Welcome to the exciting world of wood carving! If you're a beginner, the first and most confusing hurdle is often choosing the right wood carving tools. Do you need a gouge? What's a sloyd knife? The truth is, the tools you need depend entirely on the style of carving you want to do but the good news is BeaverCraft have everything you need.
We’ll break down the three most popular carving styles—Whittling, Chip Carving, and Relief Carving—and show you the essential tools to get started with each.
1. Whittling: The Freeform, 3D Style
Whittling is the most approachable and popular style, characterised by carving three-dimensional objects or figures, like spoons, small animals, or walking sticks. It’s all about working in the round and requires minimal equipment.
What is it? It’s carving with a single knife, shaping an entire piece from a block of wood.
Essential Whittling Tools:
- The Roughing/Sloyd Knife: This is your main workhorse. With a medium to long straight blade and a comfortable handle, this knife is used for roughing out the material, cutting large amounts of wood quickly, and shaping the basic form.
- The Detail Knife: This knife features a smaller, fine-pointed blade. You need it for adding intricate features like eyes, hair, or small curves and for making accurate, tiny cuts where your main knife can’t fit.
- The Hook Knife (Optional but Recommended): If you plan to carve spoons, kuksas, or bowls, a hook (or spoon) knife is non-negotiable. Its curved blade is designed specifically for hollowing out concave shapes.
💡 Our Recommendation:
The BeaverCraft S17 Extended Spoon and Whittle Knife Set is ideal, as it includes all three essential knife types (roughing, detail, and the crucial hook knife).
2. Chip Carving: The Geometric Style
Chip carving is less about realistic shaping and more about creating beautiful, repeating geometric patterns. This style is often seen on decorative boxes, borders, and furniture.
What is it? You use one primary knife to remove small, triangular, or curved "chips" of wood from a flat surface.
Essential Chip Carving Tools:
- The Chip Carving Knife: This is the specialised tool for this style. It typically has a short, stiff, highly pointed blade that allows you to make neat, precise plunge cuts and clean outlines for the chips you remove.
- The Detail Knife: While the chip knife does most of the work, a fine detail knife can be helpful for cleaning up corners and making small stop cuts.
💡 Our Recommendation:
Look for a set dedicated to these fine cuts, such as the BeaverCraft S15 Starter Chip Carving Set, which provides dedicated chip and detail knives to master intricate geometric patterns.
3. Relief Carving: The 2D/Background Style
Relief carving is essentially sculpting on a flat background. Think of a wooden picture frame with scenes carved into it, where the image stands out from the wood's surface.
What is it? You use specialised tools to remove the wood surrounding your image, lowering the background to make your foreground image appear to "stand out" in 2D.
Essential Relief Carving Tools:
- Gouges: These are curved chisels and are the primary tool for relief carving. They come in dozens of sweeps (the curvature of the blade) and widths, and they are used to clear large sections of background and shape smooth contours.
- Chisels: Used for creating straight lines and sharp corners, especially where the background meets the foreground.
- Roughing Knives: Useful for drawing your initial outline and making quick, general cuts before bringing in the gouges.
💡 Our Recommendation:
If Relief Carving is your goal, you will need to invest in a set of Gouges and Chisels alongside a good roughing knife. The BeaverCraft S43 set is great place to start.
The Essential Accessories (No Matter Your Style)
No matter if you’re whittling a small bird or carving a complex relief scene, these two items are non-negotiable for safety and success:
- Sharpening System: A sharp knife is a safe knife! Dull knives require more force, increasing your risk of slipping. You must have a Leather Paddle Strop and Polishing Compound (BeaverCraft LS1P1 or LS9P2) to maintain a razor edge. Stropping should be part of your routine—it’s quick and makes a massive difference.
- Tool Storage: Keep your investment protected! A canvas or leather Tool Roll/Case prevents blades from hitting each other (dulling the edge) and keeps sharp points safely secured during transport.
The right tool for your first carving project is waiting. Now that you know the difference between whittling, chip carving, and relief, you can confidently choose the perfect wood carving tool set to begin your exciting journey!