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First things first are always important in the carving process.  Carving a good foundation of the basic form first allows the details to be carved in their proper places.  These four photographs show “carved to form” caricatures ready for detail carving to take place.  The first two photographs show a block of basswood having the top corners rounded into a dowel shape to receive the hat and head of the caricature as well as the back of the arms and shoulder area sliced forward on the back side of the block.  Each block is standing profile with a “carved to form” caricature for comparison.  The next two photographs show four “carved to form” caricatures to be studied as a short tutorial in “form ready for detail.” The lesson of this “Short Tutorial” is that there are no short cuts to carving the details.  First the form and then the detail.