August "Whats on your workbench?"

No new decoy yet, but here is a tray. I carved it out of solid Western White Pine by hand. I am happy with it for my first attempt with the wood that I had and the tools that I had. A few more different sweep gouges will help to clean things up a bit more in the future.

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Here is one of the Blair style Teal I posted after they were carved. It's base coated in tube oils, ready to dry for a few days. This step was completed in one sitting...

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Awesome Geoff! I love the traditional lines and, what a contrast to Bob's GWT. Great job to both of you. I appreciate both of your commitments to replicate waterfowl.
 
That can looks awesome, David. Looking forward to seeing it in person.

I should be sending yours tomorrow. Didn't realize I had run out of brass screws, so I had to pick some more up to put the pad weight and tang on.
 
Just carved some white pine woodies. Working on some GWT heads patterned after Virgil Lashbrooks 1931 teal rig. More painting progress on my longtails and, finished a spin off of a John Barnhart vintage goldeneye.

Nice woody John!
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those Oldsqauw are gonna be tremendous wish I had those in the rig!
 
Well I guess its the first time I can put something up for "whats on your workbench" besides dead birds. I carved a very crude brant a year ago, just carved for the sake of carving only used a cedar post not quite tall enough to get a proper back hump. Needless to say, I was happy I finished my first deke but there was much to improve on, I mean a lot lol.

Skip forward to a surpise visit by a friend of mine a month or two ago. He dropped off a block that had been hollowed and roughed into shape, and I went to town on the body carved the excess and then carved the head. Couldnt be happier with it. To me it finally looks like a decoy worthy of being floated. And it will be come March 1st 2011 for brant season.

Any CC is welcome.
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Adam - Nice brant! I see some Elmer Crowell in it.

Larry - I appreciate the comments and hope they bring some longtails in.

Tim - Great little bird, nice attitude! Keep up the good work!
 
set of four mallards I'm working on none will be hunted by me though. gwt drake and bwt drakes all ready for gesso and acrylic. the mallards are just needing transition areas cleaned up and SANDED!! they will be painted in oils.

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Pat, I love the look of that goldeneye. Simple, clean, representative. It is to decoys what haiku is to poetry.

Do you have a picture of the original you based it on?
 
As promised here is the sleeping mallard head after the first glaze. He has rested for two day and a half days now. It's been real hot and humid here and we have had rain the last two nights so I've given it a little extra time to cure between glazes. Tommorow afternoon it will get it's second glaze of colors.

Now I believe that everyone perceives color differently. When I see a mallard head I see lots of blues and purples in the rear of the head and nape of the neck And I see a lot of very yellow greens in the cheeks and jowls and I see the greens as very blue green. So in this first glaze I tried to establish the widest range of color that I will use. The following glazes will be used to tone and darken.

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In this photo you can see that the grain is raised. Soemtimes I like to do that and use it as a sculptural element to enhance the color and form.

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And this is the back of the head. What I'm working to achieve is a transition of greens into a blueish green into a blue that tends to green into a blue that tends to purple into a purple into a purplish black at the lowest parts of the neck into breast transition.

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Once again these photo were taken with a cell phone so the quality is not great. But Mama Volleyduck and I are going to go camera shopping this Saturday and I'm going to find a nice one that even my fingers can make work.

If you have a question I'll do my best to answer it.
 
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