How to Carve Netsuke
Netsuke is the Japanese art of making finely detailed and extremely small carvings. Netsuke carvings were originally used on the ends of the cord tied around a kimono's sash from which the wearer suspended various objects, since the kimono lacked any pockets. Learning how to carve Netsuke is a deeply satisfying project to undertake; however, it is a time consuming one. Netsuke can be carved from many different types of material but is most often made from a close-grained wood. For a beginner, chose a small block of bass wood.
Things You'll Need
- Block of bass wood
- Pencil
- Xacto X5224 standard woodcarving set
- Wood stain
- Brush
Instructions
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1
Sketch the design for your carving onto one side of a block of bass wood using a sharp pencil.
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2
Turn the block of wood clockwise once in your hand and sketch the carving as it would appear from that side of the wood. In other words, if your first sketch was a side view of a frog sitting on a rock, when you turn the block once you will now sketch what your frog on a rock would look like from behind. Do this for all the sides of the block.
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3
Make hatch marks with your pencil on each side of the block in any area of the wood that is not used in your design at all. This identifies the negative space that will surround your carved figure. The negative space is the air that is around an object, but still within the original shape of the block of wood.
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4
Using your Xacto X5224 standard woodcarving set, select a fine grooved knife and dig out the negative space from your block. When you are done, you will have only the wood that will be used in your design, although its form will still be blocky.
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5
Using a fine straight edge and a groove knife from your woodcarving set, begin to slowly carve out the details of your design. Make sure that you are continuously turning the wood in your hands as you work so you are working on all of the sides of your Netsuke at once, rather than trying to complete it one side at a time.
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6
When you are done carving, use a fine brush to apply wood stain to your Netsuke.
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Tips & Warnings
Start with a fairly large block of wood, about the size of your hand, and make a rough Netsuke rather than a finely detailed one to better learn the concept of carving by using negative space.
Carve slowly and remove as little wood as possible with each motion; too large a cut can destroy your Netsuke by removing wood that is needed.
References
Resources
- Photo Credit www.antiquespider.com
