I began woodcarving and woodturning as a youth. For years I did nothing with it, but I always had a box of tools, somewhere. In My carving was a form of solitary sanity, after days of working with people.

In the process I learned a number of things:

If I can not see it, I can not carve it That taught me to begin with the end in mind.

The wood will teach you what you can do! That taught me to have a conversation with the wood, or any other medium I work with.

The fireplace is the woodworker’s best friend. There will be mistakes and failures, do not obsess about them, learn from them and move on.

Find beauty, in your own eyes, don’t worry about the customer. I create art, bowls, carvings, for myself. If other people take joy in that, that is gravy.

I use all kinds of tools to remove the wood. There are half a dozen tools I use all the time, a good sharp knife, a few gouges, a pencil, sandpaper, paint brushes. Other tools for specific tasks are used occasionally. I learned early on to learn to use a few tools well. Many of my carvings are either in cottonwood bark, or basswood. These mediums let me give shape form to inspiration without needing to fight with the wood.

If I were to describe my style, it would have to be fantasy/realism. Gnome homes in cottonwood bark are whimsical, quirky, and yet they have to be probable.

I explore new ideas, and materials. I often do not know if something has worked, until I have put the pieces away so that I can forget them, in order to approach them with fresh eyes. It is amazing how work improves when forgotten about for a while.