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Monday, August 31, 2009

pumpkin ornament , simple things

hi folks i will be posting a small project of a pumpkin in the round on youtube, videos 1 and 2 should be on by tomorrow night, its a fun easy project, a nice one to do in an evening, simple, and fun

hobo angel , now the next project a pumkin



hobo angel that was done on youtube, now i am going to do some simple things, a pumpkin is next,,,, i got one done and painted in a hour,,,, nice for a change, well back to work happy carving, arleen

Sunday, August 30, 2009

youtube update, simple things

well i am about ready to paint the hobo angel and to move on to another project, going to do some simple things, i have yet to make the patterns and also more christmas ornaments that seem to be a favorite for many. as one carver just told me he enjoys doing simple things that can be done in one sitting, with that in mind i going to find projects like this for the youtube channel, give me a few days and i will be off and running with another project soon, happy and safe carving, ohhh the box project is still in the work also i just need to find a neat pattern to work on, i did not forget it , just on the back burner for now, arleen

Saturday, August 29, 2009

pattern price list and cutouts on my youtube channel

carverswoodshop look on my youtube channel carverwsoodshop...... on the left side for updated pattern and cutout list , i will try to update this one too, thanks arleen


Subscribers: 185
Channel Views: 18,872

LEARN TO CARVE , SANTAS, BIRDS, ORNAMENTS
carving pattens available for 1.50each project usa fund, by paypal or ck
if by ck make payable to

arleen zomer
226 hill rd. honey brook pa. 19344
484-364 -0471
email carverswoodshop@yahoo.com
blog www.carverswoodshop,blogspot,c om
patterns will be sent only by email

BLACK LAB PUPPY 1.50
WOODEN SHOE 1.50
WREN RELIEF 1.50
CARDINDAL RELEIF 1.50
EAGLE LETTER OPENER 1.50
SANTA WITH A BEAR 1.50
FLY DOVE AND ORNAMENT 1.50
SANTA FACE 3-D ( 4 total ) ...... 1.50
SANTA BOOT ( 3 total ) .....1.50
SANTA HOBO RELIEF ( total 3) .........1.50
TULIP .........................1.50
RUDDY DUCK ......................1.50
HOBO SANTA-SNOWMANT RELIEF 1.50
HOBO ANGEL .............................1 .50
PUMPKIN ORNAMENT.............1.50
cutout price list below in next section
will send pattern only by email
payable by paypal to zomerenterprises@yahoo.com
and state which patterns you want , thank you , arleen
twitter ,,,,,, carverswoodshop
skpye .......arleen zomer
more free carving lessons to come folks IS 54:10 happy and safe carving !
now i have cutout available for you if you dont have a band saw here is the price list below

***** important these are without the patterns this is just the cutout so you can follow my projects on youtube
PATTERNS AVAILABLE FOR 1,50 each

FLYING DOVE AND AN ORNAMENT, (2 PIECES).... 5.00
BLACK LAB PUPPY ........................8.00
WOODEN SHOE .............................. .6.00
WREN RELIEF .............................. ....3.00
CARDINAL RELIEF........................ ....3.00
EAGLE LETTER OPENER ............. .3.00
SANTA WITH A BEAR........................4. 00
BOOT ORNAMENT...................... .......4.00
SANTA HOBO RELIEF ORNAMENT .......4.00
TULIP IN A VASE.......................... ..............9.00
SANTA FACE ORNAMENT 3-D...............3.00
SNOWMAN RELIEF ORNAMENT ...........3.00
RUDDY DUCK .............................. ...........4.50
HOBO SANTA-SNOWMAN RELIEF 4.00
HOBO ANGEL......................... ......................6.50
PUMPKIN ORNAMENT................................2.50
all cutouts are profile cutout only,
and prices are subject to change
look at the pattern list above how to pay for them , paypal or ck , or ck my video HOW TO ORDER PATTERNS thank you arleen


DVDS.........


CHICKADEE LESSONS .. now in dvd........................... .......25.00 SHIPPING FREE IN THE USA, 3.00 MORE TO SHIP TO CANADA, 5.00 FOR INTERNATIONAL THIS DVD WILL WORK IN YOUR PORTABLE DVD PLAYER AND YOUR PC WINDOWS MEDIA PLAYER, THIS WORKS ON YOUR COMPUTER, OR PLEASE CALL ME 484-364-0471 OR EMAIL ME, THANKS ARLEEN
email carverswoodshop@yahoo.com
blog www.carverswoodshop@blogspot.c om

ABOUT ARLEEN THE WOODCARVER


hi there, i am a woodcarver in pa. i have been carving since 1980, its a fun hobby for anyone, old and young alike. i mostly do santas, and i will be doing more videos, i also carved eagles are one of my favorites, and birds, animals, relief carving, etc. i do some teaching, but thought it would be neat that you could do this in you own time , with the youtube.
i am self taught, i didnt go to any school for this, and its a great hobby. the art, is designing your own things and also you can do 100 santas, and they all look a bit different no matter how hard you tired to do the same, that is what hand work is all about.
i am a farmer by trade, and have a couple of buinesses on the side, farming slowed down in 2005, and now i ready to set up shop so that i can teach at the farm in the near future, we are close to the lancaster county area, and live among the amish country. not only amish are farmers lol.
if you like to email me feel free to do so, i hope to get my shop up and running come fall of 2009. go to carving shows if you can, you can get alot of ideas and tools there, enjoy the videos, take your time,
good luck happy carving
email me if you have questions carverswoodshop@yahoo.com
City: near lancaster county
Hometown: honey brook , pa
Country: United States
Website:http://www.carverswoodshop.blogspot.com

Friday, August 28, 2009

what you can carve now, you may not have been able to before!!




i had a friend that wanted a snowman for a long time, i had no idea how to make one, sounded easy but i just couldnt figure it out until i had an idea, took me about a couple of years , believe it or not, to wrap my mind around this project, so one day as i was doing a santa , it came to me out of the blue, so you never know when your able to do something that you thought you couldnt before, so dont be discourged, if a project seems to difficult , leave it for a while, it may not be the time to do it for you , and come back to it another day, this is to be fun, not frustrating, enjoy what your working on, that is the name of the game, happy and safe carving to you. arleen
here is one of the snowman that i have done, you can learn to do one of these on my youtube channel,
http;//www.youtube.com/carverswoodshop

fall is coming, love it , great time to see carving shows

well hi folks, my favorite season is fall, i love everything about it, the leaves, harvest and thankful for the cooler weather. its also a wonderful time to see a carving show, if you have never been to one, take the time to go, its soooo worth it. summer is a slower time, people going on vacations, trips, and now that fall is here, and more carving shows too . i went to the lancaster carving show here in lancaster pa, not to far from me, about 30 mins lol on a good day,,, lots of tourist in this part of the country, and that is great, the show was great, and i was able to get some of it on my youtube channel, so get out there if your an old or new carver,,, you can get so many neat ideas for projects ,,, that is where i got the pinecone project idea , and was able to do it for my youtube channel, its a fun project, so come and enjoy a day out and go to a show. i plan to go do my trips around carving shows, lol , like most carvers , fall is coming, and i am loving it.

Tuesday, August 25, 2009

nothing to do with carving, but kittens are cute


well i know this has nothing to do with carving, but i had to show off these kittens, that were born on my farm, we had a stray that found our farm in march and she had kittens, couldnt find them for about two weeks, but yep in my farm office they were, and now i have 4 of them walking all over the place, how cute, and sweet to see these little ones, the moma cat is protective came after me a couple of times, she a good moma cat, some nice things in life can be free , i enjoy watching them play!

Monday, August 24, 2009

a neat time , carving can be done anywhere! but two things to remember!!

last night i was able to finish the angel ornament , and ready to paint it, i will be showing you how to do this project a little later after we are done with the hobo angel in the round. when your a carver and you do small projects they are fun to do anywhere , i was able to chat with my sister here from canada, and we were all sitting around the table chatting, and i was carving away , listening and also putting my two cents into the conversation lol. but folks i carve in the car waiting, really you can carve anywhere but TWO THINGS TO REMEMBER to follow, always ask if its ok to carve if your in someone else home or back yard....... some folks are fussy about the chips flying, and most of all clean it up like you were never there. remember , ask and clean up
some tips, if you dont have a table, i use a big soft nylon cooler, it holds alot of stuff, plus i open it and let the chips fall in the cooler, much less to clean up, and i clean out the cooler later at home. i also take along a piece of cardboard about the size 20 x20 inches, and tape the edges, so its not sharp, and put it on a table, that way you wont cut or nick out the table, and easy to gather the wood chips to toss in the garbage. so always be mindful where you carve,,, dont do it if little ones are around, common sense and respect is all you need to enjoy your carving anywhere, happy and safe carving, arleen

Saturday, August 22, 2009

ckecks , how to deal with them , just keep going!!

nooo not a check you cash, its what you can find in carving a piece of wood, real word is cracks , in the 28 years plus that i have carved i have ran into this problem very seldom, but it does happen, it happen with the angel project so i had to redo it again, up to video #4. i was very suprised that i saw it, thinking i could fix the ones on the head, and also letting carvers see how to fix it , but the next morning , boom 4- 6 more,,, then it was time to toss it in the wood pile to be burn, lol
but i think either two things first the piece was a bit heavy , wondered if it was as dry as i thought, lighter piece to my way of thinking had less water content, or i sprayed to much with the 50/50 mix to soften up the wood, i didnt have a problem before straying it in the past, so two things i learned and should have done, one, not to cut the piece to close to the edge of the block, and two dont spray it as much, maybe my own fault, i really soaked that sucker, it was a tough, either way i knew it was time to try it again, so folks, it doesnt always work as we planned, but dont give up if something gets in the way, just start it again, and just keep going, happy carving, arleen

Friday, August 21, 2009

watch your carvings!!!! lol

well yesterday my sister came to visit from canada, and i was showing her the latest projects that i did on youtube, we were at my parents home and i took along some time ago to show my mom my hobo santa/snowman called friends, and i left it there. mom love it and put it on top of the tv, and when my sister look at it, she said something might be missisng when i go back home to canada lol
she wanted it as well. ohhhh my,, now i have to watch that it doesnt have legs and walk. its a wonderful feeling to have people love your work, even more so when its your family and friends, cause they see all the work that you do, and when you have something that they all like well, its more special. but the problem with doing the same project over and over, it takes away the fun of making something new. but i love to carve . well i know what i can do for christmas for her, and my friends, lol is to make my carving called friends, watch your carvings, sometimes they do disappear. lol happy carving, arleen

Thursday, August 20, 2009

family, and carving, time? treasure it

well folks, i always love to take a carving along when i travel, which i didnt do much when i was running the farm, but now comes a time in my life that i treasure carving and computers, but even more is the time i can spend with my sister, and family , friends , when she visits from canada, as our parents age, she is coming down more often, and likewise i go to see her family in canada, its a beautiful country and drive, 500 miles away, so its not just a day trip for me, so the next few days i will only be carving at my folks home along with chatting with her out on the deck outside at the farm, so take time to visit those that mean the most to ya, friends and family, its never a waste of time, treasure it !

Wednesday, August 19, 2009

hobo angel project




hi folks, i started the hobo angel project on youtube, it should be an interesting one, i never did an angel before, and i like the hobo theme. so i never saw a hobo angel, so thought it might be fun to do. i have video #1 up on youtube, more to come a little later, happy carving

Tuesday, August 18, 2009

carving clubs joined the lancaster county woodcarvers club

hi again, tonight i went to a woodcarving club , first time in a long long time, i never was a part of one before, some 25 years ago i did go to visit a different one, and it was to hard to find time to join. if any of you are or were farmers you know there wasnt much time for much else, the time that they did meet often were when i had to do my chores around the farm,, feeding all the animals, 450 of them took me about 2-3 hours in the morning and also again at night, and it had to be 12 hours apart, so as you can see going away in the evening was not easy.
tonight, i decided it was time to join one, i went to the lancaster county woodcarvers show. i was able to get some videos of the show that i posted on my youtube channel, so those of you that never went to a show could see what one looked like. so i promised myself that i would go to a club meeting the next time . they had some interesting carvings to see, so go find a carving club to be a part of , i sure you will find it interesting as i did, cant wait till the next meeting! :)

Saturday, August 15, 2009

what can i give?

welcome back, i just wanted to tell you of a project that i made for a friend of mine, as you know the flying dove project has a spiritual meaning to me.. i had a friend had cancer and she requested that three of us come see her, at this point she was sent home knowing all to well that it wouldnt be long that our friend would not be with us. i wanted to give her something, not knowing what to bring i looked at that dove and decided to make a mini one, which i did in about 2 hours, i put it in a jewelery box and put my favorite bible verse along with it. and gave it to her, she knew that i did wood carvings, and she had one of my santas from years ago sitting on a shelf as i enter her home, she loved christmas, so the santa was displayed, year round, and it was june. the verse was fitting from isaiah 54.10
reads , for the mountions shall depart , and the hills be removed , my kindness shall not depart from you ,nor shall my covenant of peace, say the lord God that has mercy on you.
for once i felt that the gift was a bit of hope that the dove represents, and the peace that passes all understanding, what can i give? God gave us talents to help those around if only for a brief moment. ......she will be missed by many .

tool holder, carving a knife box,,,







well folks i am about the wrap up the pine cone ornament, which i enjoyed making ,,, they are simple but alot of work, but a nice project to give away to friends and family for the holidays, i know its summer yet but soon it will be fall, you can never carve christmas stuff to early, sometimes i start in jan for the next year. i have an idea, i hold my tools in a box that was a cigar box from my grandfather in holland, i have it tape together but i used it for years,
and thought it might be fun to do a project that we do some relief carving on a wooden box, i got my wooden box at a major craft store, they were on sale for 3.00 and 5.00 a box, you want to make sure you get one that is not a thin layers on the top of the box then you will not be able to do the relief carving on the top. so see the pictures to see what kind you will need to get its about 1/4 inches thick of a soild wood, that is what you will need. i put dividers in the box to seperate my knives so that they dont hit each other, which is not good,,, you can chip or dull them quickly this way. this will be a good way to keep your knives safe in this storage box. i sometimes use the box to hold my chips as i carve,,, we will start this project soon,,,

Wednesday, August 12, 2009

NOW in dvd,,,, chickadee lessons



HI folks, it took some time but i got it done, i now have the chickadee ( 22 clips) on dvd it will work in portable dvd players, and also on your laptop or computer in the window media player, cost is 20.00 shipping free in the usa, and canada, and 5 more international,,, please email me at carverswoodshop@yahoo.com if your interested thanks, arleen

a new idea ( sharpening )

hi folks, as you know many carvers have a hard time to sharpen knives, and i have a new idea, that may help . i have other previous tapes that i put on youtube called the secert of sharpening , but this is simple and may help those who dont want to use a drill to sharpen their knives, i planning to put a video on tonight, so stay tuned.... i am all for new ideas , my goal is to make it simple and affordable for everyone, that is why you see woodcarving tips and how to videos on my channel....no need to spend alot of money on things that you can create right at home. ok........... now off to the farm to get what i need and then i can start making some more tapes tips on sharpening

Monday, August 10, 2009

pine cone ornament project


hi folks if you want a fun time woodcarving then try this pine cone, you will be able to follow on my youtube channel, thanks to rick from little shavers,, its his design click on his site on the right under links and cool stuff, and if you want to follow me just click on the carverswoodshop youtube link , thanks for joining me ,,, and this is a fun easy project , happy carving everyone

Sunday, August 9, 2009

hobo santa /snowman relief ( friends) is finished


hello, i am finished with this hobo santa/snowman friends and ready to start the pine cone ornament you can follow the teaching video on this project (HOBO) on youtube. this design was mine own, and its the first one i made like this,,,i was happy with the outcome, it was a fun project , if you like a pattern is 1.50 and i will send it by email to you, now off to the farm to cutout some pinecones lol happy carving , arleen

Saturday, August 8, 2009

tulip, one of an earlier project on youtube

this is just a picture of the tulip i made for my mom for her birthday last month, its one of my video projects on youtube if you like to try to make one like it, it was a fun project. its all out of one piece of wood, happy carving , arleen
http://www.youtube.com/carverswoodshop

ckeck out new links if you have the time

i have a spot that i am putting links for you on the right, to use to find tools and wood, and also some other neat sites that i come across, ckeck them out , i only purchase wood from heineck woods, have fun surfing the net.

some more info on the hobo santa carving class and about sharpening your knife

just to let folks know i will have knives here that you can purchase and the carvers glove , thumb guard and the strop, so that we are all on the same page, i am not in the business to sell tools but i am buying them and selling them at my cost , i just want you to to have a good knife, and soooo important to start your carving right thought this might be better then everyone starting with a different knives unless your are an not a beginner and you know how to sharpen your knives. this way you will have a good knife that will last you a lifetime with the right care. i might do a couple of classes just how to sharpen knives, and teaching how to keep them sharp,,, is sooo....important folks that you learn how to sharpen your knife. once you learn this , you will enjoy woodcarving even more,,,, nothing is more frustrating than a dull knife...... so learn this early in your woodcarving venture... you will never regret learning to sharpen a knife. and remember alot of carvers have a different way to sharpen, they are all good, just find the one that will work for you ! so try and try again to sharpen your tools, it take time to learn this so dont be discourged if you dont get it right the first time keep trying, i promise if you get this sharpening stuff right you will enjoy woodcarving so much more, nothing better than a great knife and good wood, to carve with,,,, ,,,,,,,,,, sept 14 will be here before we know it, and what a fun time it will be, happy and sharp carving to you all , arleen

Thursday, August 6, 2009

what is junk to one, is treasure to another,,, tools from holland

hi again, i spoke to my uncle in holland, the tools he sent over, were hand made by him, you can no longer get the gouges that they used years agos, the long tool the draw knife with a handle , also can not be purchase, they are now collector items,,,, and how funny was it back in 1994 when my folks went to holland asked what i wanted them to bring back,,,,, i told them a set of the old woodcarving tools that made wooden shoes, now some in my family in holland couldnt understand back then why the heck i would want that old stuff,,,,,,lol now they know, you cant get it anymore and i was lucky to have my folks find a whole set of six tools that i have now, but i really wanted the draw knife with the handle if nothing else,,,, the guy they got it from wouldnt break the set,,, so i got all of them, i was so happy when they came home back then and told me they found it,,,, what is junk to one is treasure to another.. you never know, happy carving, arleen

upcoming projects on my youtube channel

howdy folks, well i mention before about doing a pine cone ornament which will be the next project after the hobo santa/snowman friends, i about half way i think with this project and then i have something a bit new has to do with angels, i have a design that will make you smile i sure, so stayed tune, and it might be a couple of weeks but i will get it done, lol,,,, i cant wait,,, but i know it will be fun, lol well back to to loading up #6 #7 video of the hobo santa/snowman friends ..... carving is soooo neat,,,, how i love it ,,, keep carving ,, and be safe ,,,,, arleen


Tuesday, August 4, 2009

wooden shoe carving tools




hi there, these were sent to me by my uncle from holland, thought you might like to see them i will do a video on these to show how they work

next project after the hobo santa/snowman friends relief, pine cones,

hi there folks, i will be carving a pine cone ornament in my next project after this series with the hobo santa/snowman relief (friends).... i have two more lined up after both of these, and the eagle project will have to wait a spell, to busy these days, between family coming down this summer and working , and trying to catch up on my inkjet orders this week, but i will keep them coming for sure,

Monday, August 3, 2009

my uncle in holland the woodcarver!! wooden shoes

well i went to get my mail today , and my uncle ( oma geert) sent me some tools from holland so that i can now hollow out the wooden shoe i made earlier, i really didnt know how to sharpen these, thinking maybe he should do a video on how to sharpen these, well , i took my tools home, and bingo, there is a video of how to sharpen these tools, to my great surprise, i will do a video on this tonight , to show you why these tools might be tough to sharpen, knives i am fine with gouges i can but i am not fast at it as some folks are, he did a great job and i will soon put a link on it so you folks can see it, when he came here to see his brother ( my dad) back in 1991 , i was carving santas and he wanted to learn so we carve a couple of santas, and he is still carving today, all kinds of things, esp the wooden shoes, the old fashion way his website is www.youtube.com/hobbygeert and you can see him making a wooden shoe, someday i will have to go visit him!

new carvers just for you!!! and others too of course :)

hello folks, if your a new carver the most important thing that you need to learn other than owning a carving glove and a thumb guard ( both are a must) is how to control your knife, i have a video on youtube teaches you the correct way to cut the wood with a knife. its a safe way and it will help you control where the knife goes, please take a look at it, and i am sure if you will get the hang of it. the glove protect from slicing but not for stabs from your knife, so please look at it , and then if you want to venture into a project i have a beginners ( wooden shoe ) that was made with the new carver in mind, so have fun, be safe and enjoy this wonderful craft of woodcarving you can find the video at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gQbMyXdDnw8

Sunday, August 2, 2009

chickadee on dvd in divx form for your computer


dvd of the chickadee now available 20.00 shipping free in the usa and canada

Saturday, August 1, 2009

trying to find time LOL where does it go??

folks, i am trying to get my big eagle project going it might be a couple of weeks. like everyone i know we are all so busy, i will start my hobo santa/snowman relief ( friends) tomorrow, have fun no matter what your working on, and remember take your time and enjoy! get your knives ready for another project, take care, arleen

bandsaws?

well just a few words about bandsaws. i have a delta 12inch with a 6 inch riser, which i had for 25+ years. the best investment i ever made. my bandsaw is very heavy, and its heavy to move. now on the market there are many to choose. i chose this bandsaw because i did my half size eagle and wanted to be able to cut very thick wood, this bandsaw can cut up to 11 inches thick and that is because of the block riser. but a smaller one would have been good too. making this purchase can be expensive, but doesnt have to be, you can get some nice smaller ones at lowes, home depot, and sears has some nice bandsaws, and their prices for the smaller ones run 100-200. the larger one like i have can cost 400-600 depending what you get, if you decide to get a block riser. get a good smaller one if you will not cut anything over 3 3/4 inches deep, most of the projects that i have posted on youtube can be done with smaller bandsaw, and a bandsaw will last a long time. i found it to be one of the most useful tools in my shop along with a good knife. please get one if you can afford to , if your a beginner, it will not be a wasted money, but a good tool to have in the shop, remember to follow safety procedures when using one, i never wear rings or long sleeves or any jewelery when cutting with a bandsaw, also use a dust collector cause the dust can be an issue, if you get one i sure you will enjoy using it and be able to create your on designs, happy and safe carving,