Easy Sleeping Dog In A Basket

Zoë Gertner creates a slumbering pet carving

Wooden carved sheep curled in bowl on blue fabric.
Sleeping dog in cosy basket with blanket.

A well-meaning gift was left on my doorstep by a neighbour – several slices of wood, big chunky sections from across the trunk of a tree he had recently cut down. They are very pretty pieces with a striking contrast in colour between the sapwood and heartwood. But what to do with them, and how would they carve?

The natural colours of wood relate to the growth of the tree whereby the outer tissue of the sapwood feeds the inner structural core of the heartwood, and by gradually depositing pigments its colour changes from that of the sapwood; this can clearly be seen in various species of timber, some being more evident than others. Saw off a section from across a branch and look closely at the fresh surface – as well as seeing something no eyes have seen before, in most woods you will be able to see a ring of paler coloured sapwood around a darker heartwood in the middle of the section. And it’s interesting to determine its age by counting the growth rings up to the centre, one for each year’s growth.

At some stage in your woodcarving progress, you will encounter some end grain when you are carving ‘in the round’, and unfortunately this is not always straightforward or easy to work. As well as helping you deal with the difficulties you may encounter, this carving shows how you can use the natural colours of the 3 in heartwood and the sapwood in certain species of wood to contrast with each other and thus add further interest to your carvings.

Tools & materials

  • No.3, 1/2in, 3/8in, 1/4in gouge
  • No.39, 1/4in & 1/8in V-tool
  • No.5, 3/8in or 1/4in gouge
  • No.7 or No.8, 1/8in gouge
  • No.9, 1/8in gouge
  • No.11, 1/8in gouge
  • Square stock, file, nail punch & light hammer
  • Wax polish, redundant toothbrush & soft brush

Preparation

Cross-section of a small tree log on surface.
1. For my sleeping pet I used a short section of a branch of yew wood approximately 3in in diameter and 2in in length, the lighter coloured sapwood around the circumference being approximately 1⁄4in wide. Your carving could be of any size you wish but make sure the sapwood around it is sufficiently thick for the basket. Other similar timbers that have contrasting coloured heart and sapwood are plum, laburnum and certain types of cherry. Yew, however, is my choice since it has a particularly creamy coloured sapwood which will contrast nicely with the tan- coloured heartwood matching the coat of my pet
Knife cutting through wooden log end slice.
2. Round over both upper and lower edges of the basket using the No.5, 1/2in gouge. Start by making short cuts, angling them across the upper edge, and cut towards the centre of your wood from all round it. Repeat the cuts again, each time extending them from a little further back and, as you approach the edge, lift your gouge hand upwards and over it, so rounding over the edge. Then around the lower edge of your basket repeat the cuts so that both upper and lower edges are rounded. If need be, adjust the outer surface, the circumference of your wood, so that the width and thickness of the sapwood is uniform around the basket
Chisel carving wood slice with visible rings
3. Next, the rounded upper and lower edges are smoothed. Using the No.3, 1/2in gouge inverted, rest its cutting edge sideways and tilted slightly across the edge, then using the full width of the blade, slice upwards and twist it across the edge, smoothing and removing any irregularities around it along both top and bottom edges. Draw the outline of the basket opening at approximately halfway down on the side of your wood, placing this where the sapwood is at its narrowest if there is some variation of this around your wood
Chisel carving wood on workbench, detail view.
4. Using the 1/4in V-tool, cut around the outline of the opening and the inner edge of the sapwood on the top of your wood. Start your cuts from the middle of the entrance and cutting from here and up each side, curve its pathway around and along the inner edge of the sapwood adjoining the heartwood to join at the back of the basket from each side
Wood carving in progress with chisel tool.
5. Now the sapwood is removed from within the opening. Rest the 3/8in gouge in the horizontal V-channel of the entrance and following the angled side of the V-cut, work round it to the top. Here, invert the gouge and roll it round around the upper corner of the basket to join into the existing V-cut between the sapwood and the heartwood. Repeat this on the opposite side of the entry
Chisel carving wood block on workbench.
6. Using the gouge with the bevel down, angle your cuts towards the previous ones made around the entrance and enlarge the original V-tooled cut across it. Repeat the sets of cuts several times until the heartwood shows at the bottom of the V-cut
Knife carving wood curved groove
7. With the No.5, 3/8in gouge, remove the white sapwood from across the opening, first cutting upwards towards the top then downwards into the enlarged V-channel. When the sapwood has been removed from the opening and the heartwood is visible, round over its edges as described before
Chisel carving into wooden log section.
8. Return to the top and cut the V-channel more deeply around it. Starting at the side of the opening with the V-tool, tilt the tool so that one of its blades is aligned alongside with the inner edge of the sapwood, and the opposite blade will lift out the heartwood adjacent to it, i.e. the end grain on the opposite side of your V-cut, so widening the V-channel
Wood carving with chisel creating a spiral shaving.
9. Now, holding the No.5, 3/8in gouge with its corner within the V-channel and tilted, shear off and remove the edge of the heartwood adjacent to it, thus starting to round over its edge, the dog’s body
Wood bowl carving with chisel tool.
10. At the top of the entry cut upwards and, by lifting your gouge hand over the edge, work towards the centre of your wood to round it over
Carving wood bowl with a metal chisel tool.
11. Repeat the above steps several times with the V-tool and with the No.5, 3/8in gouge, tilted across the edge of its channel to enlarge and deepen the gap between the sap and heartwood, always cutting upwards from all round towards the middle of your wood, similar to peeling away the skin from an apple with a knife. This way, it being end grain, you will be working with the grain and your cuts will be clean and shiny. When all of the heartwood is rounded, reduce the head and haunch areas as shown, making it as smooth as possible and ready to carve the dog inside its basket
Wood carving in progress with chisel on wooden block.
12. Draw the outline of the head and ears on the rounded surface and the line of the spine, curling it round within the basket from the middle of the back of the head to the tip of the tail. Cut round the head and ears using the 1/8in V-tool, starting your cuts from each side of the muzzle. Cut upwards over the rounded surface, meeting the cuts from each side at the back of the head
Close-up of wood chisel carving intricate design.
13. With the corner of the No.5, 3/8in gouge tilted within the V-cut around the head, remove the outer side of the V-channel marking it, cutting upwards and with the grain towards the top of it from each side. Then reduce the adjacent surfaces around the head, again cutting upwards and towards the middle of the wood
Wood carving tool shaping a wooden bowl.
14. Repeat the above steps several times, carefully aligning the blade of the V-tool against the side of the head and removing its adjacent surfaces with the No.5 gouge until the head and ears stand proud. Then widen the space between the inside of the basket and the edge of the ear, angling the ear forwards and towards the front of the basket
Wood carving in progress with a chisel tool.
15. Now deepen the areas beside the muzzle each side using the No.3 or 5, 1/4in gouge and cutting upwards, always with the grain. Reduce the top of the ears at their attachments to the head and round over the top of the head by cutting towards it from each side. Deepen the areas each side of the muzzle further and shape the ends of the ears. Round over the sides of the muzzle, then the back of the head from the neck, slightly hollowing the neck behind each ear. Next reduce the shoulders up to the neck, merging them into the back of the head until all surfaces merge smoothly into each other
Wood carving close-up with a chisel tool
16. Reduce the haunch and back leg area and using the 1/8in V-tool, mark the forelegs and paws beside the muzzle, one resting over the back leg, the other emerging from beneath the ear. Reduce the surfaces adjacent to each foreleg until they stand proud, cutting upwards and with the grain using the No.5, 1/4in gouge as described before. Then with the 1/4in gouge inverted and paring with a slicing action across them from each side, carefully round them over
Wood carving in progress with chisel.
17. Now reduce the forehead, leaving a raised mound for each of the brows above the eyes and start shaping the muzzle up to the eye sockets along both sides. Reduce the haunch, back leg and tail up to the hip, re-drawing the spine, tail and back leg on the fresh surface
Wood carving craft with chisel and wooden bowl.
18. Mark the tail lying over the back leg using the 1/8in V-tool and round over its edges with the No.3, 1/4in gouge. If need be, further reduce the back leg so that the tail lies more proud above it
Wood carving with chisel on wooden bowl
19. Cut the curve around the top of the hind leg with the 1/8in V-tool or No.11, 1/8in gouge and deepen beside the neck and behind the ear, rounding over the edges and folding them into the belly and the curve of the hind leg. From here, round the body upwards to the spine then invert the No.3, 3/8in gouge and by slicing upwards, round over the upper edge of the haunch so that it merges smoothly into the body
Wooden bowl with detailed carvings on workbench.
20. Next, using the No.3, 1/4in gouge and paring upwards towards the spine, cut a gentle hollow behind the shoulder blades and the ribcage, merging these into the ruff around the neck. Re-draw the line of the spine from the centre of the head to the tail then from inside the basket and cutting upwards towards the spine, round over the back of the dog’s body around to the base of the tail
Wood carving detail with chisel in action
21. With the No.3, 1/8in gouge, continue refining the shape of the muzzle, forming a rounded mound for each eye and a gentle hollow beneath the eyes and along the sides of the muzzle. Smooth the face and head and draw the closed eyelids in place, then use the No.7 or 8, 1/8in gouge to indent them by pressing its curved cutting edge into each mound
Wood carving of a sleeping mouse
22. Re-draw the centreline along the muzzle if need be and cut round the nose from each side using the 1/8in V-tool. Round over its edges, then use a nail punch with a light hammer to mark both nostrils. Mark the mouth with the V-tool, cutting from the centre of the nose and curving it round to each side of the muzzle
Wood carving in progress with chisel.
23. Mark the toes on the paws with the 1/8in V-tool and round over their edges, inverting
Wooden carving of a sleeping cat
24. Finally, undercut the edges of the ears by carefully cutting upwards alongside their edges with the 1/8in V-tool then using the No.3, 1/8in gouge reduce the adjacent surface beneath its edge to create a shadow

Finishing the basket

Close-up of vise holding a metal file.
25. There are various ways to finish a basket. Since the lighter coloured sapwood contrasts markedly with the darker heartwood, it could be smoothed and left plain; alternatively, left plain and with rings carved in horizontal cushions around it, or woven with more complicated basketwork as described in my previous article (Broody Hen in a Basket, issue 200). An easy alternative to that is to punch a woven pattern around the basket. Using a short length of square stock metal and a hacksaw, make several equidistant parallel saw cuts across the end, holding it upright and securely in the vice as you do so. Then, with a needle file, file each side of the saw cuts to form parallel, sharply angled peaked lines across the end of it. The stock can then be used with a light hammer to punch indents and pattern the basket with a weave
Wooden disc with paper marking, next to pencil.
26. As a guide to work out the spacing for the weave, cut a strip of paper the length and height of the circumference of your basket. On this, draw the horizontal rows within the width of the strip, the height of the basket. Then divide the uppermost band around the circumference of the basket into sections that match the size of your punch, marking vertical and horizontal alternating the length of the paper. Align this template with the upper edge of your basket and around it, mark the positions of each section
Metal tool pressing woven-texture material closely.
27. Using the punch with a light hammer, start indenting the weave by making vertical indents alternating with horizontal ones along the uppermost row and over the upper edge. As you work along the row, roll the punch over and to the sides so that its end can fully indent the rounded surfaces. Next, beginning in the row beneath, align the vertical and horizontal indents with those above as shown to alternate both vertically down the side and horizontally around the basket. Continue thus until the weave covers the surface of the basket
Wood carving with chisel in circular pattern
28. If your dog is to have a curly coat, this can be shown by using a No.11, 1/8in gouge to texture it. By pushing the gouge forward and twisting it from side to side, tiny curled chips are released from the surface, giving the impression of a curly or woolly coat. Start at the highest area of the carving and by wriggling the blade forwards and upwards, i.e. with the grain, around the shape, work back with short overlapping cuts from here and over the coat. It may be helpful to practise the technique beforehand on some scrap wood, aligning its grain to correspond with that of your carving

Finishing the carving

Erase all pencil marks, check all meeting edges are cleanly cut and remove any deep nicks or errant cuts. Then I applied a clear wax polish with a redundant toothbrush and buffed the finished carving to a sheen using a soft bristled brush.

PHOTOGRAPHY BY ZOE GERNTER

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