Several people have offered painting tips on Facebook so I thought I would expand the tip about a holding device. A handle can be used to hold a small carving while carving and/or painting. Some have suggested carving a handle-shaped stick or some other form for ease in holding a carving. I found some cheap tool handles that were probably meant for files or replacement screwdriver handles. Flea markets and yard sales are good for these items. I cut the heads from drywall screws and other assorted self drilling screws. I made sure each one would fit in the pre-drilled handle hole and used epoxy glue to set a screw in each handle. If the hole is larger than needed, you will have to support the screw so it remains in line with the handle until the glue sets up. That’s not a big deal but it will be a better experience using the handle if you can easily screw it into the carving.

Using different sized screws is not necessary but can be helpful if you have a small base on your carving and a large screw will cause the wood to split.

I happened to have a big chunk of pine, 3.5″ X 3.5″ X 21″ (90mm X 90mm X 533mm), that had seven holes conveniently drilled so I could use my handles. Each hole also had a pilot-hole in the bottom. This allows me to invert the handles for storage when they’re not in use.

I took a class with CCA member Tom Wolfe where painting was part of the instruction. Tom used the same concept but instead of a heavy chunk of pine, he had a short log with angled chainsaw cuts to form a rough dome shaped top so it looked like a stump. That allowed holes to be drilled at angles around the top. I don’t remember how many holes were in his base.  If I have carvings that cause my base to tip, I add a clamp at the bottom to increase the size of it’s footprint.

By the way, the carvings pictured were inspired by an article by Dave Stetson (CCA) in the Winter issue 2016 of Woodcarving Illustrated Magazine.