Carving in the Round

Carving in the Round is a wood carving method that produces fully three-dimensional pieces – in other words, the finished carving is a freestanding object that can be viewed from any side or angle. In this technique, you carve all the way around the wood, shaping the front, back, and every side of the piece to create a sculpture in the fully round form. Unlike relief carving (where the design is raised from a flat background), carving in the round has no backing or untouched portion of wood; the subject (be it an animal, human figure, or abstract shape) is completely liberated from the wood blank except for the base it might stand on. This approach allows for the most lifelike and detailed representations – for example, a carved bird will have its wings, body, and feather details formed on all sides, and you can pick it up and turn it around to appreciate the carving from any perspective.

For beginners, carving in the round can be a challenging yet highly rewarding endeavor. It is often seen as the pinnacle of wood carving because it requires you to think and carve in all three dimensions. However, new carvers don’t have to start with large or extremely complex projects – it’s wise to begin with something simple, like a small figurine, a cartoonish animal, or an easy whittling project (whittling is essentially carving in the round with just a knife on a smaller scale). By tackling a basic figure, you’ll learn how to gradually find a form within a block of wood by removing material from all sides. This comprehensive practice rapidly develops your skills: as one woodcarving expert put it, when you try carving in the round you will learn so much and eventually be able to carve anything. Each project teaches you about proportion, symmetry, and how light and shadow play on curved surfaces. Although it may take patience (since you must constantly turn the piece and carve carefully to keep it symmetrical or true to your mental image), many beginners find it thrilling to watch a solid block transform into a recognizable figure. Even a simple rounded carving, like a little wooden gnome or a bird, can fill a new carver with pride and motivation to continue improving. For those working with slightly tougher wood types, it’s useful to learn how to soften wood for carving to make the experience smoother and less fatiguing.

BeaverCraft helps beginners venture into carving in the round by providing suitable materials and tool sets that make the learning process smoother. One key to success is using the right wood – basswood (also known as linden) is a popular choice for carving figures because it’s soft, fine-grained, and easy to cut. BeaverCraft offers high-quality basswood carving blanks (including blocks and pre-cut shapes) that are perfect for practice, so novice carvers don’t struggle with overly hard wood and can focus on technique. Additionally, BeaverCraft has a wide selection of carving knives and gouges geared toward figure carving. A beginner might start with a basic whittling knife from BeaverCraft’s lineup to rough out a shape, then use small gouges or V-tools from one of their tool sets to refine details like facial features or animal fur. In fact, carving in the round often demands a slightly larger toolkit than flat carving – you may eventually use knives, chisels, gouges, and even rasps or sandpaper to perfect the sculpture’s form. For those just starting out, BeaverCraft’s wood carving sets for beginners offer a convenient and thoughtfully curated introduction to the essential tools and materials needed to begin carving confidently. BeaverCraft’s beginner kits and tutorials introduce these tools gradually. Some kits even come with simple projects (for instance, a wooden animal blank with a rough outline) so you can jump into carving a 3D figure with guidance. With BeaverCraft’s supportive tools and learning resources, aspiring carvers can step-by-step build the confidence to create fully three-dimensional carvings, turning their imaginative ideas into wooden reality.