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Our meetings are open carving sessions. EVERYONE is always welcome – individuals and families with children age 10 or older. If you wish to introduce a child less than 10 years old, please contact us ahead of time for tips and projects.  As with previous carving projects we will be providing blanks at a nominal cost and the lecture and meeting is ALWAYS free. Bring your carvings, knife, and enthusiasm. Directions to our events are listed below.

Below are selections from our most recent newsletter.

EVENT CALENDAR See our Carving page for     carvings from the show and our competition winners Check back often for changes in the pictures on the page. 2012 Seminar Series  As we did last year, we are going to be continuing to run simultaneous seminars for the next few months. As always, blanks will be available at a nominal cost. Instruction, as always, is free. Fishing Lures and Decoys: Fishing lures are very commonly used in fishing today. In ages past it was very common for fishermen and women to make their own lures. Fishing decoys follow a tradition that goes back thousands of years. Decoy making and ice fishing were used by the early native peoples of present day Alaska, Canada, and the western United States. The native people used carved wood, bone and ivory decoys and barbs. Duck Decoys & Shorebirds: We will carving duck decoys and shorebirds. We will be doing miniature ducks carvings, other waterfowl, little or big, modern and antique depending on the style you choose. Decoys have been used for hunting and attracting waterfowl for conservation. If there is enough desire, we can try to reschedule one of our meetings at a waterfowl conservatory where we can observe the birds. Miniature Carousel Horse: We will be doing a horses head in the carousel style. Not just the head like last year, the entire horse just in miniature. February 5:  CWCA Monthly Meeting: Sunday 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the CT Forest and Park Association Building on Rte 66 in Middlefield. February 17/18/19: 2012 Northeast Fishing and Hunting show: Connecticut Convention Center: We have been asked to demonstrate. Please see Leo for more details if you can come and display on any of the three days. (www.fishinghuntingexpo.com) February 25 & 26: Air Brush Classes: A local artist is offering two classes. In this class you will learn the basics about the world of Airbrushing. Please see below. March 4:  CWCA Monthly Meeting: Sunday 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the CT Forest and Park Association Building on Rte 66 in Middlefield. April 1:  CWCA Monthly Meeting: Sunday 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the CT Forest and Park Association Building on Rte 66 in Middlefield. Date TBD:  Annual Walking Stick Class: This is our annual walking stick class which we hold jointly with the CT Forest and Park Association. May 6:  CWCA Monthly Meeting: Sunday 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the CT Forest and Park Association Building on Rte 66 in Middlefield. Open carving. May is traditionally our open session.  We mostly use to continue our walking stick class or complete any project you are currently working on. June 3:  Annual Carving Show: New England Carousel Museum

PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE: What an incredible year 2011 was! I hope that all of you are well after all the wild storms and electrical trials. I would also like to pause and thank those who have made this a great year of projects and new experiences. Since it’s inception in 2003, we continued our walking stick class. The first one was conducted at the CT Forest and Park Association as it has continued through 2010. We even conducted a satellite course at the Carousel Museum one year. We have been steadily growing and in 2011, we were asked to come down to Wesleyan University in April for the CTFPA and to display in Blueback Square and at Cabella’s. As always, we had a wonderful group help trudge through the woods and collect walking sticks for our annual classes. We will be starting to collect walking sticks early this year, if you have some time, please contact me to arrange a time. Any time during the week is the normal time. Thank you for those who can.  On June 4th, we had one of our best attended shows in many years! Thank you for all of those of you who entered and attended. In July, Rick and Bev Ciarcia were extremely gracious hosts in allowing us to meet at their house near the beach for a wonderful backyard picnic. Over 20 people were able to attend and everyone had a wonderful time. It was a beautiful day with shining sun and great company. A few were able to take the short walk to the beach to enjoy the surf. Mark skillfully ran the grill in place of Ron and there was plenty of food for all. There was a great deal of talk and even a little carving was done! We had a light projects this fall, a relief flower, with a great deal of assistance during our two other open sessions. We welcomed in the winter in November with split out carvings and another demonstration at the New England Carousel Museum’s annual craft show.. Please do not forget to get out and gather some wood from the storm damage. Some of the most interesting wood can be gotten from creative splits and knots that we may not have known were there before they came down. Green wood is often softer and carves differently. Give it a try!! We are looking forward to a year of many new and exciting projects, experiences, filled with many new opportunities. Carving skills are always available for learning; just ask! As always, I am wishing you a happy and healthy New Year and success in your carving projects. May the chips begin to fly, covering all… like the coming winter’s snow. Safe and happy carving, Leo

SCOUT TROOP REQUEST A local scouting troop is requesting our help in teaching the boys knife safety and how to do some soap carving. The two scout leaders (Mark is one…) will be running the class, and they just need help with the boys during the actual carving. Typically a Thursday night but a Saturday may be scheduled. They are hoping to do the class for the students in late winter / early spring. If you can donate two hours, please contact Mark Austin, he is coordinating. (miaustin@snet.net)

AIRBRUSH CLASS with Joe Rizzo: This introduction to airbrushing class is great for most folks with little to no experience with airbrushing. If you own an airbrush and are not sure what to do or want to learn the basics, this one day overview, 5 hour course is for you. In this class you will learn the basics about the world of Airbrushing. This is the full realm of airbrushing, Different types of airbrushes, air compressors, supplies, mechanics of you airbrush, assembly repair, principles of painting and techniques along with different materials and applications of an airbrush. No equipment required, there will be hands on, bring your equipment if you own it or have questions about it. Saturday February 25, 2012                        Sunday February 26, 2012 #2 Shelton Road 586 Center Street Monroe Ct 06468 Wallingford CT. 06492 Harmony Grange Hall Wallingford Grange Hall 10am - 3pm 10am - 3pm $90.00 course fee pre-registration Club members: $40.00 discount! is required Call: 617 784 7789 Proof of club membership required.

Meetings Please be safe and we hope to see you at our future meetings. If you would like to come to the meetings and the cost of fuel is keeping you away, contact one of the officers or our website and we will see if there are groups of people who might like to car pool. Future Event Planning: If there is a technique, method, skill or project you would like to see in our group, please let us know. We are looking for speakers and projects. Please contact our website and we will forward the suggestion to the committee.

COLLECTING WALKING STICK MATERIALS: Each year, the CWCA obtains a permit from the State to cull small saplings for walking sticks. We already have the permit for this. We normally get together on a weekend morning but we may do it during the week too. The volunteers will venture slightly off one of the roads next to the park to gather small trees for making walking sticks. This date is highly weather dependent, considering there is often snow on the ground there once the snow flies! Please let Leo know if you are available for first choice of a good walking stick blank. Everyone always has fun on this trip. Bring good shoes or boots and a cutting tool, such as good loppers, or a small hand saw. Please also consider bringing in a small bag with you so we can collect any trash or debris to leave the area cleaner than when we arrive. Our whole purpose is to leave no trace yet create something beautiful and useful.

TOOL PATTERN FOR THE WALKING STICK CLASS: If you were at the Walking Stick class the last few years or at the shows at the Carousel Museum, you may have had the opportunity to use the shaving horse to hold you walking stick to take the bark off.  This is a wonderful tool to hold your work. Ever thought about either making or getting one? Well, we found two relatively simple patterns that with some basic tools most people can construct. In the May 2008 issue of American Woodworker. On page 63, they have step-bystep directions and a pattern for creating your own. With a 2x10x12ft piece of common lumber and a few pieces of hard wood, you can make a shaving horse. For more info on getting the magazine, go to www.americanwoodworker.com. This is not a true shaving horse, but there is a portable carving bench in the Spring 2011 Woodcarving Illustrated magazine (#54). The magazine is on newsstands now or can be ordered from www.woodcarvingillustrated.com . This pattern is not online but a carving arm is online (or in the Summer 2010 issue #51).  Photo of the shaving horse:  from www.woodworkingplans.tv .

Bellamy Eagle

MEMBERSHIP  As we do every year, membership runs by the calendar year January 1st to December 31st. Please send the form on our membership page to our Membership Director, Mark Austin at the following address: C. W. C. A. Dues are $15 per year Checks payable to: C. W. C. A. c/o Mark Austin     258 Campville Road Northfield, CT 06778 For your convenience, you can also come to our meeting, give the dues directly to Mark, and enjoy a wonderful seminar and carving session. Please also remember that membership makes a wonderful gift! Do you know a fellow carver that is not a member? Invite them to a meeting or give them a gift membership and bring them to a meeting!

DIRECTIONS Connecticut Forest and Park (CFPA)building      From Routes 15 and 84:  Get on I-91.      From I-91:  exit for Route 691 east which becomes Route 66 shortly.  Pass intersection for Route 217.  Entrance to CFPA building is a short distance (about 0.3 miles) on the left.      From Route 9:  exit 15 for Washington Street in Middletown.  Continue until you see apartment complex on left with green and white stripes at top.  Turn for CFPA building is second driveway on right. New England Carousel Museum is on Route 72 (Riverside Avenue) in Bristol.

HOME PAGE

MEMBERSHIP FORM

EVENTS

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CONTACT US