Need a tool vendor for your show in Florida? - Woodcarving Tools and Supplies - Jim O'Dea jeodea@aol.com
Hi- I'm Jim O'Dea - welcome to my web site where I highlight the
2020 Season Woodcarving Shows and classes of interest to woodcarver's in the South Florida region click here
Woodcarving seminars held in the Charlotte County, FL area in the 2020 season:
If you are looking for a place to stay in the area of Englewood, Fl the Gem Coast Inn is the closest Hotel to the class with Lemon Bay Motel being the next closest and there are a few others in Englewood along with 2 Time Share places at the Beach- other areas to look at are Port Charlotte, Northport, and Venice which are all equal distance away.
All Classes start at 08:30am with doors open at 8:00am. They generally go to 4:30pm or whenever you and the instructor agree. Best to bring a lunch (refrigerator available) but deli's and fast food are available within a few miles. Specific directions provided when you register for the class with Jim O'Dea (jeodea@aol.com). Class sizes are limited. Chairs are steel folding chairs so if you have a cushion or a favorite chair of your own bring it.
Dennis "Butch" Clark - carving a Miniature Seagull 3 day class held in the Englewood area - a simple habitat base will be ptovided for a beach look or bring your own to mount the bird - a power carving class - Class starts on Wednesday 26 Feb 2020, Thursday 27 Feb, Friday 28 Feb.
Class size is limited to 8 students, only 1 opening still available.
Cost is $150 for the 3 days with all materials included. Butch will provide Tupelo blanks, eyes, a pattern,and associated paints. You will go home with a complete, painted bird and mounted on a base.
Size of the Sea Gull is approximately 6 inch long and 3 inch high plus the base.
In Butch's previous classes with me, all students have been able to finish including painting and mounting.
Other birds Butch has done as class projects:
Cardinal
White throated Sparrow
Wren
Chickadee
Kinglet
typical pattern Butch provides
Students should have either a Dremel, Foredom or RAM or similar type of rotary tool. etc. and a dust collector. If you don't have them contact Jim O'Dea jeodea@aol.com for possible loaners or just to check if what you have is suitable. Students will need a coarse bristle gesso brush, a medium sized flat brush, a number 6 or smaller round brush and a very small round detailing brush. We will paint with acrylic colors. Bring a hairdryer for drying the paint. Extension cords and power strips are needed as well. Tool bits Butch recommends are: either a kutzall or burr for rough cutting, a medium sized sanding drum (150 to 220 grit), a medium sized ruby or diamond carver (tear or tree shaped) and a small conical shaped texturing stone (white or blue). A small piece of #240 ABRANET sandpaper and a sanding stick are very useful. A wood burner is used for detailing the feathers. A ball stylus for burnishing. See image of tools below. Some of these bits may be available for purchase at the class and others as loaners.
Bigger power tools like Foredom's are not NOT necessary.- Ram like tools are best or smaller Dremel like tools. This is a power class so students should have a dust collector - a 20 inch square box fan or smaller fan with a furnace filter taped to it is fine. If you are flying in or don't have a dust collector, contact Jim as loaners may be available. Students can use hand tools if they prefer. Loaner power tools may be available - ask Jim @ jeodea@aol.com
Butch Clark makes his home in a wooded area of rural Darke County, Ohio. The surrounding environment is alive with inspiration for his artwork as it thrives with an abundance of songbird species. However, Butch's art interest didn't begin with woodcarving, or birds.
Butch began drawing at an early age. He quickly realized his gift, and began taking professional art lessons at the age of eleven. After serving two years in the United States Army from 1966 to 1968, Butch evolved his artistic abilities. In 1976, he completed a four year International Correspondence commercial art course. Soon, his skills were being recognized locally. He began designing logos for schools, corporations, local organizations, and sporting goods suppliers.
It wasn't until 1992 that Butch began to apply his art skills to woodcarving. Inspired by a lifelong appreciation for nature and a keen interest in bird species, he took lessons from a local woodcarver and soon he was creating his signature songbirds. His first carving was a Northern Cardinal, the official state bird of his native Ohio.
Butch has become well established in his field, and is highly respected by his peers because of the unique attention to detail evident in his work. Recognized nationally in the woodcarving community, he has won numerous awards including at the Ward World Wildfowl Competition in Ocean City, Maryland and at the International Woodcarvers Congress in Maquoketa, Iowa. His carvings have been featured in national publications such as Chip Chats, Woodcarving Illustrated and Carving Magazine. A gallery of his birds can be viewed in the spring 2009 issue of Carving Magazine.
Butch is a member of the Brukner Nature Carvers woodcarving club in Troy, Ohio. He spends much of his time sharing his creative ideas and teaching his techniques through carving classes, carving demonstrations and by speaking at local organizations.
If you want information on upcoming seminars, e-mail Jim O'Dea
a few of Jim O'Dea's wood carvings
Clubs in Southwest Florida
North Port Woodcarvers Club This club meets on Monday afternoons from 12:00 - 3pm at the VFW post in North Port on Pan American Blvd and corner with Trott Circle. map to the VFW address for GPS users - 4860 Trott Circle, North Port, FL. There is usually a class going during the season and beginners are always welcome. Contact: Ron Gauthier 941-2578480 ronaldgauthiert@comcast.net
For a list of clubs in all Florida
If you want your club displayed here or on the all Florida list, contact Jim O'Dea jeodea@aol.com.
Classes currently offered to your local club by Jim O'Dea.
Email me at jeodea@aol.com to discuss details and schedule a class.
Woodcarving Roundups ( once a year events, multi day, multi classes at once)
Central Florida Woodcarvers Roundup - North Port and Zephyrhills
at a NEW LOCATION in North Port and Zephryhills - NO roundup in Arcadia this year
Click for details here
Lake Placid (NY) Woodcarving Experience at the Northwoods Inn in June and September - multiple classes scheduled - see info here.
NorthEast Woodcarvers Roundup
at Honesdale, PA in June click here held near Scranton,PA last week of July. Also a "Fall Carve-in" is held about 1 Oct which has a "Quilters Retreat" going on at same time - See Fall Carve-in info here and Quilter retreat web site here.
Michigan Woodcarvers Roundup
at Evart Michigan in June click here held in Evart, MI 2nd week of June
Indiana Woodcarvers Summer Camp
at Bremen,IN in August Click here
Buckeye Woodcarvers Roundup
20+ miles north of Dayton, Ohio in July. For info click
here.
Information of interest to Woodcarvers
Riving demonstration on splitting fibers for Fan-Carving by Sally & David Nye - video on YOUTUBE Fan-carving is the art of riving long-fibered wet wood and then turning and interlocking the blades to create a 3-dimensional design. Fan-Carving is an Old World folk art that needs to be preserved - See more of their work here.
A free E-Book from Google on Woodcarving - one of the oldest I have seen but still has useful info - all pages are here- 1905 by Fred T. Hodgson, Collingwood, Ontario. Follow the links on this page to "previews" of more recent woodcarving books. click here.
Butternut Trees- what is killing them, why it is getting hard to find it click here
Pictures and descriptions of various woods here
Wood Toxicity List at the Shopsimth web site click here
Sharpening Machines - Jim's homemade and others described here
. Joe Dillot's sharpening video is an instruction in building and using a drill to power the sharpening system here
Cut Resistant Gloves
Woodcarvers Illustrated Magazine Project Index by Dave Andreychek, York Carvers,PA click here
Index of Patterns in Chip/Chats 1977-1997here.
Comparison of Sanding Grit sizeshere.
Anatomy for Scultorshere.
Other Related Sites
The Carvers' Companion, home of the Woodcarver Online Magazine, WoodCarver List, World Wide Woodcarver Exchange, and Woodcarver Resource Files here.
Carving Magazine Online - here
Woodcarving Illustrated Magazine - here
National Wood Carvers Association (NWCA) magazine Chip/Chats here.
Southtowns Woodcarvers Club - Western NY State here
A Wood Carver in Ireland here
An event with woodcarving class in Ireland here
If your woodcarving website would be of interest to viewers of this site and you are interested in exchanging links, please Jim O'Dea e-mail
Interested in ABRANET -the newest thing in sanding wood?? Click here for details
