Great Gear: A fresh guide for chip carving

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Being employed at a woodworking magazine grants me access to lots of information. Plus, my office is right next door to a Woodcraft store. I’m lucky to have easy access to research and learn almost anything woodworking-related. But I wish that this book had been available when I first tried my hand at chip carving. In Chip Carving, Techniques for Carving Beautiful Patterns by Hand (Blue Hills Press), author Daniel Clay deftly walks you through the early stages of the craft: what tools you need, how to use them, and how to sharpen them. Text and photos make the craft accessible and grant confidence along the way. With clear photos and direct writing, each chapter cleverly builds on the one before as you work through different cuts to various patterns, designing your own patterns, and finally finishing. Plus, the foreword is by late master woodworker Nancy Hiller.

If you are interested in chip carving, you’ll want to read this book. Even if you aren’t, it will change your mind when you see the cool things you could do. And, if you’re a chip carving veteran, Clay’s unique, original, and modern patterns and designs will breathe fresh inspiration into your art.

—Chad McClung