Anyone, from the completely inexperienced beginner to the veteran craftsperson, can learn to use simple, inexpensive tools and techniques to carve striking decorative designs in wood. Chip carving is an especially good introduction to working wood for the inexperienced because of its low cost-of-entry, and because it puts the most essential concepts of woodworking front and center: safety, precision, and how understanding the nature of the wood itself leads to successful results.

This guide is loaded with the technical information you need to start chip carving--the few tools you need and how to sharpen them, how to select and prepare wood for carving, how to transfer carving patterns, how to carve safely and precisely, and how to read and understand wood grain. Clay also teaches the basics of good carving technique, provides step-by-step guidance through two practice boards to build your skills, and then walks you through ten beginner projects that allow you to put your skills to use.

The Art Of Chip Carving goes beyond any other how-to manual by introducing techniques and projects for learning freehand carving, and how to use the simple shape-vocabulary of chip carving to create your own carving designs in the style of traditional European folk carvings.