistic flair at all but I received a lot of help from the Internet and the ladies at the local Art and Hobby store who call me the Toy Boy. Somehow, I recovered from the painting agony.

5. The base came from a cut off log of Black wattle out of my fire box, I just grabbed it and put it on a lathe. I am no expert at lathes but I have some fiends who give me some pointers unlike carving when I am on my own. I was presently surprised how well the grain showed up. Another reason I went for the Black Wattle is my daughter would appreciate that some part of the carving will enable her to think of home.

I did not want to put too much finish on it because I tend to agree that maybe the two styles do not complement each other as well as maybe another style. But I had a deadline. if it was to be a gift, it had to be done by the 25th of this month. so I went with it.

6. One of my doubts about carving this is "are their any rules, do you have to follow a standard." Somebody told me ' It's your carving, do it the way you want to. So I did. But for this Toad I did not have much choice. So much of a learning curve went into it, and because of the time deadline, I decided to do what I could to finish it.

7. I tried to as much as possible do it in the Caricature style, not sure I really was successful at that, but at least friends smile when they see it because they think it is different.

Thank you for you well thought out comments, because I was thinking along similar lines. Hopefully the next carving may be more strictly Caricature but I guess my inexperience will force me to break some rules their too.

I have started to do a Black Miniature Dexter Cow, on pasture and standing next to a fence. The Cow is a challenge,because i want it to resemble as much as possible one of our's which is my wife's favourite. I have to have this one done by the 17th April otherwise it looks like being a Christmas present.

Pete






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Great progress Peter, love the eyes and stance

Originally Posted by Whittling

..I am curious about why you decided to stop at his knees ...

Probably typical portayal of SOR Queenslanders, they go soft at the knees

If that was only your second go mate, you are going to make a terrific carver. The fact that you came up with this on your own is also noteworthy. Most guys just starting out (including me) usually copy something from a 'how to' book or mag until they get the feel for things. Its usually a while before enough confidence is built up to do a design of their own. Well done.

Don't worry about rules... just do what you think is best for you. Listen to constructive critisism from other carvers and take it on board if you think is relevent. I know in my own experience it was my mistakes that taught me most about carving and helped me grow so don't worry about making a few.

Originally Posted by dai sensei

Great progress Peter, love the eyes and stance



Probably typical portayal of SOR Queenslanders, they go soft at the knees

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Very Funny! Not.

I left the feet off to give you Cockroaches ( NSW ) a chance this year. We are sick of kicking As#3. Five series wins in a row.

Bring it on.

Pete

For only your second carving I think you've done a wonderful job!

Has a nice demeanor.

Geez Peter!! Where did that come from

Love it!!

Very neat. But Aussie rules is the only sport.

Originally Posted by artme

Geez Peter!! Where did that come from

Love it!!

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Arthur,

You have some small part in it as well.

A few years ago I was at your place and we had a pen making day. It was the first time I had even seen a wood lathe.

So from that beginning, the base, some black wattle, which came from a limb of a tree in my front paddock that was blown down in a storm was put in my fire box to dry out for next winter.

So, indirectly, with help from you and many others here, I have been quietly working in the background enjoying my wood working.

ps.

I am now on to my fourth " Prime Mover's" T Model Ford Fire Engine. You did say I can see a fleet of these coming.

Thanks for the interest.

Pete