Creative Woodworks & crafts 2005-11, страница 73

bSM (medium, 3/16"), and FSL (large, 1/4").

Lise the pen like a miniature branding iron to stamp the same pattern over and over again. I know it sounds pretty monotonous, but just try burning 1,782 matching scales for a walking stick with a snake coiled around it, and you'll soon see the advantage of stamping instead of drawing and burning by hand every scale individually (see Carving Magazine, issue #8, page 10). The fish scale pens are also handy for making interesting geometric designs, so don't limit your use of the pens to making just fish, snakes, and lizards. Also, don't forget about mermaids and dragons!

For scales:

When making this fish, 1 used the small fish scale pen for the whole body. I held the pen in this position to create the full-size

scales.

I used the classic fish scale pattern for the body of the fish until 1 reached the belly. In this area, the scales are lighter and less pronounced, so I turned down the heat a hit and binned a more random pattern, gradually omitting more scales as 1 neared the bottom of the fish.

For fins:

I used another pen, the Colewood C-l. to create the fins. Although this pen is intended to be used mainly for calligraphy, it also does a beautiful job of shading. The pen's design is basically a bent wire with no sharp edges, so it glides smoothly in any direction.

In the area just under the dorsal fin where the scales are smaller and darker, you can achieve some variation in Lhe scales by leaning the pen back slightly and burning the scales darker and closer together.

When held vertically, you will burn a thin line, as in the top "Fish." When held at a 45" angle, yon can achieve a thick and thin combination, as in the second "Fish."

ooolimed on page 74 Creative Woodworks S Crafts November 2005 • 73