TG Handmade Decor

  To start, I drew my Witch’s Library on tracing paper before transferring, with carbon paper, to my wood block. Since I’m drawing in a whimsical style, I’m not overly concerned with scale and dimension. Some of the elements, especially the stairs, even appear to be floating. Other than book cases, my most important element was cats. Every witch needs a familiar, so I wanted numerous cats lounging around.  I also knew that I wanted to feature a gothic desk with typewriter, for writing spells and research papers. I begin carving the spaces furthest back in the library, with my woodblock secured in the vice. The background will eventually be the deepest space I carve. Since there are so many small details, I always take a straight edge chisel, and create a barrier around the things I want left untouched. This way, as I’m taking wood away with the sharp chisel, there will be a barrier to stop me from accidentally going further than I wanted to. Working in the background first, al...

    In this blog I’m featuring the three elements of fire, earth and water, in the guise of Aries, Taurus and Pisces.    I have re-created them as three, unique women in watercolor. Taurus the Bull is depicted in teal and purple, yellow and orange, resting in a quiet field under a full moon. Her cool girl look disguising her wish to be alone in nature. Her party girl persona, and nose ring, belying her dependability.   Aries the Ram is painted as a 1920’s flapper girl, in hot colors to match her fiery energy, and ruling planet, Mars. Her horn and make-up morph into the iconic flapper hair and make-up style that represents the short-lived freedom of the era.     Pisces the Fish is styled with vibrant colors, while her expression shows the compassion and vulnerability of the Pisces sign. Too much in tune with other’s feelings, she feels the need to sink beneath the surface.   I used the St. Petersburg and   Kuretake   watercolor palettes b...

Here is my new Santa House that I started on in December 2023, featuring angels hanging stars, and tiny mice hanging garlands. I carved this Santa House on poplar wood, working first with chisels and gouges, then switching to a Dremel tool. Below are the steps I have taken to create this new piece.   First, my drawing.... My initial sketch was done on tracing paper, then I used carbon paper to transfer it to the wood block. I can work out my designs more easily this way. For instance, I had initially sketched a pair of nutcrackers on the first floor of the house, but decided the nutcrackers were too stern for the whimsical vibe I wanted to create, and chose a friendly penguin instead.   After transferring my sketch to the wood block I start carving. I work on the depth of the background first. I want the stars and angel to stand out against the sky. As I go along, I will remove more of the background as I adjust the depth of the house and characters in the foreground...

 This blog is an overview of how I created my moon with moon flower vine and hummingbird moth. You don’t need a garden to enjoy garden art. A balcony, or front step, can be just as appealing as a larger green space. I chose to make this crescent moon to highlight the hummingbird moth I had seen featured on a gardening show.    The basic crescent moon shape is easy to sketch. I chose to sculpt a female profile on my moon, but that’s not necessary if you don’t enjoy sketching faces.   If you do choose a face, the suggestion I will give is to proportion the face on the moon as it is in your reference material, not to try and follow the shape of the moon. Start with sketching the nose. (Copying, or tracing, from a photo.) Then measure the eyes and mouth against the nose with the end of your pencil, ruler or fingers. Keep in mind, it’s a moon, not a portrait, so it doesn’t need to be perfect.   After sketching my moon, I added a night blooming vine to continue my th...