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How to Carve a Wood Spirit

Wood Spirit 16

The Artisan Meeple Etsy Shop

The Wood Spirit is said to rule the forest. He is very elusive and folks rarely if ever see him. However, many say that they can feel his presence when walking through a forest, especially at night. He is a friendly protector to those of goodwill, but can mete out his wrath on the black hearted. He is usually very quiet and still, but sometimes when the wind blows you can hear him whisper and groan. It is said that anyone with a good heart who sees him is a lucky one indeed. That person will be blessed with happiness and good fortune. So, the next time you go for a walk in the forest, be still and listen, and keep an eye out. Hopefully you’ll be one of the lucky ones.

Or you could always carve your own. Here’s my version of the wood spirit.

Preparing the wood

This is the piece of aromatic red cedar that I carved my wood spirit from. Like many of my projects I found this piece of wood and carried it home without knowing what I might do with it. I love wood! I put it up where I could look at it on occasion until I decide what to do with it.

Wood Spirit 1

I eventually decided that I would carve a wood spirit from the block of wood and here I am using a draw knife to remove the loose stringy remnants of the outer bark. This exposes the white sapwood which is full of insect holes. I think the holes that remain in the finished piece just add to the look.

Wood Spirit 2

I use a sharp hatchet to remove the softer sapwood. But you could use whatever tool that you have available that results in the most efficient removal of wood.

Wood Spirit 3

After using the hatchet, I now have solid wood from which I will carve the wood spirit. I have one prominent limb protruding which I decided would be very cool to have coming from the top of the head within the hair area. It’s important to become familiar with a piece of wood before one starts carving. Remember, every piece of wood is one of a kind. It has it’s own unique qualities and features. Get to know the wood, and use these features to your advantage.

Wood Spirit 4

This photo gives a good look at the protruding limb which I decided to leave pretty much as is and incorporate into the carving. You also see the centerline that I drew with a Sharpie pen. The center line will help me keep the face somewhat symmetrical.

Wood Spirit 5

Carving the wood spirit

I drew the center line and an approximate location of the hairline. As I continue to carve this locator may change somewhat depending on how the rest of the carving goes but it functions very well as a general guide. At this same time I decide where the brow and the bottom of the nose will be, and make cuts for those.

Wood Spirit 6

From here I develop the face from the positions of the brow and the bottom of the nose. I do not use a pattern but instead carve by instinct. Features will develop as I carve. If you know how to draw the features of a face in their proper positions, the carving a face should come natural. If you don’t know how to draw features of a face, you should practice that before attempting to carve one, or as an alternative, use a pattern.

Wood Spirit 7

On larger carvings like this one, I use large high quality chisels and a mallet. Most of my chisels are Swiss Made. The block of cedar needs to be secured to the work surface by clamping or by other means before you get started with these tools.

Wood Spirit 8

While roughing out the wood spirit with the chisels, I step back often to look at my progress to see that all is going as planned. If not, I make adjustments before it’s too late. Pausing also helps me decide where and how to make my next cuts.

Wood Spirit 11

After the basic profile is established then I begin adding the details. Here I have carved in the mounds for the eyes and added a bit of detail to the nose.

Wood Spirit 12

Now that the actual hairline is established in the wood, I start to carve details into the beard using a V-tool. Try not to make straight cuts with the V-tool when detailing the beard. Make sure you follow the flow of the hair.

Wood Spirit 13

Here you can see how I made the hair flow around the protruding limb, making the carving, in my opinion, a more interesting piece. Then I carve a few wrinkles in the forehead and sand everything smooth, getting rid of any splinters. I think I could call the carving portion of this project pretty much finished at this point. How does it look?

Wood Spirit 15

Finishing touches

After you are satisfied with your carving, you can then apply paint, stain, or simply use a clear coat to seal you work. Here, I’ll be using acrylic paint on eyes and beard before sealing the wood spirit with a clear coat. On the eyes, I’ll use the paint at full strength. For the majority of the beard, I only want to darken the wood slightly more than the natural wood. So when I apply the acrylic paint, I’ll immediately wipe it off, leaving behind a little more paint in the hard to reach V-tool cuts. This will result in a lighter stain on the raised areas of the beard, but slightly darker crevices.

Wood Spirit 17

For the final finish, I’ll spray several coats with a clear acrylic, letting the natural colors of the cedar show through. I’ll also sand the wood lightly between coats. The clear acrylic spray will darken the wood giving it an awesome look. I like to use clear satin, although other sheens work well too! And here you see the finished Wood Spirit.

Wood Spirit 18

Try to carve your own Wood Spirit and let us know how it goes. If you have any questions or comments, post them below.

If you have any comments or questions about carving a Wood Spirit, please leave them in the comments section below. If you like this article please share it using the share buttons on this page. We have plenty of other projects in our Workshop, so take a look.

 

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About Mike Lawrence

I started The Woodcarver's Cabin many years ago with the intention of sharing my carvings and experience with you. Whether you are new to wood carving, an experienced wood worker, or just someone who appreciates wood carving, this site is made with you in mind.

Comments

  1. dex says

    July 10, 2016 at 4:55 am

    I think your carvings are amazing. Im only just starting out but love to see and try immitate your work.

    Reply
  2. Russell E. Rico says

    August 26, 2016 at 8:05 pm

    Very good instructions. Even I can follow your guide. Thanks. Russell

    Reply
    • derek tikaani says

      April 14, 2017 at 11:22 am

      Hi Mike, your carving tips are great. I am always looking for different ways for my crafts. Keep up the good work.

      Reply
    • Lee McCallister Jr says

      August 21, 2017 at 12:52 am

      Mike, I was looking at how you started your wood spirit and to the finish. Nevertheless, I have been carving on and off and I have a lot of ceder wood all over my place. I have used bass wood from time to time and found out the ceder is a wonderful wood to carve with. I have a lot of Japanese wood carving tools and they hold a wonderful edge. I agree that the Swiss tools are wonderful to use but for me they are a bit expensive for me. I will follow your web page to see what else I can learn from your carvings. Thanks a lot for the advice on how to start out on the old wood spirit.

      Reply
  3. Toni says

    January 10, 2017 at 12:23 pm

    Wow!! Amazing how natural you make it look! I’ve never carved a thing in my life other than a couple initials in an old oak tree and a ham and turkey. Lol! I’ve got a variety of limbs and stumps and I have one ready to carve. I hope it comes natural as it does to you! Awesome tree spirit!

    Reply
  4. Dallas says

    April 17, 2017 at 2:49 pm

    Just retired and looking for a creative hobby.
    Love this!

    Reply
  5. Hi Gadarn says

    May 24, 2017 at 12:00 am

    Fantastic!

    Reply
  6. James Murray says

    September 21, 2017 at 5:40 pm

    I came across your website and enjoyed it immensely. I am retired and want a hobby. Your cravings of wood spirits are great and look very easy to do. I hope you have more information for people like me in the future.
    Thank you.

    Reply
  7. Rob Fielding says

    October 9, 2017 at 12:54 pm

    Very useful. I’m hoping to make a few walking sticks for my Grandchildren for Christmas presents.
    This would be awesome on the top of the stick.
    Cheers
    Rob

    Reply
  8. Donald S. Jones says

    October 20, 2017 at 7:02 pm

    Looking forward to enjoying all your tips on woodcarving

    Reply
  9. ronan says

    March 17, 2018 at 5:13 am

    Thanks for sharing – there is a personality in each carving 🙂

    Reply
  10. Dave Baird says

    August 25, 2018 at 12:13 pm

    Thanks Mike. In the middle of my first carving ever. Lol. Been a trial and error. Learning the curvature of each individual tool and what it’s capable of. I am using Swiss made tools and like them a lot. I need to focus on learning to keep a good edge on them. I need to invest in a good stropping set. I’ve sincerely enjoyed the project and find it extremely relaxing. Thanks for the info and would you consider making a good thorough post on sharpening. I’ll post a pic when it’s done.
    Thanks… Dave

    Reply
  11. Russ Peterson says

    July 29, 2019 at 4:29 pm

    Hi all
    This is new to me but it is a lot of fun and as long as we take our time and work safely I can see myself moving on to more involved carvings. I would love to find a outlet for a nice chunk of cedar?
    Later Russ

    Reply
  12. Russ Peterson says

    July 29, 2019 at 4:33 pm

    Thank you.

    Reply
  13. Paul Glauser says

    September 14, 2019 at 5:54 pm

    Great work. If you were buying a set of chisels for carving tree trunks, how many different ones would you get, and what types?

    Reply
    • Mike Lawrence says

      January 2, 2020 at 8:49 pm

      Not knowing exactly what your goal is I would generally recommend these basic tools: a U-gouge, a V or parting gouge, a straight chisel, a skew chisel and a mallet. Since you’re working with tree trunks I would expect you would need fairly large tools. Base this on the size cuts you intend to make.

      Reply

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