Wood that has character are those serendipity discoveries that appear when cutting into a block of wood.  These character blemishes occur as the result of a tree healing itself when is limb is cut or broken off during the growth of the tree.  It could be a knot, ingrown bark, fungus or natural occurring dark streaks.  Such blemishes may imply inferior wood that has little use and is often discarded in the trash barrel or burned.  But then, when you have a carver who follows the Old Carver’s Law: “Leave no wood un-carved,” such character wood becomes a source for a unique carving with its own character.

The blemish itself has a beauty of its own and is often surrounded with interesting grain patterns of twisted and gnarly grain.  The challenge for the carver is to incorporate the blemish or flaw into the overall design of the carvings often on the back side to make for a serendipity discovery in and of itself.  These carvings in the photographs are examples of character wood that have been carved and others that await the carver’s inspiration.