How to Whittle

Whittling has been called the grandpappy of all woodwork. Shaping wood with an edged tool is a skill that reaches back to prehistory. Read on to learn how to whittle.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Single-edged knife
• Wood

1. 
    
   holding stick

   Hold your stick so that the majority of it is pointing away from your body. The hand holding the wood should always be closer to your body than your knife hand.

2. Using four fingers, grasp the handle of the knife so that the blade is facing your knuckles and your thumb is resting along the spine of the knife.

3. Apply pressure to the spine of the knife with your thumb. Move the blade so that it is in contact with the wood. The blade should be almost parallel with the wood.

4. 
    
   thin sheet of wood removed

   Move your knife hand forward while keeping a firm grip on the wood. This should result in a thin sheet of wood being removed by your knife.
   Repeat the process until you have the desired shape.

Tips & Warnings

• Whittling is about shaving off small amounts over time to shape the wood, not hacking massive chunks out of the wood.