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Selecting Wood for Intarsia Patterns
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- Created on Wednesday, 11 May 2011 17:26
- Last Updated on Saturday, 13 April 2013 07:38
- Written by Administrator
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There are three essential things to keep in mind when buying wood for Intarsia: grain/figure, machine ability and color/species—all of these are interrelated. It may be that you are looking for an exotic redwood only to realize too late that your saw won't cut it and when planning an intarsia pattern, the two most crucial points are wood color and grain relationship. That is you will need to balance the technical problems of dealing with different species against the artistic flow of the wood.
Grain / Figure
Use grainy as opposed to figured woods since the latter tend to be a money pit. For the parts of your project where you want to depict direction or action, go with grainy woods like ash and oak and for any metallic surfaces, opt out for non-grainy wood like maple or basswood.
The only exception for opting for a figured wood is when you're looking to feature interesting knots or other defects, as it were in a unique position in your pattern.
Creating Pictures With Wood - Intarsia
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- Created on Friday, 18 March 2011 04:32
- Last Updated on Saturday, 13 April 2013 07:38
- Written by Colin
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One of the most relaxing and enjoyable woodworking areas is creating pictures with wood ... better know as Intarsia. Those that do get into Intarsia find out very quickly that it is far more complicated than first thought. It is not just a matter of cutting out different shapes of wood from different species to give the effect of different colors, it also involves understanding the grains of the wood and how to best cut it. This is AFTER you have figured out how to get the piece of the pattern you are working with on the wood.
Then there is the wood. Some of the most stricking Intasia pieces I have seen have incorporated special grains, or wood anomolies in the wood pieces that lend themselves to enhancing the Intasia piece. Perhaps it some figure in the wood, the way the grain runs or maybe where a branch connected when the tree was alive. All of these are features of Intasia.
To enhance a piece of Intarsi even more, requires the use of carving tools. When wood is carved the gouges cut by the carving tools are what give the piece a three dimensional look which is highlighted by the way the light strikes the highs and lows creating shadows and highlights on the work. A simple piece of Intarsia can be brought to life by a skilled carver who has the ability to add a few cuts here and there and make the piece more than a 2 dimensional looking pictures.
Copyright - Colin Knecht
Woodworkweb.com
Starting Intarsia for Fun and Profit
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- Created on Thursday, 27 December 2007 18:34
- Last Updated on Saturday, 13 April 2013 07:38
- Written by Administrator
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Intarsia has been around in various forms for hundreds of years. It is one of the most beautiful and creative ways of combining art, woodworking and finishing. The very means of making (or in many cases just puirchasing) a pattern, deciding what woods to use throughout the work, then cutting, glueing and finishing the pieces is truly a time consuming pains-taking work, but when a good jog is done the results are outstanding.
Intarsia & Stained Glass
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- Created on Wednesday, 28 November 2007 11:57
- Last Updated on Saturday, 13 April 2013 07:38
- Written by Administrator
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This Intarsia/glass art was developed in the summer of 1999 by Jeff Meuwissen, a stained glass artist for 12 years. He began experimenting with Intarsia and combining it with stained glass. After a few attempts at various techniques, he refined the procedures which he describes below. The art of Intarsia and the art of stained glass share certain basic characteristics which make them compatible with each other. Their use of small multicolored pieces to create a picture is similar. Background items such as sky, clouds, sun, moon, hills, and water features provide an excellent opportunity to incorporate color into your art. Intarsia and stained glass can be combined to create truly beautiful art work designed to be displayed as windows, window hangings, or traditional wall hangings.