About Highlandwoodcarver

I started wood carving only a few years ago. Humbly enough, I carved out relief images on walking sticks I was making to use on hikes with our local Scout Troop, of which at the time I was a leader. This led to more intricate relief designs tooled on flat boards. With the help of the internet, which really opened my eyes as to what others were doing with a simple block of wood and a knife, I embarked on intense research on all forms of carving.

I have now tried just about every form, and have begun trying other media such as antler. I keep coming back, however, to our feathered friends. My library of bird carving books and magazines along with bookmarked websites began to grow exponentially. I was devouring (still do) any bit of info I could find on the subject of replicating wildfowl from wood. I was hooked!

And so began a journey, a new passion if you will, to master the art of realistic songbird carving. Just how long it will take I don't know, but I'm having a great time along this path. I keep being encouraged by family and friends who say, "wow! that looks like a real bird!" after examining a specimen or two.  I have to admit it brings me much joy at this point to hear that positive reinforcement.

What I find also satisfying is getting to know more about each specie I carve. Doing research on the internet or in books lets you in on habitat, feeding, nesting, biology, migration, distribution and the quirky things a bird might do just to name a few.  Things like the waxy nodes on the Cedar Waxwing feathers, or the extra long rear toes of the nuthatches, the diet of the bald eagle. All are fascinating factoids from the feathered world!