Being a Proud Spouse...



One of Jared's Carvings in Progress with Tools

I've mentioned a few times before in posts that my husband is a wood carver.  He recently finished his work website.  I know I'm biased, but I think his site looks good and I'm really proud of him for finishing it (especially right now when we're busy with a newborn). 

If you're interested, feel free to visit his new site: www.jaredwithington.com .

Looking forward to something special...

A year or so ago, I met a lovely couple through Freecycle.  Recently they found some bog oak when doing some landscaping.  They remembered that my husband is a woodcarver, and kindly offered it to him.  (If you read this, Thank You!)

Bogwood is normally found in Ireland, and it's a rare treasure to find some here.  If you're not familiar with bog oak, the term basically refers to oak trees have been preserved under water and eventually under peat and other wet soil.  It is common for pieces of bog oak to be 3,000 or more years old.  To find out more about bog oak, click here.  Bog oak is very unique and beautiful.

My husband still needs to assess how much of the wood is usable (there are some rotten sections), but there should be some great pieces of bog oak for him to carve and sculpt with.  Looking at these fantastic pieces of wood, I know that the result is going to be something spectacular.  So here's looking forward to something special. 

To see some examples of bog oak sculpture that I really like, click here.

Jared's Woodcarvings

I think I've mentioned before that my husband is a very talented artist. Right now he's a postgraduate student at the City and Guilds of London Art School studying historic and ornamental woodcarving. I just wanted to show off a few of his recent projects.

This is a work-in-progress. It's a copy of a hand clutching a scroll carved by Donatello (he's working from a cast of the original). It's carved in yew, and the hand is slightly larger than life size. I'm excited to see this one when it's finished.

I really love this acanthus. Jared carved it in lime, and it's a really lovely decorative piece. I'm really lucky to have this decorating my kitchen right now! (He does take commissions and has carved a lot of gifts for people as well, so we don't get to keep many of his pieces. It's exciting to watch the process and then get to keep it.)

This is a piece of lettering practice (his initials) carved in beech.


These two pictures are both of a strapwork carving in English brown oak. This is a copy of a fragment of an early 16th century Flemish carving.

A Whale of a Tale

I am a firm believer in having artwork--both reproductions and original pieces--in the home. My husband is a wood carver, and uses traditional techniques and hand tools to make beautiful carvings and other wooden objects (clocks, decorative frames, etc.) I just wanted to show off a piece that he just finished. This carving was a commission, so sadly it didn't get to stay on our mantel. It's called A Whale of a Tale and is carved in local yew. My photography doesn't do the piece justice, but it's a lovely little carving.