Bark Ornament

 A good way to use small pieces of cottonwood bark is to carve small houses. These are carved on both sides and I wood burned the wood boards. I found some small birds in a craft store and I pinned them unto the roof. Also the snow is Snow-tex from DecoArt.

Key Marco Cat

There is an interesting history of this carving, it had been carved with primitive tools such as sea shells, shark teeth, and bones. It is 6 inches tall. I carved it out of cottonwood bark. A pattern was in Woodcarving Illustrated. I found a rear view with a internet search. It was a challenge to carve with carving tools, some of the detail doesn't show in my pictures. 

Christmas Ornament

This ornament was carved from Cottonwood bark. It is about 6 inches long. The back is slightly carved inward. I dry painted the top edges of the hair and beard with silver acrylic paint. It was then brushed with a satin lacquer for a natural finish.   

Olde World Santa

I carved this Santa in Cottonwood bark. It is 10 inches tall and 3 inches wide. This is the first time I tried painting something in bark. I like to carve something in the back
of the piece.

Indian in Bark

This Native Indian was carved from a 10 inch piece of Cottonwood bark.With the grain of the bark it has light and dark lines. When taking a picture of the piece it changes with light at different camera angles.

Bark House

This is the finished scene with the bark house and tree I started at West Glacier. I used Cottonwood bark for the base. The back of the house is deep enough to add a light. I will add a piece of cardboard to the back, that will focus the light to the front.   

Night Light in Bark

When I saw the night light in Woodcarving Illustrated I knew I had to carve a small house with a light. The house is 3 1/2 inches tall. The night light has a LED bulb and gives a lot of light.

Outhouse

When I was growing up we had an outhouse like many families without running water in the house. Many had two seats. Now you see a lot of porta potties around. This carving is cottonwood bark and is about 6 inches tall. I added the door handle and the hinges were carved in. I burned in the nails and the door on the inside.

War Eagle

One of the classes at the NW Carving Academy in Ellensburg, Washington was taught by Jeff Harness. I am very happy the way this Native American Indian turned out and the instruction from Jeff. It was carved out of Cottonwood bark, 10 inches by 4 inches and 3 inches thick. The bark had a crack on the side which bark can have at times. It was a week long course at the fair grounds. A  couple of evenings I wood burned a horse on basswood. It was my attempt to shade. 

 

Red Fox

This carving is a stylistic red fox out of cottonwood bark. The fox is 7 inches long. The finish is hand rubbed Tru-Oil, which is a blend of linseed oil and natural oils that they use on gun stocks. The base is also cottonwood bark and it has a satin lacquer finish. 

Village Tree's

Every year my wife sets up this village for the holidays.It was in desperate need of some trees. I carved these trees in cotton wood bark. I penciled out U's all the way down a cone shape and used a knife and a gouge to cut the branches. I painted the tree with a green wash and added some snow. It is a great addition to this village.

Indian with Braids

The holiday season has come upon us. Thanksgiving is just a few days away.  Thanksgiving Day is traditionally a day for families and friends to get together for a special meal. The meal often includes a turkey, stuffing, potatoes, cranberry sauce, gravy, pumpkin pie, and vegetables. Thanksgiving Day is a time for many people to give thanks for what they have. I too have many things to be thankful for.

The native american is carved out of cottonwood bark. It's about 11 inches tall. In carving the braids, Don Mertz gave an explanation on how to carve the braids. Draw a zig zag line down the braid. Extend the upward lines to the edge of the braid. Use a v-tool and knife to separate and shape the segments. I hope this helps.

Pumpkin With a Roof

This is a Halloween carving in cottonwood bark. It is 5 inches tall. The back has been relieved to fit a tea candle inside. A flap of mat board was added to reflect the light towards the front. I tinted the pumpkin with orange oil paint. I didn't want it too orange, but I think it could be a bit more to contrast it from the rest of the carving.

 

Indian in Cottonwood Bark

I've been working hard at carving the face in bark. I was thrilled to win a best of division at the Spokane carving show.

Log House

This log house is carved in cottonwood bark. It is 6 inches tall. I wanted the roof to look like sod so I glued a piece of bark on top so the two pieces of bark are facing in different directions. I added some furniture inside the house. This carving took me back a few years when I was a kid. When I was carving this log house a lady asked how I knew were to place the logs. I told her I had played with Lincoln logs as a kid. I don't think you can even find them anymore, but it was a good learning experience growing up.

 

Wood Spirit

This wood spirit  is carved in cottonwood bark and is 13 inches tall.

Karen

I added a gadget so people from other countries can translate my words to their language. I'm glad that Blogger added this for us since we have a world wide audience.  This is my attempt to carve a woman bust as African art. She is 6 inches tall and 2 1/2 inches wide. She is carved in cottonwood bark. I tried to do something else with the hair but it didn't work. I liked the way it came out and looks good on a corian base.

Light In The Forest

This votive holder is carved out of cottonwood bark. The tree is 8 inches tall and 3 1/4 inches at the bottom branches. The base is 9 inches by 5 inches. I added a little bird  carved out of basswood to add some contrast. I may add some detail and paint the bird later.

Mini House

I carved a couple of houses out of a small pieces of cottonwood bark left over from some other projects. Both are about 2 1/2 inches tall, 3 inches wide and around 2 inches thick. The first house has a lot of detail, with a dormer and side room. The second house is more whimsical with a tree and side room. Both are hollowed out in the back. I took picture from two different angles of each house.

Bob's Weather Wizard

I'm starting with a story, The Lore of the Cottonwood Tree. There is a quiet small valley with a small river winding though. The 100 plus year old Cottonwood tree had it's top broken off and all the branches were gone. The bark was falling on the grass covered ground. The tree was bleached out by the sun. The Cottonwood tree spoke, "I see all the young tree's around me from my seed, but I feel something is missing." A warm breeze came from the south and whispered to the tree, "from your bark it you will be remembered with joy and comfort. Be at peace."  For me it is a joy to find and carve Cottonwood bark. As we grow older we may have some of the same thoughts.

My friend Bob has a weather station, so I wanted to carve him a weather wizard. I don't know if it looks like a wizard, but the face looks like a Norseman to me. I'm attaching a card to it so he has another source for his forecast. It's 8 inches long and 1 1/2 inch diameter. The eye pupils were cut in with a gouge and then burnt in to darken them. Bob said he had the wizard to point to when somebody complained about the weather. He liked it very much.