How to Carve a Heart in Pine
"Carve with the grain" is the basic knack to carving and means you will need to continually reorient your wood to keep your strokes going with the grain. Examine the pine grain and place the edges of the heart contour on an area that is free of knots. The grain will tear or split if you force your knife against the grain. A simple carved pine heart is an endearing symbol and good practice in the basic skills of carving. You only need a few tools to get started.
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Things You'll Need
- Paper
- Pencil
- Scissors
- Coping saw
- Leather
- Knife
- Rasp
- Sandpaper, 80-220 grit
- Mineral oil
- Rag
Instructions
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1
Fold a piece of paper and draw a half of a heart on the fold. Cut it out to use as a pattern.
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2
Lay the paper pattern on a piece of pine and trace the shape onto the wood with a pencil.
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3
Cut the outside corners off the pine with a coping saw to leave a rough shaped heart.
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4
Place a piece of leather on your thigh to protect it while you whittle. Remember to carve with your knife moving away from your body,
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5
Pare the edges to begin rounding them. Remove small chips of wood to start creating a heart shape.
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6
Round both the front and the back of the shape.
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7
Slice into the top center of the heart with a stop cut. This is a cut where one side is straight and the other bevels in.
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8
Lever off chips of wood to widen this portion of the heart and create the center indent. Press the thumb, on the hand holding the heart, against your blade handle and use it as a fulcrum. Remove the wood to form a sharp angle in the top center of the shape
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9
Round this angle to match the contours on the rest of the heart.
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10
Rasp the edges to smooth the rough knife marks and create a uniform surface.
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11
Sand all areas on the pine heart with progressively finer sandpaper, starting with 80 grit. Continue to feel the surface for rough spots that need to be sanded.
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12
Wipe mineral oil onto the pine heart with a rag. This finish is simple and complements the wood grain.
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1
Tips & Warnings
Place your heart pattern so it covers the most beautiful part of the wood texture.
Hearts do not need to be symmetrical. Interesting hearts often have long swirling tails.
Sand with good ventilation. Breathing small particles may cause allergic respiratory problems.
References
- Photo Credit Jupiterimages/Photos.com/Getty Images
