Creative Woodworks & crafts 2000-10, страница 36

Full Size Pattern Section No. 2!

ACANTHUS ROSETTE

by Ivan Whillock

INSTRUCTIONS

A word from the designer This is a traditional pattern that can be varied for many applications. Use it to decorate boxes, furniture, or for architectural accents. Shrink or enlarge the pattern to fit the space you have for it. Preliminary shaping can be done on the lathe, following the contour illustrated, or you can merely cut out a circle and carve the entire shape.

Adjusting the pattern

While it is possible to draw a pattern that conforms exactly to the sweeps of the tools, that would be a very laborious process and would be time poorly spent. After all, not everyone has exactly the same tools. The more efficient way is to create an approximate pattern with freehand shapes that indicate the general arcs you want. Then, in the process of carving, adjust the pattern to the sweeps of the tools you have.

One more point: when you select a tool to make a stop cut around a specific segment of the pattern, use that same tool to cut the identical shapes in the other three segments. The uniformity of the resultant carving is due to the fact that the cuts are tool specific, and that the same tool is used repeatedly throughout the pattern. Think tool specific. That is, take advantage of the given shape of each carving tool. Let the pattern help

SUPPLIES

Wood: butternut or wood of choice— 1" x 9"-Dia. I

circular plaque Tools: Nos. 3-6mm, 3-16mm, 5-12mm, 5-20mm, I and 7-20mm gouges; No. 41-12mm V tool; | No. 11-3mm veiner I

Graphite paper |

Stylus |

_; Shallow screws |

Pegboard |

Workbench |

Clamps I

Finish of choice |

you place the cuts and suggest their shape, but don't be a slave to it. Allow the shape of the tool to create the actual form, then you can easily repeat that form elsewhere on the pattern. You create uniformity not with a pencil but with the carving tool.

Carve the plaque

Step 1. Trace the pattern onto your wood using graphite paper and the stylus. Attach the plaque with shallow screws onto a pegboard backing which can then be clamped to your workbench.

Step 2. Using the No. 7-20mm gouge, make plunge stop cuts around the center circle. The center circle can be slightly larger or smaller with no loss to the design. If you don't have a gouge to exactly fit the circle, adjust the size of the circle to fit the gouge you do have. You can determine the circles your tools will make by turning them in a piece of scrap wood. Tip: you may wish to make circle impressions of all of your tools on a single board and keep it for reference. Step 3. Using the same tool, carve away surrounding material to relieve the center circle about 1/4". Step 4. Using tools that fit the arcs, make plunge stop cuts around the outside edge of the pattern, removing about 3/16" of wood. Caution: be sure to tilt the tool away from the pattern so that you do not undercut the form. Always avoid undercutting which weakens the edge both visually and physically. Step 5. Make plunge cuts along the inside lines of the carving, again using the same tool for all four of the similar arcs.

Step 6. Remove wood to layer the pattern. Commonly, acanthus patterns have an "eye" or an oval shape formed when one leaf overlaps another. In each of the four segments of the carving, the two leaves around the

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