free Lora S. Irish pattern

Chip Carved Chess and Game Board

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chip carving game boardToday we are going to put it all together as we work through a Chess Board – Game Board Chip Carving layout.  We will use triangle, square, curve-edge, and free form chips to cut this 13″ square board.  I will be working a small practice board using 1/4″ basswood.  This small sample allows you to learn and experiment with each chip style used to create the larger board.

The finished sample, right, is a composite image made from my smaller practice board to show how your finished large board will look.

 

 

Chip Carving Seminar by Lora Irish


Chip Carving Seminar
Chip Carving Supplies
Chip Carving Graphed Patterns
Chip Carving Hand Positions and Grips
Chip Carving – Triangles and Square Chips
Chip Carving – Straight-Wall Chips
Chip Caved Game and Chess Board
Chip Carving Sampler Pattern Layout
Chip Carving Common Mistakes
Chip Carved Shortbread Cookies

Supplies for a practice board

4″ x 8″ x 1/4″ basswood practice board
printed copy of the practice pattern
removable spray adhesive
large chip carving knife
320-grit sandpaper13″ x 13″ x 1/2″ to 3/4″ basswood plaque is needed for a full-sized board.

practice pattern for chip carvingPractice Board Pattern

Click on the practice board pattern to the right for a full-sized, printable pattern.

Step 1

Lightly sand your practice board with 320-grit sandpaper.  Work the sanding with the direction of your wood grain to avoid fine cross-grain scratches.  Remove any dust with a clean, dry cloth.

Step 2

Make a printed copy of the practice pattern.  Following the directions on the label, spray the back of the pattern paper with an even coating of spray adhesive.  Place the paper pattern onto the board, aligning the edge of the pattern with the edge of the board.  Rub the paper gently to insecure that it is in full contact with the wood.  Allow the spray adhesive to dry thoroughly, about one half hour.

chip carving cutting order

Step 3

Begin your practice session by checking the sharpness of your chip carving knife.  Work your knife over your sharpening stones as needed to create a low bevel to the cutting edge.  As you work through steps 4 to 6, try to keep the angle of the chip knife the same for each side of the triangles.  This will keep the depth of the chip wells consistent throughout the motif.

We will work the border motif square from the center out towards the curve-edge chips.

free chip carving pattern by Lora IrishFull-sized Chess Board Chip Carving Pattern

This pattern shows one quarter of a full-sized chess board layout.  Please click on the pattern for a full-sized printable pattern.

 

 

 

chip carving a chess boardStep 4

The first area that we will work is the square motif created with triangular chips.  This motif is made up of three rows of alternating triangles around a diamond shaped negative central area. Following the directions for cutting Triangle Chips, working one triangle chip at a time, cut the three sides of each inner row triangle.

chip carving a chess boardStep 5

Work the next row of triangle chips in the square motif.  Cut the side of the new triangle that shares the side of the inner triangle first, then cut the remaining two sides. By cutting along the side of a triangle that has already been worked in a previous chip you reduce the minimize the chances of that side breaking or chipping out.

chip carving a chess boardStep 6

Work the remaining, outer row of triangles in the square motif.  Again, work the side of the new triangle that shares a pre-cut side with the previously worked triangle first.  Then cut the remaining two sides.

chip carving a chess boardStep 7

Next we will cut the small square chip rows that create the side border of the pattern. These small squares are worked holding the chip knife at the same angle to the wood as you did for the larger square motif triangles. For this design the small squares are alternated with small squares of negative space.

chip carving a chess boardStep 8

The curved edge chips on the sides of the large square motif are worked next and treated at three individual chips to make to complete chip pattern.  There are two three-piece curved edge chips on each side of the large square motif.  Begin by cutting the straight sided triangle that joins the large square motif.  Cut the side of this triangle that touches the cut area of the large square motif first, then cut the remaining two sides.

chip carving a chess boardStep 9

Work one curve-edge triangle at a time. For the first curve-edge triangle cut along the straight side that touches the triangles cut in step 7 first.

Next, gently roll or curve the direction of the knife blade to match the curve of the pattern line for the next side of the curve-edge triangle chip.  Cut the remaining curve-edge side of this triangle.

chip carving a chess boardStep 10

The inner row of this border pattern is created using small triangles and is cut in the same method as the large triangles in the design. So far we have cut each triangle as an independent chip, working through all of the sides of one complete chip before moving to the next.

You can gang cut chip shapes instead of working them one by one.  In gang cutting you cut all of the matching sides of the triangles in an area or group at one time. Example, you can cut all of the small triangle accents along the side that touches the large motif first.  Then, rotating the board you cut all of the sides of the row that are at 90 degrees to the main border pattern.
The last cutting session works all of the diagonal line cuts for each of the small triangles.

Gang cutting reduces the time need to cut each triangles individually, and reduces the time needed to rotate the board for each and every cut.

chip carving a chess boardStep 11

The inner negative space diamond in the large square motif is worked next by making a small two-cut chip that cuts the inner leg of the inner row triangles.

Lay your blade, at the 45 degree angle, onto the wood at the center point of this inner triangle leg.  Push the knife down to cut a small line that goes through the chip wall and into the un-carved diamond area. Turn the knife blade over in your hand and angle the blade away form the first cut at the 45 degree angle. Cut along the same line.  This releases a small triangle of wood from the diamond.

chip carving a chess boardStep 12

Repeat steps 3 through 11 to cut the game board squares.  Work the large square motifs first, followed by working the alternating squares areas.

 

 

chip carving a chess boardStep 13

When all of the chips have been worked remove the paper pattern from the wood.

Check your work for any small problems and correct as necessary. I will note here that in my experience no two chips will ever be exactly alike.  In any chip carving there always seems to be a few chips that are not exactly on the pattern line, or perhaps have a little deeper or shallower well.

Unless you are placing your chip carving into a contest or carving show, you are the only person that will ever inspect each and every chip that you carved in a full design.

Make what adjustments that you need to but do not become over obsessed with re-working each and every chip that you have carved.

Consistency comes with practice.  So for the new chip carvers I suggest that instead of spending a great deal of time re-working one practice project that you move onto your next.  In time most of the small problems or errors will resolve by repeated chip carving.

chip carving a chess boardStep 14

I finished my practice board by applying two coats of linseed oil mixed 1 to 1 with turpentine.  The oil finishes deepens the wood and sharpens the shadows in the chip wells.  Allow the oil to dry overnight. Work the wood with two to three coats of paste wax, allowing each coat to dry

 

Chip Carving Workshop
Available at Amazon.com!

Chip Carving Workshop by Lora Irish takes you through all of the essential chip carving techniques, from tool sharpening and preparation to hand positions, chip cutting, and finishing. You’ll discover how to use both geometric shapes and free form designs to create wonderfully detailed patterns. Practice projects will have you decorating household items and creating artistic pieces in a variety of original designs. Hope chests, wooden Chip Carving Workshop by Lora S Irishspoons, jewelry chests, clocks, candle plates, serving trivets and decorative plaques are just a few ideas for your new chip carving skills.

Tomorrow, our last day for this Free Online Chip Carving Seminar by Lora Irish, we will look at a basic needle art style Sampler Layout using the free chip carving patterns that are posted to this thread.  Thanks for reading today!

Chip Carved Chess and Game Board Read More »

Chip Carving – Cutting Straight-Wall, Curve-Wall, and Free Form Chips

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cutting a straight-wall chip carvingIn today’s free online Chip Carving Seminar by Lora Irish, we look at the wood carving cuts used to create straight-wall, curve-edge, and free form chips in your chip carving patterns.

 

 

 

Chip Carving Seminar by Lora Irish


Chip Carving Seminar
Chip Carving Supplies
Chip Carving Graphed Patterns
Chip Carving Hand Positions and Grips
Chip Carving – Triangles and Square Chips
Chip Carving – Straight-Wall Chips
Chip Caved Game and Chess Board
Chip Carving Sampler Pattern Layout
Chip Carving Common Mistakes
Chip Carved Shortbread Cookies

 

 

cutting straight-wall chips in chip carvingStraight-Wall Chips

Straight-wall chips have two sides of a triangle chip cut at or near 90 degrees to the board. The third side of the triangle is cut by laying the knife blade extremely low to the board and slicing the blade back to the intersection point of the other two sides. This creates a sloped floor the chip well.

A straight-wall chip can have several layers of straight-wall work within one larger chip. In the photo example to the right, after the chip area was worked as a straight-wall and second straight-wall chip was laid inside the first. The second small chip has a deeper slope to the chip floor. You can use either a large chip carving knife or a detail bench knife to cut the third wall sloping floor.

cutting straight-wall chips in chip carvingCUT 1

Holding the knife at or near 90 degrees to the board cut along one of the sides of the chip that will be the wall of the deepest point of the sloped floor.

 

 

cutting straight-wall chips in chip carvingCUT 2

Cut the second wall of the deep side of the chip floor at or near 90 degrees. The deepest point of the cut for both straight walls are at the intersection of those lines.

 

 

cutting straight-wall chips in chip carvingCUT 3

Lay the knife blade low to the wood along the third side of the chip. Push the knife towards the intersecting corner of the straight-wall sides.

 

Cutting Double Straight-Wall Chips

Straight-wall chips can contain multiple wall levels worked in the direction of the first wall or worked on a new diagonal line.  Each new straight-wall is worked exactly as the first, main straight-wall of the chip.  Both chips of a double straight-wall chip share the same sloped third side of the cut.

cutting double straight-wall chipsCut 1

Cut your the main walls of the larger straight-wall chip.  With a pencil mark where the new, inner straight-wall will fall inside of the larger chip.   Cut the first side or leg of your smaller, inner wall at a 90 degree angle to the wood.

 

cutting double straight-wall chipsCut 2 and 3

Cut the second straight-side of the inner, smaller straight-wall chip at a 90 degree angle to the wood.

Lay your bench knife or chip knife low to the wood and slice the third wall into the straight-wall corner of the inner chip.

 

cutting a curve-wall chip in chip carvingCurve-Edged Chips

Adding a curved edge to a triangle or square chip breaks the design out of the angular effect that chip carving can have. The curved side of the chip is treated exactly as a straight side by angling the knife blade point towards the center point or center line of the well. As you cut the curved side of the chip, roll the blade of your knife along the pattern line to create.

CUT 1

The heart pattern, above, uses triangles with three curved sides to establish the heart in the negative space of the design. Cut one side of this curved chip, following the pattern lines, and angling the blade point to the center of the chip well.

cutting a curve-wall chip in chip carvingCUT 2

Cut along the second side, following the curve of the pattern, and angling the blade point to the center of the chip well.

 

 

cutting a curve-wall chip in chip carvingCUT 3

The third side is cut as the first two and will release the chip from the board.

 

Free Form Chips

Free form chips use two to three sides to create long, curved v-trough lines. Entire patterns as roosters or dancing figures can be create using just free form work.

cutting a free form chip in chip carvingCUT 1

Place the point of the chip knife at the beginning of the free form line at or near a 45 degree angle to the wood, angled away from the line. Using increasing gentle pressure, push the point of the knife deeper into the wood as you pull the cut until you reach the mid-point of the line. Slowly lift the knife from the wood as you complete the second half of the line cut.

 

cutting a free form chip in chip carvingCUT 2

Turn the board 180 degrees to make the second cut. Work the second side of the free form cut exactly as you worked the first.

 

 

cutting a free form chip in chip carvingCUT 3

Small oval-shaped leaf cuts can be made by laying the knife blade at a closer angle to the wood. In the photo above, the central motif uses two free form oval-shaped leaf cuts with adjoining sides. It also contains long, curved accent free form lines below the motif.

 

stab knife chip cutsStab Knife Accents

The stab knife is held in an upright position, 90 degrees, to the wood.  The metal at the blade tip is tapered from a wide area at the point which slowly narrows along the cutting edge as it nears the handle.  By pushing the knife point directly into the wood you can cut small wedge-shaped accent lines.

Some stab knives have both sides of the blade point angle sharpened.  This style of chip carving knife can be used to push the blade into the triangle or square chip pattern lines to cut the walls of the chip.

sample chip carving pattern Sample Chip Carving for Straight-wall, Curve-edge, and Free Form Chip Carving

You now know how to cut all of the chips in the sample chip carving to the right.  This particular chip carving design, by Lora Irish, contains triangle chips, square chips, straight-wall chips, curve-edge chips, free form chips, and stab knife chip accents.

 

 Today’s Practice Board Pattern

straight-wall chip carving patternTomorrow we will work through a Chess Board – Game Board Chip Carving Pattern.

 

Chip Carving – Cutting Straight-Wall, Curve-Wall, and Free Form Chips Read More »

Chip Carving – Cutting Triangle and Square Chips

4 Comments / Chip Carving / By

Triangle Chips in Chip CarvingIn today’s free online Chip Carving Seminar by Lora Irish, we look at the wood carving cuts used to create triangle and square chips in your chip carving patterns.

 

 

Chip Carving Seminar by Lora Irish

Chip Carving Seminar
Chip Carving Supplies
Chip Carving Graphed Patterns
Chip Carving Hand Positions and Grips
Chip Carving – Triangles and Square Chips
Chip Carving – Straight-Wall Chips
Chip Caved Game and Chess Board
Chip Carving Sampler Pattern Layout
Chip Carving Common Mistakes
Chip Carved Shortbread Cookies

 

 

free chip carving patterns

Triangle Chip Patterns

The triangle and square are the primary shapes in most chip carving patterns.  In the sample, right, you will see six different ways you can cut one 3×2 grid diamond motif using these two geometric units.  Any chip carving pattern can easily be altered by simply dividing the triangles in your pattern into smaller triangles.

In my chip carving patterns the outer edge of any chip unit is shown in black, the inner liner shown in blue represent the individual cuts that make up that shape.

In row one the diamond is cut in four separate chip cuts to create one deep well at the center point of the diamond.  The second row divides the diamond shape into two individual triangle chips and does row three.  By the fourth row you can see that this same diamond shape can also be cut using four distinct triangle chip units.

By using just these six sample diamonds you can create multiple chip carved borders or motifs.

 

cutting triangle chips in chip carvingThree-Sided Triangle Chip

The three-sided triangle chip is made with three cuts, turning the board with each new cut.  This releases a small chip of wood, leaving an inverted pyramid shape in the board.
The angle at which the knife approaches the wood determines the depth of the chip cut.  A low angle makes a shallow chip, a steep angle cuts a deep chip.

 

cutting triangle chips in chip carvingCUT 1

The first cut is made by placing the point of the blade along one side of the triangle, holding the blade at a 45 degree angle to to the wood.

The knife is pushed in to the wood until the blade edge has cut along the full length of that leg.  For large chip triangles the knife blade is pulled along the pattern line.

 

cutting triangle chips in chip carvingCUT 2

Turn the wood to bring the next leg of the triangle into position for cutting. Lay the point of the knife at the beginning point of the next leg.  Push the knife into the wood until the entire leg is cut.

 

 

cutting triangle chips in chip carvingCUT 3

Turn the wood to bring the last leg of the triangle into position for cutting. Lay the point of the knife into the point at the end of the last cut line which should be at the beginning of the leg.  Push the knife into to the wood until the entire length is cut.

 

 

 

cutting square chips in chip carvingSquare and Rectangle Chips

Square and rectangle chips are created with four angled cuts, similar to the triangle chip.  This pattern of chip is excellent to add small accents to a larger designs and for large area fill patterns.

 

 

cutting square chips in chip carvingCUT 1 – 4

A square chip is worked exactly as a triangular chip, cutting each side of the square with the blade  point angled towards the center point of the well. Cut along one side of the square, then turn the board to cut the next side.  When all four cuts have been made a small pyramid shaped chip will be released. Rectangular patterns will have a long, centrally placed line in the well.  This long line parallels the long sides of the rectangle.  Rectangle chips are commonly used in chip carved lettering.

 

chip carving cutsCutting Adjacent Triangle and Square Chips

Most chips that you cut will share one or more sides with another chip.  Begin a motif with touching or shared-side chips by working the inside chip first, working each series of new chips out from the center.  In the photo sample, right, one row of triangle chips touch the inside square of the motif.  The second, outer row of triangles touch the outer square lines of the motif.

cutting adjacent chips in chip carvingWork each new chip by cutting  the trapped angle of the chip along one shared-side line, working from the inside point towards the outside point of the triangle.  The second cut is made from the same inside trapped angle out towards the outer point of the line on the second side of the trapped angle.

 

 

cutting adjacent chips in chip carvingThe third cut is made on the free side of the triangle, releasing the chip.  Working form the trapped angle avoids the inner-trapped point of the chip from breaking out.

 

 

 

 

free chip carving pattern by Lora IrishToday’s Free Chip Carving Practice Pattern

Please click on the image to the right for a full-sized printable chip carving pattern to use for your practice board.  You may either transfer your chip carving pattern using a pencil grid or by using removable spray adhesive.  Remember chip carving takes practice to create clean, smooth, even sides to each chip.  So print several copies.

Chip Carving – Cutting Triangle and Square Chips Read More »

Chip Carving Hand Positions and Grips

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chip carved cookie pressToday’s session of our Free Online In-depth wood carving Winter 2014 Seminar, taught by Lora Irish, wood carving and pyrography book author and line art pattern maker, will focus on the hand positions and knife cutting positions for chip carving.

 

 

Chip Carving Seminar
Chip Carving Supplies
Chip Carving Graphed Patterns
Chip Carving Hand Positions and Grips
Chip Carving – Triangles and Square Chips
Chip Carving – Straight-Wall Chips
Chip Caved Game and Chess Board
Chip Carving Sampler Pattern Layout
Chip Carving Common Mistakes
Chip Carved Shortbread Cookies

 

 


As a small treat I have posted my favorite shortbread cookie recipe that I use with my handmade chip carved cookie presses.  Hope you enjoy them as much as my family does.

Basic Hand Positions for Chip Carving

How you hold your knife and how you rest your hand against your chip carving wood project determines the angle of the chip walls.  Let’s look at the basic positions used to create the angle and depth of your cuts.

Lay your chip knife into the palm of your hand, with the top edge of the wood handle in the bend of your index finger.  The handle crosses the palm along the natural fold of the palm.  Keep a light, loose grip.  Too much tension on the knife can make large cuts difficult to execute and will cause your hand to tire quickly.

triangle chip carving cutThree and Four Sided Chips

The three-sided triangle chip is the most common cut chip in this wood carving style.  The knife is held at 45 degrees to the wood as it is pushed into one leg of the triangle.  The point of the blade cuts to the center point of the well inside the chip.  In the photo, the black dot in the center of the triangle pattern is the point of the chip well.

 

straight-wall chip carving cutStraight-wall Chips

Straight-wall chips have two sides of the chip cut with the knife between 85 to 90 degrees of the wood.  The intersection point of these two sides creates the deepest corner of the chip.  The knife is places with the point of the blade at the corner point of the two straight sides, then pushed into the wood.

 

straight-wall chip carving cutSloped Floor to Straight-wall Chips

To create the sloped floor of the straight-wall chip the knife is dropped low to the wood.  Slide the blade point into the straight-wall corner, thinly slicing the third side of this chip.  For large straight-wall chips I use  a detail wood carving bench knife, instead of my large chip knife.  The added length of the bench knife blade allows me to drop the cut dramatically.

 

curved-edge chip carving cutsCurved-edge Chips

Many designs have curved-edges to some of the chips.  Curves are cut by changing the angle of the knife from the wood as you move the blade through the curved line.  Begin with your knife held at a 45 degree angle to the wood.  As you pull the knife towards the center point of the pattern line, gradually drop the angle of the blade to the wood – close to a 30 degree angle.  To work the second half of the pattern line, gradually raise the blade back to the 45 degree position.

Changing the angle as you pull through the stroke enables to blade point to reach the center point in the chip well.

Free Form Lines

Free form lines are made using two side cuts instead of the traditional three or four-sided chips.  This creates a v-trough line that begins at a fine point, widens at the center point of the line, then narrows back to a point.  Use the same knife angles as you would for a curved-edge chip.

chip carving sampleSample Chip Carving

The chip carving sample, shown right, uses all of the basic chip styles – triangle, square, straight-wall, curved-edge, and free form.  You can see how the angle of the blade to the wood determines the slope of the chip walls.

As a fun note, the bottom three large leaf-shaped cuts are cut as a curved-edge or free form chip.  This type of chip was very common during the early 1900’s and often called Spoon Carving.

 

negative space in wood chip carvingPositive and Negative Space

The areas that you cut in a chip carving are called positive space – these areas have actually been worked.  Those areas that you do not cut and that are left at the original level of the wood are called negative space – space you have not cut.

You can dramatically change the look of any chip carving pattern by controlling the positive and negative space in the design.  In the photo sample you can clearly see a zig-zag pattern beneath the top border chip carved pattern.  The dramatic shadows inside of the straight-wall chips in the rows above and below this un-carved line makes that zig-zag prominent.  In the large border pattern, below the zig-zag, an inverted diamond has been left un-carved.  Again, the shadows of the straight-wall chips that surround this area brings that diamond visually forward.  The small cross pattern inside the un-carved diamond was made using a push stroke with the stab knife.

Free Chip Carving Pattern by Lora IrishToday’s Free Chip Carving Patterns by Lora Irish from LSIrish.com.

Click on the image, right, for a full-sized printable pattern.

Here’s your treat for today!  Over the weekend please gather your supplies – basswood practice boards, chip carving knives, removable spray adhesive, 320-grit sandpaper.  On Monday, January 20th we will begin cutting the sample patterns using the six types of chip carving cuts – triangle, square and rectangle, straight-wall, curved-edge, free form, and accent chips.

Thanks for reading!

Chip Carving Hand Positions and Grips Read More »

Chip Carving Graphed Patterns

3 Comments / Chip Carving / By

In today’s Chip Carving Free Online Seminar by Lora Irish we will discuss how to prepare your wood board, how to transfer your pattern, and how to set up a chip carving practice board.

Chip Carving Seminar by Lora Irish

Chip Carving Seminar
Chip Carving Supplies
Chip Carving Graphed Patterns
Chip Carving Hand Positions and Grips
Chip Carving – Triangles and Square Chips
Chip Carving – Straight-Wall Chips
Chip Caved Game and Chess Board
Chip Carving Sampler Pattern Layout
Chip Carving Common Mistakes
Chip Carved Shortbread Cookies

 

 

 

Wood Preparation

sanding basswood plaqueAny wood surface will require a light sanding using 320-grit sandpaper.  Rough surfaces can cause your chip knife to grab or hesitate as you make the cutting stroke.
Sand in the direction of the wood grain to avoid adding fine scratch lines from the paper.  Wipe the board well with a lint-free dry cloth to remove the sanding dust.

 

Pattern tracing using graphite paper

how to trace a pattern to woodIf the pattern is small and you have a printed copy of the design you can use graphite paper to trace the image to the wood.  Center the printed pattern to the wood and tape it into place along one edge.  Slide the graphite paper under the pattern.  Using a ruler, compass, or straight edge and a hard pencil, mark along each line.  After the cutting is complete the tracing lines can be erased.

Advantages – Tracing has the advantage when you are transferring your pattern to curved surface or when you want your chips in one oddly shaped area on the wood.  In the photo sample the carving board is oval and the pattern has that same oval.  Tracing with graphite paper made it easy to cut the pattern along the oval shape and align it properly with the board.

Disadvantages – Hand tracing, even when you use a ruler and compass, does not always give you perfectly matched chip sizes or perfectly straight cutting lines.  Take time to double-check your line accuracy before you begin cutting.  After the chip carving is complete you will need to remove any remaining tracing lines using a white eraser.  For stubborn lines a light sanding with 320-grit sandpaper may be necessary.

Graphing directly to the wood

free chip carving wood patternBecause most chip carving patterns are geometric they can easily be graphed direct onto the board.

Using a small t-square, a ruler, and hard pencil mark the grid to your board.    The size of each unit determines the final size of the chip motif – a 1/3” space will create larger chip motifs than a 1/4” spacing.  With a soft pencil, to mark darker lines, pencil in your motif using the grid guidelines.

Advantages – Creating the pencil graph directly to the wood means that your knife is cutting directly into each chip wall.  There is no graphite paper that might slide as you create the chip lines and there is no pattern paper between you and the wood as you work.

Disadvantages – Your final chip carving will only be as accurate as your pencil grid.  Use a small t-square to mark all of your grid lines, sliding the square across one edge of the board.  After the chip carving is complete use a white eraser to remove the pencil grid.  A light sanding using 320-grit sandpaper will remove any stubborn lines.

Applying a graphed pattern with removable spray adhesive

free chip carving wood patternSpray adhesives allow you to temporarily glue the printed pattern directly to your wood board.  You can cut your chips following the printed paper lines.  After the chip carving is complete the remaining pattern paper can be lifted from the wood, leaving a clean, unblemished background.

Read and follow the directions of the label for the best results when using spray adhesives.  After the pattern has been affixed to the wood allow the paper to dry completely before you begin your cutting steps.

Advantages – By using a printed, adhered pattern you know that each chip cutting line is absolutely accurate.  The bright white of the paper and the black chip outlines makes it easy to know where you have cut and where you still need to work.  When the pattern is removed the background wood is clean, there will be no tracing or pencil lines to remove.

Disadvantages – Spray adhesives can become permanently affixed to your wood.  Do a test sample on a practice board before you use this method on your larger project.  Be sure to clean the nozzle of your spray adhesive can before you coat your pattern paper, a clogged nozzle can cause your spray to become uneven in coverage and it can leave small clumps of adhesive that are hard to cut.  Spray adhesive patterns can come loose during the cutting steps.

This often happens where one chip lies against another.  The loose side of paper can both block your view of your next cut as well as get in the way of the knife blade.  If this happens lightly score the pattern paper along the outer lines of the chip you are cutting.  This releases just the paper chip so that you can remove it.  Now cut along the score lines.

Simplifying the Pattern

free chip carving wood patternAs you view the free chip carving patterns that are being offered with this seminar you will note that the outer lines of each chip is marked with a black line.  The inner cuts that make the well of the chip are marked with blue lines.  If you are tracing or graphing your pattern the inner lines do not need to be transferred to your board.  Instead, after the outer lines have been graphed with a #4 soft pencil or a fine point marker, place one small dot inside the chip to note where the center point of the chip well will be.  One dot, centered in the chip well will note a three or four-sided chip cut.  One dot placed in one corner of the chip well will note a straight-wall cut where the third chip wall slopes into the corner.

Chip Carving Graph Paper

The two square girds below are 100 dpi for accuracy.  Please click on each image to view the full-sized pattern.  Save to your computer.  You can Click and Print as many copies as you need.  As we work through the practice board grids over the next few days I will be using a blank grid and pencil marking the chip motifs.

free 1/4" graph paper free 1/3" graph paper
1/4″ chip grid 1/3″ chip grid

 

Today’s Free Chip Carving Pattern

free chip carving wood patternNext we will look at hand positions for cutting your chips, common problems, and positive and negative space in chip carving.  We are getting very close to cutting a few chips.  Thank you for reading!

 

 

 

Chip Carving Graphed Patterns Read More »

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