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Artwork (Traditional) / All
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A custom pendant commission of a fox-wolf hybrid character. This one was a lot of fun to do! Shown larger than actual size - about 2" tall. This one is tiny!
Pyrography and acrylic on tagua.
See the rest of my tagua gallery here: http://www.foxloft.com/Artwork/tagua.php
Custom inquiries welcome!
Pyrography and acrylic on tagua.
See the rest of my tagua gallery here: http://www.foxloft.com/Artwork/tagua.php
Custom inquiries welcome!
Category Artwork (Traditional) / All
Species Canine (Other)
Size 227 x 300px
File Size 14 kB
*sigh* Those are wonderful! I think I'm in LOVE.
Finally a use for that big bag of Tagua nuts that I bought at Lee Valley.
I've only dabbled just a bit with carving it. Do you find you have any problem with voids in the middle of the nut? (usually a sort of triangle shape) Also, what is the safest way to slice it? (if you don't mind sharing? Band saw after gluing it into some waste board?) You are a very talented artist...just to tell you one more time. ^-^
Finally a use for that big bag of Tagua nuts that I bought at Lee Valley.
I've only dabbled just a bit with carving it. Do you find you have any problem with voids in the middle of the nut? (usually a sort of triangle shape) Also, what is the safest way to slice it? (if you don't mind sharing? Band saw after gluing it into some waste board?) You are a very talented artist...just to tell you one more time. ^-^
Thank you for your kind words! :)
The tagua is very difficult to slice, you need to drill a hole into it, glue in a metal rod, attach that to a strong board, and then use a guide and carbide blade - I have not used a bandsaw, just a rotary, but I would assume a bandsaw would work as well. If the blade is moving too fast, it will burn the nut and you will end up with scorch marks.
I love using them for carving, the voids in the center can be very frustrating so I usually cut the nut in half and carve very small things out of it, since otherwise it can be really frustrating.
It's a wonderful material, but *very* strong. I've melted many drillbits in my years of working with it.
You can carve/cut tagua easier if you soak it first... but it makes the material more prone to cracking, since it often dries unevenly. I experimented with this but was not happy with the results, though some people do use it.
The tagua is very difficult to slice, you need to drill a hole into it, glue in a metal rod, attach that to a strong board, and then use a guide and carbide blade - I have not used a bandsaw, just a rotary, but I would assume a bandsaw would work as well. If the blade is moving too fast, it will burn the nut and you will end up with scorch marks.
I love using them for carving, the voids in the center can be very frustrating so I usually cut the nut in half and carve very small things out of it, since otherwise it can be really frustrating.
It's a wonderful material, but *very* strong. I've melted many drillbits in my years of working with it.
You can carve/cut tagua easier if you soak it first... but it makes the material more prone to cracking, since it often dries unevenly. I experimented with this but was not happy with the results, though some people do use it.
Yes, I've heard of soaking it, but haven't been convinced to do so in such a way that I was confident of success.
The best results I've had with carving have been with using a little dremmel to rough shape and then using VERY sharp blades, very carefully.
I'm kind of insane about creating tiny things ...
I hadn't thought of using pyrography though. You must have one of the nice (stylus sized) ones because your work is lovely!
Often I am relief carving soapstone in reverse to make moulds for my pewter casting...
The best results I've had with carving have been with using a little dremmel to rough shape and then using VERY sharp blades, very carefully.
I'm kind of insane about creating tiny things ...
I hadn't thought of using pyrography though. You must have one of the nice (stylus sized) ones because your work is lovely!
Often I am relief carving soapstone in reverse to make moulds for my pewter casting...
Very neat! :) I love to carve but my wrists are really sensitive (I have bursitis) so I can generally only work with soft materials unless it's for a very short period of time.
I have a really nice DetailMaster pyrography system and use Razortip hot blades, I have found they are well worth the cost. I use one that is basically like a hot needle for my fine detail work (I'm crazy about doing tiny pieces as well :) I got it mostly for leatherwork, but found it works nicely on tagua - though it can be really challenging because the nuts produce a lot of oil when burned. Too much heat and it just turns to carbon and flakes off, too little and you barely scratch the nut.
Dremels are wonderful for carving everything. :) I love mine.
I have a really nice DetailMaster pyrography system and use Razortip hot blades, I have found they are well worth the cost. I use one that is basically like a hot needle for my fine detail work (I'm crazy about doing tiny pieces as well :) I got it mostly for leatherwork, but found it works nicely on tagua - though it can be really challenging because the nuts produce a lot of oil when burned. Too much heat and it just turns to carbon and flakes off, too little and you barely scratch the nut.
Dremels are wonderful for carving everything. :) I love mine.
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