Some years ago Tom wrote a book called Carving the Civil War. The book met with great success, but left a hunger for more. One of the figures in the gallery was a beautiful realistic horse, and it wasn't long before requests for a horse book started coming in. Well, here it is Tom brings his teaching and carving skills to realistic horses. This new book takes the carvers through the steps of carving a frisky colt. Using hand and power tools Tom creates the form, detail, and musculature that brings the horse to life. Included are gallery photos and patterns for the colt's sibling and sire, as...

Among the most popular of Tom Wolfe's carving books is Tom Wolfe Carves Dragons. From the day it came off the presses Tom has received letters asking for a Wizard book to go with it. "What good is a dragon without a Wizard?" one reader asked. Well, here it is These fanciful figures let the imagination run wild. You can make them friendly or sinister, young or old, comic or deadly serious. Tom gives patterns and step-by-step instructions illustrated in full color. The gallery has a coven of Wizards, in both full-figure and bust forms. But that is only the starting point. From there a change...

The most ambitious carving Tom has ever presented in a book, this may also be the most charming. Tom leads the carver step-by-step through the process of constructing and carving a "kid's size" rocking horse. This is the perfect project for a Christmas present that will be cherished generation after generation. And even though it is ambitious, the instructions and illustrations will enable even the novice carver to complete a work of which they can be proud. The book covers every step from cutting the lumber through carving, assembling, and painting. Measured drawings are included as is a...

For caricature carvers the greatest challenges and the greatest rewards come from carving the head and face. This is where the personality of the figure resides. The exaggerated nose, the enlarged ears, the toothy or toothless grin...they all combine to give the figure a story we can understand at a glance. In this new book, Tom Wolfe concentrates on the caricature head by carving busts. About 8 inches tall, these carvings give plenty of room for detail, and allow the carver to explore new ways of giving expression to their work. One figure is carved step-by-step, with clear color photographs...

For the veteran carver or the newest devotee of the hobby, carving vegetables can be educational, fun, and surprising. We're not talking pumpkins here, but real carving, using woodcarving tools and techniques. Instead of wood, though, Tom uses sweet potatoes, which are firm enough to take the knife, and inexpensive enough to take a mistake or two. That makes them the perfect medium for new carvers or for experienced carvers learning new techniques. And there is more As the vegetables dry and wizen, they take on wrinkles and twists that give them truly surprising and delightful character....

Just when it seems that Tom could not possibly have any more Santa patterns, here are 75 never before seen designs. They reflect Tom's unquenchable creativity, his boundless sense of humor, and his keen eye for caricature. Each pattern is clearly drawn and reproduced at full size. A color gallery is included on the back of the book to use as a paint reference.

A roughout is the start of a carving that allows the carver to skip the first few steps to go right into the "good part." They're great for developing your creative eye, because they have a basic but distinct shape that lets your imagination take off. The rough figure might have its own shape, but no one said which side was the front, back, top, or bottom. That's up to you to decide. Hold the roughout one way and maybe you've got a grizzly old rebel in the making; turn it upside down and there's a lazy bullfrog. In his friendly, laid-back way, Tom Wolfe guides you step-by-step through the...

Jointed dolls are an ancient concept. As a folk art in the American Appalachians and elsewhere, Dancing Sams have used the jointed idea to create a dancing motion when moved by a vibrating board for hundreds of years. When Tom Wolfe was visiting the British Museum in London, he came upon an Egyptian doll that was constructed just like the Santas in this book. The jointed Santas in this book are delightful. They can be easily posed and made to do a variety of things. And they are easily carved, following the step-by-step color photo illustrations. From the carving to the joint construction to...

When the well-known wood carver, Tom Wolfe, turns his talents to a new medium the results are wonderful. The almost limitless medium of polymer clay and Tom's eye for character and caricature combine to produce some endearing and delightful creatures. For years Tom has been using clays as a modeling tool for his wood carving. At the same time, though, he has created some characters in clay that are just meant to stay that way. The polymer clay comes in a variety of colors and can be shaped in almost any way imaginable. For those thousands of hobbyists and artists who use polymer clay, this...

Very few carvers can carve animals and people with the same skill. Fewer still can convincingly carve realistic figures and caricatures. Tom Wolfe is one of them. Following his book on carving realistic horses, he now he brings the same talent to bear on caricature horses. As always, Tom takes the reader step-by-step through the carving process, with each step illustrated with a clear color photograph. From the blank to the finished painted figure, everything a carver must do is clearly explained. In addition to the standing horse project carved in the book, there are patterns for other...