Tag Archives: gnome

Another Towering Giant

5 Mar

It took me awhile to figure out what should I carve out of the four inch basswood block and finally I decided it should be a Gnome, a Giant Gnome. I felt that to do a Citizen, on this big scale, it would be a ‘waste’ as most of the wood would be shaved off to shape a Citizen.

Citizens generally are shorter, averaging about 26mm, compared to a Gnome that is about 50mm except for Gnome 2 who is 43mm. The Gnome’s height especially the cap is determined by how much balsa wood is left without wasting any of the wood upon carving.

If I had a 50mm piece left, it is better to carve a Gnome than to carve two 25mm Citizens because it’s just too short and hard to hold. So in essence, Gnomes came about because I did not want to waste my precious balsa wood.

This chunky short adorable fella definitely stands out from the other three Gnomes.

And Gnomes will also grow in numbers like the Citizens of Gigglesville. Maybe they should have their own hamlet. Gnomesville? Hmm…

No News is Good News

29 Jan

News headlines generally suck, world news suck and local news are no different. It is as though there are no positive news to update humanity. So it is better not to read the news than to learn what is going on around us to keep sane.

For this reason, I like to stay in my little bubble, away from all the shenanigans of the world for as long as I can manage.

So I carve. And I carve and carve.

After Monument 5 came about to kickstart the carving mood, everything fell into place. Within a few days, Monument 6, six Citizens and another Gnome were added to the population count of Gigglesville. No news is good news if this is the result.

 

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Stuck

22 Jan

After the completion of Dinky the Dinosaur at the towering four inch height, I find myself stuck to progress with little Citizens which are only an inch tall. Oh no!

I thought I could whip out more Citizens after M1 went back to university but somehow, I can’t seem to get the carving motor going. Suddenly a Citizen’s size, being so tiny to hold (compared to Dinky), seems like a gargantuan challenge. How did I ever reach 120 Citizens and a handful of Superheroes, Friends and Gnomes in the first place?

I had to will myself to stay focused and over the weekend, Monument 5 came about. Perhaps I should get a few more monuments or bigger pieces done up before settling into the carving mood on the smaller ones. The township needs to grow to enable further migrations this year.

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Newbie Emerge, Part 2

12 Oct

Unlike M2, who requested for an Octopus and a garden gnome, I decided to carve an owl, a special one though, for M1 and we Skyped on the idea several weeks ago. Finally, it was decided it should have something to do with what she is pursuing, which is Food Science at university.

Since she’s pretty much into research, the new character called Lab Owl has a lab coat. Don’t you agree that this little Citizen looks adorable and smart?

Newbie Emerge

10 Oct

Carving has taken on a new challenge for me. Besides the latest superhero, SuperCute for Gigglesville, I carved up two Monuments, a three-tier and a two-tier totem pole and of course, more Citizens. I am up to Citizen #98.

And my M2 constantly challenges me with new quirky non-owl requests. Her latest request, a garden gnome! Remember the last time, it was an octopus?

It took me some time because I had to research and plan. Over the weekend, I finally did it!