Malachite Kingfisher

 Sometimes a customer likes to see me challenged. This was one of those times. The request was for a Malachite Kingfisher with the crest feathers raised.

 
The crest feathers were individually carved. Each one is about 3 mm wide and between 6 and 20 mm long. I don't recommend dropping and stepping on them. I ended up making a lot more than I had planned.

Eastern Chipmunk

Recently I had a request for a Chipmunk holding an acorn. 

 

First I created a clay model.

Next I turned the acorn on a lathe.

                           

                  

  

                Then I cut the profile out of basswood and started shaping.

 

 

 

I decided to compare the carving to a live chipmunk. 

At first he was a little camera shy.

Then he decided to pose nicely. 
More work needs to be done.

 Everything is pretty well shaped up. 
The lower part of the tail is carved out of the same block of wood as the rock.

Here's the finished carving, painted with acrylics.

Flicker Carving Video

Here's a brief video of the Northern Flicker that I recently carved.