Carving / painting sequences

MLBob Furia

MLBob Furia

Well-known member
Mentioned I'd do this. Again, not intended as a "tutorial" so I'll keep commentary to a minimum. You can pm questions, and I'll reply. Hope you can find some ideas to steal or recycle. I need to sit down and re-work/update the old Carving Cork Gunners series from MLB website, and I will get to that over the next few months

Pattern drawing was the starting place. This happens to be an idea I'd used on a few frond pintails, converted for making a cork or wood bird. Basically looking to establish outer-most dimensions for side & top views, and think about where feather groups have to fit or drape and what will have to happen during carving that facilitates painting. So, it's important to think about painting from the start (...like: how am I going to be able to reach everything aound and under that neck & head ?). Also important to make sure the top & side patterns you've drawn will align properly, so be sure to have a square and a good eraser handy.


The head had already been carved when I was working on fronds and did a spare for use on this project

View attachment CorkPinpreener A (600 x 399).jpg

Cutting a block that will accomodate the pattern out of a sheet of HD cork

View attachment CorkPinpreener B (600 x 399).jpg

glue both surfaces ( bottom board - cedar- and cork block ) See the post on Titebond II & III,
then make up your own mind. ;-)

View attachment CorkPinpreener C (600 x 399).jpg

Clamp & let dry thoroughly - Not letting the glue dry is not something you want to deal with
once you start cutting the pattern & carving. Go carve the head while this dries.
An assortment of shop clamps is a good investment for any carver. A heavy weight will do
a pinch, but you risk the joint sliding on you.

View attachment CorkPinpreener D (600 x 399).jpg

Top & side views transferred to block. Note the guideline in front drawn with the square +
the center line established through the top view to center it. I have also drawn in the slot
I'll remove for the tailboard.

View attachment CorkPinpreener E (600 x 399).jpg
 
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Neck joint extension w/ block cut to allow plenty of room to carve to shape to the curves desired.
Head will be pinned to the extension using a harwood dowel & appropriate dowel center.

View attachment CorkPinpreener L (600 x 399).jpg

I'll then shape the body, constantly re=drawing feather goup references on the decoy as I go.
I use a ball point pen because it works better on the cork surface.
A PVC "spike" was inlet into a channel running through the tailboard and extending a few inches
into the body of the bird as well.
Obviously some work was done prior to this next pic:
Checking the fit of the still un-attached head

View attachment CorkPinpreener M (600 x 399).jpg

Thinking ahead to what I have to paint, I might do some more sketching and/or outline some
feather groupings I intend tocarve in. Here, I've defined the primaries & secondaries

View attachment CorkPinpreener N (600 x 399).jpg

Permanently setting the head at the angle I want

View attachment CorkPinpreener O (600 x 399).jpg

Head & tail are now pegged all the way through the bottom board for strength. Because of
the head position, this bird has both horizontal & vertical dowels running through all the
head & neck joints.

View attachment CorkPinpreener P (600 x 399).jpg
 
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Guys - While I certainly always appreciate your comments, the page would probably load easier and be more viewable without the "attaboys."

If you did have a question you wanted to post, p.m. it to me. Thanks, Bob

When the epoxy for the dowels is set, I'll trim them and clean off the cedar bottom board
on the belt sander.

View attachment CorkPinpreener Q (600 x 399).jpg

Then the neck joint is carved and sanded

View attachment CorkPinpreener R (600 x 399).jpg

At this point, all the carving is done

View attachment CorkPinpreener S (600 x 399).jpg

I'll usually add weight if it's needed to cause the decoy to
self-right, after to the bird & keel have been sealed. However,
past experience has taught me that the weight of the tail insert on my pintails
(due to the extra length I use to be able to catch the insert with the dowel coming
up through the bottom board)sometimes causes the bird to ride high in front - not a huge difference,
but not how a pintail should ride the water, and something that detracts
from the nice look the upturned sprig imparts to the carving.

After checking how the unsealed bird floated in a galvanized tub filled with water
& covered by a dry-cleaning bag, I decided it needed to be weighted to float correctly.

View attachment CorkPinpreener T (399 x 600).jpg

Using just enough lead to bring the front end down slightly, I poured it into two holes bored deep enough
so they could also be plugged with hardwood caps.

View attachment CorkPinpreener U (600 x 399).jpg
 
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Holes were sealed & epoxied with pecan plugs, then bottom was re-sanded on belt sander


View attachment CorkPinpreener V (600 x 399).jpg

Now the entire bird gets 3 coats of Val-Oil. Same for the keel, but it gets done seperately


View attachment CorkPinpreener W (600 x 399).jpg

When the bird has been float & self-right tested with a temporary means used to hold the keel in
place, I will sand to bare wood where I have determined the keel needs to be positioned.

View attachment CorkPinpreener X (600 x 399).jpg

Keel is then attached permanently with both epoxy and decking screws. The screw heads are
countersunk into the keel and sealed with epoxy as well

View attachment CorkPinpreener Y (600 x 399).jpg

Now the decoy floats right, is water tight, and ready to paint.

View attachment CorkPinpreener Z (600 x 399).jpg
 
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I am using acrylic paint, as over the years, I've learned what I can do and what works with the acrylic paints and mediums I've chosen. I like the results they give me. End of story. If I were happy with oils or even Kool-Aide , I'd go with one of them.

First step in is to base coat the bird. Lots of options here. Straight tinted gesso being one. But on top of that basecoat, I always texture with tinted gesso & modeling paste. Because I'll vermiculate this pintail with spatter rather than combing, the entire decoy was sponge textured.

A little forward thinking about the sequence for sponging with a pose like this might be necessary -- to figure out which areas need to be worked first while applying the mix to areas that are awkward to reach. I have some different pieces of sponge cut to accomodate tight angles and spaces. Not getting in a hurry helps - so does having done this a "few" times.

Open cell sponges. If you find some you like, rinsing them thoroughly after each use and working a good brush cleaner ( I like "Pink Soap") into the last few rinses will make them last forever.

View attachment Texturesponge (600 x 399).jpg

Here is the decoy after both base coat & sponge texture have been applied. At his point
you'll have a gunning bird that is thoroughly sealed and then covered with a uniform hard shell
of texture. Some like to go with just a base coat & paint, and that's fine too.

View attachment CorkPinpreener Z03 (600 x 399).jpg

Now it's time to take down "The Book, " and make a little time to thoroughly re-read all
the notes I've kept over the years in the margins (and sometimes all over the color plates)
in the chapter on pintails.

"The Book" is not a how-to paint reference work you can go out & buy, but just a
convenient repository for all the color mixes I've used on different species over the years.
I'd like to tell you that I have all these color mixes in my head...but sometimes I can't even
remember where I put down a tool I was working with the minute before. ....So keeping
some sort of records is a good idea for any carver. And it can be any convenient format.

Actually, I originally chose this particular book as the storage place for my painting notes,
because I liked the potraits by the author and found they were great references for basic
coloration schemes for hunting decoys.

In addition, I will often jot down reminders of things that seemed to work on a particular
bird.

View attachment thebook2 (600 x 399).jpg

View attachment thebook3 (600 x 399).jpg

View attachment thebook4 (600 x 399).jpg
 
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Bob- I am considering giving carving a try and am trying to collect all the info I can. Would you mind telling me the purpose of the guidelines drawn on the block?
 

Here I've blocked in the base color of the side pocket, secondaries, and areas of the scapulars
& mantle that will need that coloration. I'll set aside some of this mix in a small, sealed jar
in case I need to come back with some of it later or mix it to create lighter & darker shades for
adding some highlights.

View attachment CorkPinPreener Z05 (600 x 399).jpg

Now the reason for "painting before you carve" comes into play again. I'll go back and re-establish
where the feather groupings will lay and how I want them to flow. I'm just re-sketching with
a Prismacolor pencil.

Then using darker & lighter blends of the base color, highlights are added to create simple feather detail
where I've sketched.

I'm starting with the flank/side-pocket on this pintail because even though I can keep the spatter
pretty tight and could mask off surrounding areas, I don't want to chance that the spattered vermiculation
would ruin any previously painted areas it might get on. This way, when those areas are painted later,
any stray spatter will merely be covered up.

View attachment CorkPinPreener Z07 (600 x 399).jpg

Spatter tools:

View attachment brushes (600 x 399).jpg

Applying spatter vermiculation over shaded feathering:

View attachment CorkPinPreener Z08 (600 x 399).jpg

View attachment CorkPinPreener Z09 (600 x 399).jpg
 
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Very nice stuff Bob, thanks for taking the time. I know how much time a detailed post like that can take. Most people take them for granted, but they are special. Your attention to detail shows even the composition of the pictures in the tutorial.

I thought the book choice was interesting. Don't see that book around much (at least I don't). I love Trevor Boyer's birds.

T
 
Here I have painted the primaries as well as blocking in the white areas on the tail & flanks.

I've also outlined the white edges of the flowing scapulars that are so characteristic of pintails.

This photo is a great illustration of why the "paint before you carve " maxim is important.
If I had followed rote procedure and and shaped the side pocket without thinking ahead to
what I'd have to eventually paint, I may have ended up with a very nice looking unpainted decoy.
But when I went to paint in those nice, flowing scaps - a key visual - I'd have ended up with a
feather that bent awkwardly through the contour I was stuck with.

Likewise, if I tried to avoid all that by keeping the scapular above the crease, I'd end up with a stiff,
racing-stripe pattern to those feathers that wouldn't allow the viewer to get any impression at all of
the flowing, graceful lines of a pintail.

View attachment CorkPinPreener Z12 (600 x 399).jpg

More blocking & shading on the tail, upper & lower tail coverts, & flanks.

View attachment CorkPinPreener Z14 (600 x 399).jpg

Finally, a point is reached where all the base work comes together; and with the addition
of some shading to the solids, the colors on the bird really begin to pop

View attachment CorkPinpreener Z15 (600 x 399).jpg

Close-in detail of the same stage

View attachment CorkPinpreener Z16 (600 x 399).jpg

Here's a shot from the reverse angle. It shows how I changed the flow of some scapulars so they
take slightly different angles & bends, avoiding a "wooden-soldier" appearance - and enhancing
the illusion of the changes that the bird's twisting his neck might cause on that side.

View attachment CorkPinpreener Z17 (600 x 399).jpg
 
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Not quite as many step-by-step pictures of painting the head - I was too preoccupied with keeping the
paint mixed with the extend/blend medium moving to stop.

I exaggerated that blaze that a prime pinnie will exhibit on the sides of the crown,
as well as working in some iridescence that the viewer's eye would be drawn to by the white neck stripe.

I used the little broken toothbrush in the picture to add some spatter feathering effects to the lighter
highlights blended into the "cheek" area (actually the ear-coverts). A Piece of paper was used
to protect the breast and area under the head while I did this small area of spatter.

View attachment CorkPinpreener Z18 (600 x 399).jpg

Here is a good closeup of the bill. Joe Wooster used to say: "You get the bill; you get the bird"
That statement has a lot more to do with than just color; but simple things like blending in different
values of the blue-grey base color, and softening edges between harsh changes in color values
add a lot to the overall impression + enhance what's been put in in terms of carved detail.

What I've done here with the carving detail DQ's this bird according to most show's guidelines
for working birds. That's not a bone of contention for me, just a warning if you plan to enter decoys in
service class competitions - check the rules.

View attachment CorkPinpreener Z19 (600 x 399).jpg

Now the paint is left to cure for a while (even acrylics need to set up a while); and then I'll apply
some thinned, glaze-medium coatings over the entire carving.

View attachment CorkPinpreener Z20 (600 x 399).jpg

I already did a post with the "coffee-table" picture-book pics of this bird, but here's one last shot:

View attachment CorkPinpreener Z28 (600 x 399).jpg

Hopefully, this will be the final result for someone:

View attachment 1909Dan 011 (600 x 391).jpg

- 30 =
 
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Bob,

Now I know why my decoys look the way they do and your decoys look the way they do. :>):>)


Thanks for taking the time to post that up. It is greatly appreciated.
 
Bob, I held off posting on your thread as long as I could so you could complete the photo essay, but I have to say thanks. What a gift to all of us. Now quit making it look "so easy".
 
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