Intarsia Workbook, Revised & Expanded 2nd Edition E-Book

Judy Gale Roberts

• Herausgeber: Fox Chapel Publishing
• Kategorie: Lebensstil
• Sprache: Englisch
• Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2021

Seitenzahl: 92

Beschreibung

Intarsia, the art of making stunning picture mosaics in wood, may look intimidating but it's easier than you think! Build your skills as you create impressive intarsia projects with guidance from award-winning artist Judy Gale Roberts. Intarsia Workbook, Revised and Expanded Second Edition offers 15 attractive yet simple skill-building wood projects that can be completed in just one weekend. With step-by-step instructions and all-new color project photography, Judy reveals the secrets of sanding, shaping, and finishing your own intarsia masterpieces. You'll be amazed at the beautiful pictures you can create when you learn to combine different colors and textures of wood to make raised 3-D images. By the time you complete the projects in this workbook, you will master the skills necessary to tackle any intarsia project with confidence.

Leseprobe

© 2018 by Judy Gale Roberts and Fox Chapel Publishing Company, Inc., 903 Square Street, Mount Joy, PA 17552.

Intarsia Workbook, Revised and Expanded Second Edition is a revised and expanded version of Intarsia Workbook (ISBN 1-56523-226-7), published in 2003 by Fox Chapel Publishing Company, Inc. Patterns have been added and the instructions updated. Portions of this book were previously published in Small Intarsia Projects You Can Make (ISBN 1-56523-062-0), first published in 1996 by Fox Chapel Publishing. The patterns contained herein are copyrighted by the author. Readers may make copies of these patterns for personal use. The patterns themselves, however, are not to be duplicated for resale or distribution under any circumstances. Any such copying is a violation of copyright law.

Page 16, bottom photo: Jiri Pavlik/Shutterstock

ISBN 978-1-56523-924-1eISBN 978-1-60765-499-5

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Names: Roberts, Judy Gale, author. | Booher, Jerry, author.

Title: Intarsia workbook / Judy Gale Roberts and Jerry Booher.

Description: Revised and expanded second edition. | Mount Joy [Pennsylvania]: Fox Chapel Publishing, [2018] | Includes index.

Identifiers: LCCN 2017037745 | ISBN 9781565239241 (pbk.)

Subjects: LCSH: Marquetry.

Classification: LCC TT192 .R632 2018 | DDC 745.51/2—dc23

LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2017037745

To learn more about the other great books from Fox Chapel Publishing, or to find a retailer near you, call toll-free 800-457-9112 or visit us at www.FoxChapelPublishing.com.

We are always looking for talented authors. To submit an idea, please send a brief inquiry to [email protected].

For a printable PDF of the patterns used in this book, please contact Fox Chapel Publishing at [email protected], with 9781565239241 and Intarsia Workbook, Revised & Expanded 2nd Edition in the subject line.

ABOUT THE AUTHORS

The artist largely responsible for the rebirth of intarsia, Judy Gale Roberts began creating intarsia with her father, Pat Dudley Roberts, around 1974. The two designed custom wood murals, among other artwork, for some of their clients.

In 1984, Jerry Booher came on board, and Judy began to design and create one-of-a-kind pieces on a smaller scale for private collections. Jerry, a tool and die maker before switching careers, studied and refined the process that Judy and her father used and became an expert on the scroll saw. It was also in 1984 that Jerry sent pictures to the National Woodcarvers Association asking if they knew of a name for this technique of woodworking. The Association wrote back with the name “intarsia,” stating that the only place they had seen it was in Italy.

Throughout the 1980s, Judy and Jerry attended juried shows and won a number of ribbons for their intarsia work. In the process of competing in shows, the two began to educate and expose the world to the art form called intarsia. Judy has continued promoting intarsia even after Jerry’s death in 2016.

In 1997, Judy was the first woman and one of the first 10 people to be inducted into Wood magazine’s Woodworking Hall of Fame. Her work has been featured in Wood magazine, Scroll Saw Woodworking & Crafts magazine, and Patrick Spielman’s The Art of the Scroll Saw.

At present, Judy teaches beginner, intermediate, and advanced intarsia classes from her studio located 30 minutes from Dollywood near Gatlinburg, Tennessee. The pattern business continues to grow, and now more than 500 intarsia patterns are available, including 20 different “classrooms in a tube” (patterns with in-depth instructions) for people who cannot make it to the foothills of the Smoky Mountain in person to take a class. Visit Judy’s website www.intarsia.com and check out her newsletter The Intarsia Times.

CONTENTS

Chapter 1: Getting Started

Chapter 2: Step-by-Step Instructions

Beautiful Bow

Graceful Whale

Seagull in Flight

Seagull Landing

Sweet Hen and Chick

Early Worm Gets the Apple

Chapter 3: Patterns

Four Seasons Welcome Sign Set

Welcome Banner

Spring Bouquet

Summer Sailing

Fall Mousy Visitor

Winter Snowman

Fun Feline Frame

Largemouth Bass

Playful Dolphin

Wonderful Wren

Resources

CHAPTER 1

GETTING STARTED

This book is a cumulative representation of over three decades of creating intarsia works of art. It combines both Jerry Booher’s scroll sawing/precision skills and my, Judy Gale Roberts, designs, wood selection, and shaping skills, and distills the many lessons I have learned from years of teaching intarsia classes, as well.

Our first class was a real eye-opener for me. I had been working with wood in this manner for so many years that I had forgotten most of the struggles I went through. However, after working closely with students for many years, I have a clearer understanding of what being a beginner to intarsia feels like. We wrote this book to share lessons that give you a solid foundation to build on. This updated edition includes new patterns and refinements to our techniques to make the lessons even easier and the end results better. I hope you enjoy the projects in this book and believe they will give you a well-rounded understanding that will help you with your future projects.

If you have never done intarsia before, I suggest you start at the beginning of the book and work your way through the projects to the end. The projects are ordered from easiest to more complex, with the instructions building on each other to develop your skills. The first project, a bow, is easier to cut than the other projects and uses the same material throughout, so you can get started right away. From there, the projects gradually get more complex, adding more colors, parts, and dimension. The final few patterns include notes and tips but not complete instructions; please refer to the earlier projects if you need specific help.

Each of the projects in this book was designed with a scroll saw in mind; however, the patterns can be modified to use a band saw. On each pattern, you will notice a legend showing grain direction, tones of wood colors, and areas to be raised with ¼" (6mm)-thick shims. We cut all of these projects from ¾" (1.9cm)-thick wood.

Choosing the Wood

Use whatever wood you have on hand for these projects, especially if you are just starting out. It will take some time to build up an inventory of various shades of wood. Going through the motions will give you more experience, so do not let “I don’t have the right kind of wood” stop you from gaining more knowledge through practice. Whatever wood you do choose, make sure that the lumber is dry. A moisture meter is a good investment.

COLOR AND GRAIN

The color and grain patterns are more important than the type of wood (see Photo 1.1). We use western red cedar for 98% of our projects because we like its array of colors and grain patterns; however, you can use any type of wood. If you go to a lumberyard for western red cedar, be sure to ask for it by its entire name. It is often confused with eastern cedar or aromatic red cedar, which are used in closets and similar applications. Aromatic red cedar can be used for intarsia, but it does not have the color variety that western red cedar has. Red cedar can work for areas that would look great in red, like a cardinal, but we noticed that red cedar tends to darken quickly to brown.

PHOTO 1.1 Look for a variety of grain patterns. Boards with varied colors within them work well for intarsia.

PHOTO 1.2 Incorporate bark and other natural aspects of the wood into your composition for added interest.

PHOTO 1.3 Spalted wood gives intarsia projects a unique look.

If you choose to use hardwoods or exotic woods, keep in mind it’s the shades or tones to look for rather than the color. Dark walnut can be used for areas marked “D,” or a dark shade of wood; mahogany, cherry, and pecan can be used for “MD” (medium-dark) shades; maple and birch can be used for “M” (medium) shades; white oak, some birch, and some basswood can be used for “LT” (light) shades; and poplar, holly, aspen, and white pine can be used for “W” (white) shades. For white wood, we particularly like aspen, which keeps its nice warm-white color even after the finish has been applied.

If you have access to unusual wood, it can also work well with intarsia projects. Try incorporating natural parts of a log (see Photo 1.2) or using spalted wood (see Photos 1.3 and 1.4). Spalting is created when the wood is rotting.

You may also want to look for boards that have knots. Many times wood grain is very unusual around knots and can be used to accentuate certain parts of an intarsia project. However, if every piece of wood on the project has a strong, unusual grain pattern, it can take away from the overall effect of the finished piece (see Photo 1.5).

PHOTO 1.4 We made the American Indian on the left using spalted wood. He looks much older than the American Indian on the right, which has walnut for the hair. (We have not yet applied finish to either of these.)

PHOTO 1.5 Duck #1 incorporates too much grain activity. Duck #2 is more pleasing to the eye, and the heavy grain on the wing stands out beautifully.

WOOD CHOICE FOR PATTERN LAYOUT

Decide what the main focus of the pattern will be and look for an unusual grain pattern in a piece of wood to make these areas more interesting and stand out more. My theory for laying the pattern parts on the wood is to put what would be the main pattern parts on the wood first, giving them top priority; then, place the other parts around them. For example, if we were laying out a horse head, we would put the major parts of the horse’s head in the best grain placement possible; then, we would fill in with the secondary parts of the same color, like the ears.

Always check both sides of the board when you lay out the pieces. Sometimes a knot may angle into one of the project’s parts. Also, if you are using a board’s natural highlight, be sure to check both sides of the wood and the edge grain, if possible, to see how deep the lighter color goes.

WOOD SIZE AND THICKNESS

Most lumber comes somewhat smooth on three sides: the face side and both edges. We run the rough side through a planer, taking off just enough so the board lies flat. Clean up both sides if needed; however, try to keep the wood as thick as possible.

The larger the project, the more flat it will look—unless you use thicker wood. For a small project that would fit on an 8½" by 11" (21.6cm by 27.9cm) pattern, ½" (1.3cm)-thick wood will make the project look dimensional. The same ½" (1.3cm)-thick material on a 17" by 23" (43.2cm by 58.4cm) project will make it look flat, regardless of how much sanding you do. We use ¾" (1.9cm)-thick wood on projects within the 17" by 23" (43.2cm by 58.4cm) range. On projects 20" by 30" (50.8cm by 76.2cm) or larger, use 1" to 1½" (2.5cm to 3.8cm)-thick material.