The Build-It Blog

Carving a Mouse (The Teaching of Whittling This Fall - Continued pt3)

04/29/2021 By Yoav Liberman

For the previous segment in this series please click here.

Once the body of the mouse is completed my students were ready to open the gap between the ears of the mouse. First, they formed a “V” shape valley in between the two ears by pushing the carving knife at an angle to the right and then to the left. Then they enlarged the “V” at its base to resemble a “U”. After this, the students rounded the front and back of the ear, and finally are ready to hollow out the inner ear using a small gouge.

Carving a Mouse (The Teaching of Whittling This Fall - Continued pt3) 2

Carving a Mouse (The Teaching of Whittling This Fall - Continued pt3) 2

Carving a Mouse (The Teaching of Whittling This Fall - Continued pt3) 3

Carving a Mouse (The Teaching of Whittling This Fall - Continued pt3) 4

Carving a Mouse (The Teaching of Whittling This Fall - Continued pt3) 5

Carving a Mouse (The Teaching of Whittling This Fall - Continued pt3) 6

Carving a Mouse (The Teaching of Whittling This Fall - Continued pt3) 7

Carving a Mouse (The Teaching of Whittling This Fall - Continued pt3) 8

My approach for hollowing the ear is as follows. First, draw the contour of the excavation - this is a line that recedes about an ⅛” from the ears’ rim and forms an oblong or an “egg” shape. Then drew a dot in the center of the “egg”. Then, with a small gouge start gouging “flower petals” in a circular pattern around the center. Cut the small petals around the dot by pushing in and angling down. Stop pushing when the edge of the gouge is under the dot and DO NOT scoop up the petal. The idea is that the “flower” will pop out naturally when the last petal has been cut. Once the first flower is removed increase the diameter of the gouging to form wider and deeper flowers until you have reached the rims of the ear or the egg shape contour.

At this point, we are ready to sand the mouse.
Carving a Mouse (The Teaching of Whittling This Fall - Continued pt3) 9

Carving a Mouse (The Teaching of Whittling This Fall - Continued pt3) 9

Carving a Mouse (The Teaching of Whittling This Fall - Continued pt3) 10

Carving a Mouse (The Teaching of Whittling This Fall - Continued pt3) 11

After we open a gap in between the two ears and round them over we are ready for some gouging of the inner ear. Here, my student is using a small gouge and work around the ear's center to hollow it out.

Once the body was sanded the student drilled a hole in the mouse’s rear end and glued in a leather tail that I pre-made. Lastly, I asked the student to bring me the mouse and with a carving knife, I cut the mouse’s eyes. I then handed the mouse back to the student so she or he could apply a coat of beeswax paste finish on the wood.
[image 4, 5,6,7,9,10]
Carving a Mouse (The Teaching of Whittling This Fall - Continued pt3) 12

Carving a Mouse (The Teaching of Whittling This Fall - Continued pt3) 12

Carving a Mouse (The Teaching of Whittling This Fall - Continued pt3) 13

Carving a Mouse (The Teaching of Whittling This Fall - Continued pt3) 14

Carving a Mouse (The Teaching of Whittling This Fall - Continued pt3) 15

Carving a Mouse (The Teaching of Whittling This Fall - Continued pt3) 16

Carving a Mouse (The Teaching of Whittling This Fall - Continued pt3) 17

A few more notes: The inner ear can be carved out with a whittling knife too. Hold the mouse secured and begin shaping a round cavity by poking the tip of the knife and then circling it around the tip as if you were using a compass and increasing the radius bit by bit.
Carving a Mouse (The Teaching of Whittling This Fall - Continued pt3) 18

Carving a Mouse (The Teaching of Whittling This Fall - Continued pt3) 18

When my students finished the mouse I presented to them their next projects which I will talk about next time.

N.B. While my middle school and high school students are using whittling knives to carve their animals, the lower school children are using a simple set of needle rasps. I chose the rasps for their enhanced safety and simplicity. Over the coats of the year, I learned that the rasps can work well, and in some cases even better than the knife. They are especially effective with harder woods than bass or in situations where the rasp’s geometry allows it to work in tandem with the shape of the intended design - for example when working with coves.

Add a Comment

Comments are closed.

Last

The opinions expressed in this blog are those of the blog's author and guests and in no way reflect the views of Tools for Working Wood.

Newer Entries...
	Dado Joint Earring Display - 09/23/2021
	Filling Your Toolbox - 08/19/2021
	Your Tools - 07/29/2021
	Pilot Holes - 07/15/2021
	Something Found - 07/01/2021
	Coloring Shou Sugi Ban - 06/17/2021
	Fired Again - Shousugiban Patio Furniture - 06/03/2021
	New Floors - Part 2 - 05/20/2021
	New Floors - Part I - Preparation - 05/06/2021
	Carving a Mouse (The Teaching of Whittling This Fall - Continued pt3) - 04/29/2021
	Finishing your Spoon - Wire Metal Inlay - 03/25/2021
	Simple Project - Tea Lights - 03/04/2021
	Pop Quiz! - 02/11/2021
	Carving a Mouse (The Teaching of Whittling This Fall - Continued) - 02/04/2021
	New Year's Resolution: To Be Less Perfect - 01/07/2021
	A Profound Change of Plans, or The Teaching of Whittling This Fall, Part 2 - 11/19/2020
	If It Looks Like a Spoon - 10/30/2020
	Tabula Rasa, or, Spoon Blanks. - 10/16/2020
	A Profound Change of Plans, or The Teaching of Whittling This Fall, Part 1 - 10/08/2020
	Spoon carving or "But you never told me!" - 10/01/2020
Older Entries...

Hours: M-F 9:00-5:00, closed Sat,Sun
Our Guarantee & Return Policy
Shipping and Sales Tax Info
Privacy Policy
Holiday Calendar

Contact Us: Email: support@toolsforworkingwood.com
Phone: 800-426-4613 or 718-499-5877
Visit Us in Brooklyn: Directions to Our Showroom
© 1999-2019 toolsforworkingwood.com
Powered by 01 Inc. Coded entirely in NYC