HAPPY NEW YEAR, AND WISHING YOU HAPPY CARVING DAYS AHEAD

hi folks,, i am here with my folks as i normally am on new years eve,, and we have a tradition of eating an old dutch tradition that oliebollen, which is dutch donuts,, which is dough with raisins, and put in a deep fryer,, and we eat it with confection sugar,, very good,, they have made this in holland for over 100 years,, and many dutch families enjoy this treat every year,,, and i enjoy ours tonight,, i want you folks to know that i tried to get mom to do a youtube video with me ,, and i would call it cooking with my dutch mama, but she isnt to thrilled with the idea,, but i almost got her to do it tonight with making of this dutch tradition,, lol ,, maybe next time around,, i tease her all the time that we should do a video together,, that way i have all her good recipes on tape, if not on youtube for my own collection,, well i want to wish many of you a very happy new year,, i plan to relax visiting some friend tomorrow, and also letting you know i plan of course to have some new projects in jan,, i been working on getting a new shop here at the farm is still going on,, but i am sure hoping this year a good one, keep carving folks, and thanks again for all of you that enjoy watching my videos , blog and facebook,, may god bless us in the new year,, take care arleen

relaxing time after the holidays? finding carving time...?

hi folks i dont know about you, but after the holidays most of us need just to relax,, i am looking forward the rest of the week to be a bit more quite,, its wonderful to have family around for the holidays, but its not just the company but the shopping and getting the holiday food, for dinners , cleaning up stuff before folks come over etc, like many of you..... it did not leave a lot of time to carve, lately i have to find slot of time to do any carving, lol not complaining cause if i were to carve each and every minute, then it wouldn't be special when i finally would sit down to carve, like all things to much of anything doesn't make it special anymore,, i want to keep my interest in carving special, refreshing, and rewarding.... now as a new year approaches i wonder what it will bring,, i will be sure to think that one over for a couple of days... hope your able to find a bit of time to carve, you can bet i will try to get some carving in this week,,, keep carving, arleen

some more photos of cone santa, by Robert Wilson

here are another couple of photos of robert wilson cone santa,, he did a good job on his santa,, thanks robert

cone shepherds by Wayne Smith

hi folks from time to time i love to share some photos from other carvers. and some carvers will send me photos from following my videos,, i asked wayne if i could post these on my blog , he was kind enough to let me do so,, so here it is ,, he did a great job on his cone shepherds,, thanks so much wayne enjoy folks,, keep carving, arleen

MERRY CHRISTMAS and my old poem

hi everyone,, or shall is say hi folks,, :) i just wanted to wish all of you a very merry christmas,, its been my pleasure to know that so many of you enjoy the blog and videos and facebook,, and that many of you are learning the art of woodcarving,, i hope that your christmas, is a safe one, and that your able to enjoy the day with friends and family,, my family is very small here in pa,, my folks and i,, but i have wonderful dear friends around me,, i will have some family here, late tomorrow night they will be traveling tomorrow on christmas from canada ,, so folks,, keep safe, and keep carving,, arleen

christmas poem, by arleen zomer
twas the night before christmas and all through the house,
a carver was carving , and quiet as a mouse

late at night , all you could see ,
was a light on in the shop where the carver would be,

basswood in one hand and a knife in the other
a gift it would be for sister or brother,

the carver kept working late into the night
knowing all to well it would soon be light

when the carving is done he looks with delight
to be able to give it away to someone tonight

and the smiles it will bring to the ones that he gives ,
the carver will cherish it as long as he lives
merry christmas,

a busy time of year!! deadlines,,

busy,, who? me? yessssss as most of you are too,, it seems every year i vow to get things done earlier so i can enjoy the holidays more ,, lol it never happens,, i guess that is why we have deadlines that we live by,,, christmas dec 25, tax time april 15th, etc,, if i didnt have a deadline i would never get things done on my own,, but somehow ,, we all finish or get things done,, and i just have to remember i am not the only one with deadlines,, some folks work well having a deadline , and are able to get things done in an orderly fashion,, well i dont,, i get things done,, but as i get older ,, my attitude is i will get done when i get done,, but it WILL get done, i learn not to stress over it,, and well its hard not to,, no one likes deadlines, i find i can have a few months before a carving show, and yet,, i always working on something the last min, but it does get done,, the show still goes on,, christmas, and tax time with come weather your ready or not,, that is one of the reasons i dont care to take on commission work,, i never like it,, but once in a great while i will do it,, so , now that christmas is almost here, yess i can say i am finished, and nothing much more to do,,, but at the same time i dont remember running around town so much as i did this past week,, gone all day,, and exhausted by the time i came home, but i got things done,, and now i can really sit here and carve or write this post in some calm manner for a change,, lol i hope you all will find some time in your day weather tomorrow or christmas day, to relax,, it will be ok,, and enjoy a few moments of stillness, keep carving folks, arleen

woodcarving knives, murphy knife vs pocket knife ( rough rider)

answering some questions about knives, beginners, and about rough rider knives

well that was a fun project , simple and fun, and looking for carving room??

hi folks,, as christmas nears, i being to get a feeling that i cant come up with anymore christmas projects,, the simple cone shepherd, just came out of the blue, i was thinking of doing a shepherd,, but just didnt know how to go about it,, well yesterday was a good day,, the project finished in a day, instead of days,, but i enjoy every minute of it,,,, i wish all my projects came to me that easily , but sometimes they do and sometimes not,,,, but where i am to teach carving is a bit of a problem,, i did find a place that was a decent price,, but nothing like having your own room , that you can set up and leave it ,, not having to bring all the stuff you need for a class, i trust that i will find something,, somewhere, and i will keep you all posted when i do find or put something at the farm,, ok have a great night and keep carving,, arleen

simple cone shepherd #11 ( END)

hi folks, this is the last of the 11 video for this project you can get the all of them on my youtube channel, thanks for watching , and enjoy, arleen

SIMPLE CONE SHEPHERD #1

hi folks, there are 11 videos in all, please find the rest on my youtube channel,, also i will be trying to load them all sometime tonight,, thanks again, enjoy arleen

new carving project soon on youtube,, SIMPLE CONE SHEPHERD

hi folks,, i am at it again,, came up with a cone project in my cone series,, called the SIMPLE CONE SHEPHERD, ,, here are a few photos of the finished project,, enjoy, arleen

1000th video from the carverswoodshop and merry christmas

calvin the cat on ebay

hi folks, this calvin is a bit bigger than the one done on the video,, i enjoy making another one,, here is the link to ebay

http://www.ebay.com/itm/180775126842?ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1558.l2649#ht_500wt_1287

here are some photos

days are passing by and christmas will soon be here and new ideas ?

hi folks,, i know time is passing quickly,, i have one more project for christmas that i would like to do,, not sure yet if i can fit it in,, mean while i am carving a couple of the cats with the santa hat, seem to be a hit with many,,, i will have a couple up for sale in a day or two,, not sure if i will do it here on the blog or on ebay,, have not decided yet which way to go.

well i am always thinking of new projects not only with carving but also some things i like to build,, the solar furnace that i did a couple of years ago , had a great deal of planning,, but i glad now that it was completed,, and enjoying the heat it provides,, and i also enjoy making something no one else has done yet,, or at least few people tried to make, so it makes it more fun when you feel your the first to come up with an idea,, it has to do with a mini studio, and craft shows, iam getting tired of the ez up tent and want something a bit more solid,, i will be sure to take plenty of videos of this new venture, i am sure some of you will want one too,

i often wondered where i come up with these ideas,, i guess i can thank my dad for that,, he always was trying something new for the first time at the farm,, weather it was the auto bucket washer, or auto feeding system,, now mind you the farm you had always new ideas how to improve things or make it easier,, so i guess i have some of that,, my dad enjoyed the simple things in life, but also ventured in new ideas to improve stuff, it made him happy to see ideas come to life,

so as i continue to press forward to this new idea,, who knows i might start a trend ,, wouldnt that be just the neatest thing to do, keep carving folks, i sure will , arleen

finished pencil santa ornament

pencil santa ornament #4 end 001

pencil santa ornament #1

three videos are posted ,,, i will paint and video the last one in a day or so,, thanks for stopping b y, enjoy arleen

listing more on my ebay site,, this one is my large morning santa,,

http://www.ebay.com/itm/180770035541?ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1558.l2649#ht_500wt_1156

i listed 8 more items this morning, but this is by far the largest,, thanks , arleen

some up for sale on ebay

hi folks, no better place then ebay.., if you want to sell your carvings,, its a lot of work to put up things on ebay but to those that asked if i had any carving for sale here ya go lol here is a link to some that i have up , more are sure to follow,, take care and keep carving, arleen

http://www.ebay.com/sch/carverswoodshop/m.html?_nkw=&_armrs=1&_from=&_ipg=25&_trksid=p3686

well missed most of joanna at christmas

hi folks,, i been so busy the past few weeks, i been under the weather for the past week, and was only able to do one night ( friday night) and decided it was not a good idea to be out in the cold all three nights,, i caught what a lot of folks had going around the past few weeks,, it the season again of this stuff,, i was very disappointed but happy i am not worse and almost back to normal again,,, some sleep-less nights but over all ok,, along with being sick,, we had a lot of family visiting from canada,,and very busy with a bunch of kids around,, so today i started to list some of my carvings on ebay to start,, lol if you ever done the ebay thing........well its fun but a lot of work too, most of all it takes time,, which right now i got some of that ,, not bunches of it but some,,,, ok folks hope you all have good health the weeks before christmas, and keep carving,, arleen

in awe

hi folks, this blog not only tell you about woodcarving but a little about my life,, i am farmer , woodcarver, and worked in security, etc,,, but if you follow you also know that i have a faith that i depend on in life. many of you have this same faith,, some do not,, i just want you to know that i am not one that will beat you over the head with a bible,, my faith is a quite one,, now i know some of my christian friends out there will say that its my responsibly to share every chance i get,, i say no,, its the way you live not the only words you speak.., but i have to learn not to lump folks into a role,, we all do it from time to time, same goes for those folks that see christians hateful people,, some are indeed ,, in fact they not the christians i would choose to relate myself to.....and many of my christians friends will agree, i am not one to start a conversation with you and hi i am a christian,, i rather, that you get to know me,, that i am fallible human first, that tries to do good to all, yes i have attitude,, yes i have my shortcomings many in fact, but in light of all that, i trust god to work those things out in me for the greater good,, i ratheri trust him, and obey him, and try to have that relationship with him,

that no matter what happens in life he is the one that will be there, and when all is done in this life i know for a fact that he is waiting for me ,, and welcoming me... and once you have this faith, it can not be shaken, no matter how i feel, or what i do,,..................... so i am in awe of how he provides, as a farmer, you learn the concept very well, he always always provides ... folks, as some of you know that i lost one of my jobs in the past, it was only a parttime job that i had for over 20 years,, i told you then that when one door closes another one opens,, at the farm we had a field that i use to rent for horses i vowed i never do it again,, but today ,, i cant lump a group of folks into one cause of the fault of one, so i got a call out of the blue,, this person needed a place for 5 horses,, at this point i was haying the fields, we talked for a while and told her my hesitation, so i decided to go ahead and let them rent,, wow i told her that i cant lump everyone cause of one bad apple,,

taught me two things i need to remember

first ,, you cant lump folks into one basket......

second ...- when god sends and answer , your to trust it,,

i dont know how many of you know the story of the man and the flood,, he is standing at the top of his house,, water rising,, and he is yelling for god to save him... so a boat comes along,, they said get in,, but no the man said god is going to save him, and the boat left without him,, later another boat appears,, and the man says again god is going to save him,, and he tells the third boat the same,, the man drowns,, he gets to heaven and asked god why didnt you save me,, god replied,, i sent three boats to you???

so i didnt want to miss the boat that to me was plain as day,,

you all have a great safe carving day,, arleen

working on some new dvds, slow process this time around

hi folks,, i am working on two videos for my dvd collection,, one will be the HIDING THANKSGIVING TURKEY, it will have one project on it , and the other, has three,, CONE SNOWMAN, WINTER TREE, AND THE WOODEN LIGHT BULB SANTA,, it will take a couple of weeks, before i have the covers, and patterns done and ready for sale these will be videos 39 and 40 ,, its been slow cause i lost some of my videos from my old computer,, so finding stuff at all has been kinda tough,, but there is a way,, so i keep at it,, if there is a will there is a way,, is a very true statement,, keep carving folks,,

you never know.....good things aren't always plan

hi folks i had to reflect on the last couple of years,,, as thanksgiving is now past and christmas coming,, and then new year,, i had to think,, i didn't plan how youtube turn out,, nor the blog or facebook,, i just wanted to put videos up about woodcarving,, and now,, looking back,, i sit in awe,, of what it became and wondering how much much it can become. i keeping thinking how many more new projects can i come up with? how many more will come to the site to be interested in woodcarving, and how many of them keep at it after they start.... its an amazing thing,, the internet can be a terrible thing or a wonderful tool to learn,,, there are sites that are good , not all has to be bad on the net,, and i for one want only the good,,, we have enough tv, and talk shows, and movies that are in my opinion just plain garbage, it does my heart good to hear,, that a 12 year old boy , from norway, was on facebook, and wanted to learn to carve,, he was full of questions, yes 12 is young,, when he wrote that he watch 2oo plus videos that i posted on youtube , of the 1000 that i have up,, seems to me he has the carving bug , imagine that,, that a young kid is interested in carving,, not spending his time playing games on a computer but wanting to learn woodcarving,,, and the other day i got an email of a young couple that are trying carving together,, how neat is that,, i hope all those that start will enjoy it enough to continue for a lifetime,, some will become great carvers,, the next generation of carvers,, so you never know what you might do will help another carver,, and good things are not always plan,, i hope that many more enjoy carving,, and learn from not only me but others as well, keep carving folks,

wow what a weekend and next weekend another show,

hi folks, as this past weekend is about over,, it was a busy one for sure,, family being here from canada,,,, holiday shopping on black friday,, and then we decided to have a farm yard sale sat,, wow we never had a farm yard sale before,, we had some farm stuff we didnt use anymore,, so we set up in our truck garage, and just like the shows, that i do,, its a lot of work,,, i have more understanding how much work folks put into these garage sales,, it was a last minute decision,, so cause some of my family was here it was a good time to start,, lol not sure if i would do this all the time, but for a few weeks i will have it ,,

so next weekend,, i will be at the haycreek again for the CHRISTMAS AT JOANNA

http://haycreek.org/christmas_at_joanna.htm

henry the amish kid

hi folks, i did this project over the past couple of days,,, today ( thanksgiving) i finished him,, henry the amish kid,,,, my video will tell you who he was,,, it was a fun project, and now i am about to venture out to our local walmart for the maddness, ,,,,, not much i need ,,, i have family from canada ,, and we enjoy just looking around with the rest of the folks that are shopping, sometimes you can get a great deal... no i am not standing in line for hours,, i wouldnt do that,, but i guess its a time just to hang out with folks you care about and to enjoy some of the beginning of the christmas season .. well i better get going,, lol see if we can find a parking space,, if not i am going back home, :)

henry the amish kid

happy thanksgiving 2011.

cone snowman #8 ( end)

new project CONE SNOWMAN

hi folk, this is another way you can carve the cone series ,, i am having fun making all these differemt project using the same pattern ,, the cone,, hope your enjoying them as much as i am making them,, take care,, ohhh there are 8 videos to this project , i will have them up soon ,, arleen

cone snowman #2

hi again, there are 7 videos for this new project CONE SNOWMAN,, thought it would be fun to do it from the cone, pattern,, ok take care and keep carving ,arleen

here is the pattern for the light bulb santa,,

hi folks since i dont have a dvd out on this year,, i give this one to you,, its the light bulb santa, there are three on the original pattern and i dont know where i put it at the moment,, its hiding lol anyway here is one of them , have fun making them, and enjoy, keep carving, arleen

christmas ball ornament for the beginner #7 (end)

hi folks all 7 videos are up,, thanks, and enjoy, arleen

new project CHRISTMAS BALL ORNAMENT FOR THE BEGINNER

Hi again, folks,, i thought i needed something really simple for folks that are just starting to carve, and i decided to make a couple of christmas ball ornaments,, there really is alot of different things you can do with this project,, just carve them and put someones name and year on them or do a relief carving on it, or chip carve it,, the ideas are endless,, but its a great way for a beginner to know how to handle the knife and wood, enjoy,, i will try to get the rest of the videos up by tomorrow morning,, take care and keep carving,, arleen

calvin the cat in a santa hat #11 ( end)

FINISHED project,, enjoy,, arleen

calvin the cat in a santa hat #1

another new project of calvin the cat with the santa hat,, there are so far 10 videos to this project,, enjoy,, arleen

what to do on saturday????? i dont know ,, maybe carve a while

hi folks,, some of you know how i might feel tomorrow,, i worked every saturday for the last 20 years , doing security work for a mall,, and now i am laid off,, yes it was only a part time job but still a job, that i enjoyed,, last week was my last official day to work on sat,, the mall where i work has closed,, the questions i had the past month about the mall is what are they going to do with it ??? my honest answer was i have no idea,, all i know is i work until they tell me its time to go,, i wanted to help them out with the last few weeks,, if needed,, but as many folks around the country well ,, being laid off is never easy,, especially when you work at one place for so long,, i always enjoy the mall

who was i?

was the person that found your kid in tears when they could not find you

i was the person that comfort your love one when we called for help when they were hurt

i was the person that walk your love one to the car when they were afraid

i was the person that would listen when you had a bad day

i was the person that would make sure the building was empty when the alarm went off

i was the first person was called when an accident happen

i was the first person that came when you had folks upset with you ,

i was the first person that would protect you if you were in harms way,

i was the first person that would hear the complaints

i was the first person that would be willing to say goodmorning or good night,

i was the first person that would hear much of the new news going around,

and i will be the first person that will say i enjoyed , my job as a security guard,

but the best thing was hearing from folks when i enter ,, ' SO GLAD YOUR WORKING TODAY"

it always made my day!!

to many were are just a rent a cop but to many we were where we were to be at the time, and i will say that many folks didnt call us that but thanks us for helping out where we could, thanks to all that made my career as a guard a good one, and hope to the many folks i came to know , i learn a lot from all of you, thanks ,, weather i did armed guard work or unarmed work i always met great people along the way,,,,,, i am a firm believer when one door closes another open, take care, arleen

arleen

carving for sale on ebay will be posted on my other blog

hi folks i have another blog called carverswoodshop - creations ,, here is the link it will have what i will be posting on ebay for sale,, thanks http://carverswoodshop-creations.blogspot.com/

just having fun,, christmas cat ( calvin )

hi folks sometimes the best carvings are done just out of the blue,, i started to carve this cat, with a santa hat,, from my cone penguin and cone santa ideas,, it was fun,, to do all of them but this cat has the hat folding down on his head,, i might do a video how to do this, not sure yet,, ok take care and keep carving, arleen

hiding thanksgiving turkey # 22 ( end) black hat

hiding thanksgiving turkey #21 ( painted the hat grey)