I had to put this bowl aside eight months ago, unfinished. I finally returned to it last week when I brushed off the dust and focused on the handles. This bowl was carved from a dry walnut plank. I documented the process in two previous posts, here and here.
Originally, I was thinking about some carved lettering on the handles, and that will probably happen on a future version. But the idea of a figurative tree kept rolling around in my head, so I started scribbling some ideas, settling on an outline for the tree form.
To continue developing the pattern, I grabbed a board and laid out a whole series of the tree outline in pencil. Then I started playing with some carving tools. I think the important thing with this process is to not edit your ideas too soon. Move forward with them, because there is no risk. If you think “That will probably look stupid,” go ahead and confirm it! That board above is full of silly ideas, but some of them may trigger something down the road. The sample board also reveals when a design conflicts with the realities of wood and grain direction.
A few of the sample trees represented variations of what I ultimately went with, using straightforward cuts with a bullnose gouge. I wrote about that tool and technique in this post.
I’ll probably offer this bowl for sale eventually, but there are plans in the works to write and shoot an article about this bowl design. So I’ll be holding on to it at least until that process is complete.
For some real pattern inspiration, I’ll recommend the work of three pattern masters, starting with Jögge Sundqvist. Jögge’s new book is now out in English and it is fantastic. I can’t recommend it highly enough. You can check out the full table of contents and learn more about it at Lost Art Press.
Jögge shows and discusses many historical pattern examples and explains how they inspire new designs.
Another pattern expert is Peter Follansbee, of course. Peter’s “Joiner’s Notes” blog is what led me to begin my blog several years ago. And it’s full of carving pattern resources. Peter has a new blog rolling on Substack now. Many posts feature historical pattern photos and information. Yesterday, his post was about arched designs with some great examples.
Another person who really understands patterns is David Berman. David is an expert on the work of English Arts and Crafts designer CFA Voysey. He recreates Voysey’s designs into wallpaper and posters which he offers through his business Trustworth Studios. A look there at the wallpaper designs can inspire many patterns.
One Voysey design, originally for tile, that David transformed is “Laborate et Amate” (Labor and Love). I took a section of the wallpaper and cut it into individual 6″x6″ squares, then mounted them to a pine board above my workbench windows. The contrast will increase over time as the pine darkens.
There’s a sculptor, a scribe, a gardener, a musician, and (of course) a woodworker at the bench. I love the pattern of shavings coming out of the plane.
David Fisher, Carving Explorations 
The carving works perfect on the straight grained wood and the photo background is perfect
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Thanks, Gene. There happened to be some good light falling on my workbench.
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Hello David,
Just a beautiful pattern for the handles. It is well balanced and fits so well. The practice piece you show in developing the pattern is amazing. Thank you for the resources you presented. It will be a big help for me. Is it best to wait for the wood to be thoroughly dry to cut the details?
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Thanks, Skip! Yep, I wait until the piece is dry to do any detail or decorative carving.
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Phenomenally cool brother! I love the first piece at the beginning of the article.
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Always amazing! Beautiful
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Just Beautiful. And a great lesson in working through the design process. Thanks for sharing! Another great source of inspiration for me is a recent book written by chip carver Daniel Clay.
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Really good David. It inspires me to try some letter carving myself. Do you offer any online tuition or can you recommend anything to help start letter carving please. Regards Phil.
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Phil, I have several posts about letter carving and my methods. Check out “lettering” in the topic pulldown menu. I don’t have any online tuition available right now. There are many ways to carve letters with different tools and techniques depending on design, size, and material. For relatively small lettering, a knife can be ideal. It’s what I use. It’s essentially a form of chip carving. Jogge addresses it in his new book. For more general letter carving in wood I’d recommend Martin Wenham’s book: https://davidffisher.com/2022/06/28/martin-wenhams-letter-carving-book/
Also, Chris Pie’s book Letter Carving in Wood is excellent.
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Many thanks for your advice, Dave. I have ordered Karvsnitt and Martin Wenham’s book. Thanks again, Phil Chesterton.
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What a spectacular bit of work from a dried out plank! I’ve been accused of doing a design multiple times before being satisfied. I think you broke all my records. Gorgeous result! Thanks also for the other design ideas.
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Such a beautiful new bowl Dave, and the trees on the handles are so unique and fit the carving of Walnut bowl perfectly. Well done.
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Dave, I think your lettering is super; but these trees are absolutely stunning! Thanks for posting.
Bob Simmons
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Very creative as usual David, love your work it’s quite inspiring. I’ve been hoping to see the finished swan bowl that you were working on in your twca cam video. Thanks for sharing all your knowledge and tips.
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That swan bowl was from a few years ago, Scott. Here’s a blog post about it with some finished photos: https://davidffisher.com/2016/03/15/every-goose-a-swan/
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This is truly inspiring, Dave! If it comes to pass, I’ll be on the lookout for the article and bowl sale. Seems like you’ve settled into your new shop. Cheers!
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Stunning as always, thanks for sharing the shot of the test patterns. I find those very interesting
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https://stryicarvingtools.com/ Have you seen this Dave. Scroll down and there is a picture of you carving a bowl.
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Well, what do you know? Thanks for the heads up, Bob. And here I am owning none of their tools. I see there’s another shot when you click on that one — as the header on the next page. Both shots are from an article I did for Fine Woodworking Magazine a couple years ago. They must have snagged them from Fine Woodworking’s website.
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