Friday, December 19, 2008

To all of our friends and customers


Now that we are entering the Holiday Season and embarking on a Historical New Year we at MasterWoodCarvers would like to take this moment to wish everyone A very joyous Holiday, filled with Health, Happiness, and above all the Love of family and friends.

Wednesday, December 10, 2008

What do Eagles and Square apples have in common?















A strange comparison and of course nothing at all...except that our Custom Carving department has carved them both and that's not even including the Giraffes or Dragonflies that we have done as well.

We are capable of carving anything that you can sketch or send us a picture of. Special sizes of any of our stock items can be done as well.

So don't be bashful, ask us for a no obligation quote on your special needs. Check our on-line catalog at masterwoodcarvers.com for that special item that will make your home look so special.

Tuesday, December 2, 2008

Why Hardwood Carves Better Than SoftWood

The Janka hardness test measures the hardness of wood. It is one of the best measures of the ability of a wood species to withstand denting and wear.and be carved with great detail.

If the wood is too soft, it does carve easily but not well. The sharp detail that makes a carving look crisp is not there and the carvings lack the subtle detail that you find when using hardwoods.

We at Master Wood Carvers use only kiln dried Hardwoods such as Hard Maple, Oak, and Cherry for our carvings. The less expensive Carvers found in Asia use much softer woods in their carvings, and the difference is very apparent. The Hardness of wood measured by the Janka test are:

Pine.... 420
Oak..... 1290
Hard Maple....1450
Cherry ......... 950

To give you a frame of reference, Lignum Vitae which is used for dock pilings because it has a higher specific gravity than water and is almost impossible to carve has a Janka rating of 4500.

So when we talk wood carvings, Hard is much Always better than soft. Check out our online catalog for custom carved corbels, fireplace mantles, posts, onlays, balusters, capitals and more that we have to help beautify your home.

Tuesday, November 25, 2008

Master Wood Carvers Customer Guarantee

How do you know if the company you order from and send your money to will perform to your expectations...or even worse misappropriate your sensitive financial information?

Actually you really don't know until after you receive your ordered Carvings.

Master Wood Carvers satisfaction guarantee states that if you are not happy with the products you ordered due to manufacturing defects, we will replace it with new carvings until you are satisfied.

As far as sensitive financial information, we have certifications from two highly respected agencies testifying to the safety of that information since it is encrypted and only able to be accessed by our computers and not by humans.

So you can feel comfortable in knowing that you are in good hands with Master Wood Carvers, and we are proud to say we have not yet had any dissatisfied customers.

Monday, November 17, 2008

Hand Carved Fireplace Mantles


Every room needs a focal point, and how better to create one then by installing one of our Hand Carved Fireplace Mantles.

Our Hand Carved Fireplace mantles carved with great detail by our Master Carvers have been inspired by old world fireplace mantles found in the palaces throughout Europe.

These fireplace mantles are sure to add a sense of classical elegance to any room. Our selection which covers the range from simple to Ornate Hand Carved Fireplace Mantles which incorporate the use of carved flowers and floral arrangements and are sure to be the most talked about part of your home.

All of our Hand Carved Fireplace Mantles are carved from American Maple, which insures the crisp detail that are important to the overall appearance of this functional and magnificent piece of "art" work. The addition of this Hand Carved Fireplace Mantle will create a sense of warmth and character that will enjoy forever.and will most certainly add to the value of your home many times the money invested.

Feel free to review our Hand Carved Fireplace Mantle offerings at www.masterwoodcarvers.com and pick the style that best fits into your decor.

Monday, November 10, 2008

Custom Wood Carving and Then "Sum"



Why do we use such a grammatically incorrect phrase? Well it's to get your attention because we want you to know that we have custom hand carved a veritable plethora of unusual items. To name a few:

a) A Seven foot and an Eight solid wood giraffe

b) A swarm of 12 dragonflies, each 5" x 5" mounted on solid Cherry.

c) A church has asked us to carve a 96" X 44" Solid Cherry Cross with carvings to be used in their sanctuary.

d) An 12" branch of holly with leaf and berries for a gentlemen for a surprise for his wife who is named Holly.

e) Plus a multitude of orders for custom sizes the regular products that you see in our website at www.masterwoodcarvers.com.

If you can sketch it, WE CAN CARVE IT!!!

WE CAN CARVE ANYTHING ... send us your special item for a no obligation quote. Check us out at www.masterwoodcarvers.com.

Monday, November 3, 2008

Purchase Pierced Moldings


Our pierced moldings are available in five different motifs: Shell, Floral, Scroll, Grape and Oak leaves. The detail in each are breathtaking. The Oak leaves in particular show acorns in great detail even to the minute details of the acorn husks.

They are available in Maple, Oak, And Cherry in 8 feet lengths to match any surrounding areas of natural wood that it may be applied to. When painting be careful not to load the brush with excess paint so as not to flood the fine details of the carving. Pierced molding is used on flat surfaces to enhance the beauty of cabinet or surface that it is applied to.

Check out our website at www.masterwoodcarvers.com to see what other architectural gems we have to make your home more beautiful.

Monday, October 27, 2008

All About Hand Carved Capitals from Master Wood Carvers


What better way to add a sense of elegance to your home than to add Capitals to the areas of your home that you want to accentuate. These designs of Capitals are copies of Greek Roman capitals found in historic drawings. Capitals are an important design feature when used with columns or moldings, hi-lighting entrance ways. The look and feel of an entrance way that is flanked with columns and are topped with Capitals gives a sense of commanding importance to the room. Our selection of these hand carved Capitals offer the designer or architect the ability to create areas that speak of their importance.

The copies that we offer of these ancient Corinthian,and Ionic architectural designs can be easily incorporated into the modern lifestyle that we enjoy today. When Capitals are used as accent pieces in fine cabinetry there is no better way to make an ordinary cabinet into an important piece of furniture. Small Capitals are used as accent pieces in the kitchen as well. while the use of larger ones can be part of the design of an important piece of furniture Today we see the use of Capitals in the kitchen, great room, hallway, even incorporated in bathroom vanities. Your home will be the most envied in your neighborhood with the use of capitals as part of your decorating scheme.

Check our large selection of capitals for the one that works best with your decor at www.masterwoodcarvers.com! Here are just a few that we carry:
















Monday, October 20, 2008

Make Any Room Beautiful with Hand Carved Crown Moldings and Chair Rail Moldings




"What a beautiful room!" That's what you will hear from any visitor when they see your room fitted with our magnificent hand carved moldings.

What better way to turn an ordinary room into an important one, than by using our selection of hand carved deep relief crown and chair rail moldings. Both are available in large 5" or standard 3" width. They are carefully and lovingly carved showing deep relief that makes the different designs jump out at you demanding your attention and admiration. It is sure to make the room an important part of your home.

Crown molding is used in the room at the point that the wall touches the ceiling and will add an elegant appearance to any room. Crown moldings are used as focal points in bedrooms, great rooms, pretty much in any room including bathrooms and kitchens. Our hand carved moldings will create an aura of sophistication that no other addition to your room can.

The use of Crown moldings as ornamental cap to kitchen cabinets greatly enhances the appearance of the kitchen, and gives your kitchen the stamp of your personal taste.

Chair rails were originally created to protect the beautiful painted walls of palaces from damage done by chairs. Chair rails are different from Crown moldings in that they have a concave profile while Crown moldings have a convex profile, so that they will not be damaged easily by chairs.

The attention to the deep detail of these chair rail moldings is sure to bring compliments from all who see it. Since chair rails are installed about 30 inches from the floor they are well within eyesight of all and are generally scrutinized for their workmanship. The attention to detail and the deep relief of the carving of these beautiful designs of grape clusters, floral leaves, scrolls and flowers are most impressive when viewed at this height.

Chair rail moldings can also be used as frames to highlight a particular piece of artwork because it is flat it is adaptable to many different applications Chair rail moldings when used in the same room as Crown moldings create the most impressive appearance.

Monday, October 13, 2008

A Stairway to Paradise: Newels & Balusters


Our Hand Caved Newels and Balusters made into an incredibly grand staircase will become the focal point of your home.

Our Balusters and Newels are available in two different sizes, two different carving motifs, both Acanthus leaves and Grape design, and are all available in either Maple, Oak or Cherry.

Just imagine when your guests enter your home and see this imposing stair case hand carved by 4th generation Master Craftsmen. This most beautiful sight will create a powerful first impression and become the highlight of your home, and surely become the topic of much conversation and admiration.

Navigate through our online catalog at Master Wood Carvers and see our other corbels, mantles, onlays, posts, capitals we have to make your home even more beautiful.

Monday, October 6, 2008

Things to look for before purchasing Corbels


Before purchasing your next corbel, make sure to ask yourself the following questions:

1) Is the corbel hardwood that shows deep relief and detail, or softwood?

Soft woods (usually imports) do not carve as well and lose much of the detail found in hard woods and do not take stain or paint in the same manner.

2) Is the corbel machine carved or hand carved?

Machine carved woods lack the detail and subtleties that you will find in Hand Carved products.

3) Is the finished product triple smooth sanded ready for finishing, or must you hand sand it before?

4) Does the corbel have a metal hanging strip on the back to insure proper and easy corbel installation?

5) Do they use Kiln dried hardwoods?

Air dried woods are subject to cracking and splitting when exposed to changes of temperature found in homes.

6 ) Does the vendor guarantee complete satisfaction? Master Wood Carvers does! Shop our online site for corbels and many other specialty custom wood carvings.

Friday, September 26, 2008

How To Transform An Ordinary Cabinet Into A Treasure


The use of hand carved wood onlays applied to the side and front of an simple ordinary cabinet will magically transform it into an extraordinary one. Choose from our selection of Scrolls, Shell with leaves, Grape motifs,as well as Rose swags. All our Onlays are available in Maple, White Oak, and Cherry. and available in sizes ranging fro 8" to 36" in length. Here's an idea, click on to one of our onlays print it on your computer and then scotch tape it on to your cabinet and see what magic it can do.

Check out Master Wood Carvers for all of your custom wood carving needs.

Monday, September 22, 2008

Why we don't carve out of a single piece of wood


One of our customers thought that because our carvings were carved from pieces of wood that was glued together (not one piece of wood) that it was an inferior product...well I'm here to say NOTHING could be further from the truth.

In order to keep a piece of wood from cracking and splitting after it has been kiln dried, great care is taken in gluing up segments of wood (only vertical segments) and gluing them together so that opposing grain structures will work against each other this is called tumbling the core.

This keeps the wood from warping. The glue lines are practically hidden because great care is given to have the glued up pieces match each other for color and grain structure. The detail of the carving itself tends to hide the joints.

A great example of this is if you have ever seen native carvings from the Caribbean or Africa. They are mostly always carved from a single piece of wood. Once they are exposed to the changes of temperature that is found in all homes they begin to show little cracks (called checking) which become large splits over time. The reason of course is that not only is it carved of a single piece of wood it is also because that the wood is always Air Dried, while fine carvings like ours are carved from wood that has been Kiln Dried.

As a point of information, all wood moldings, doors or other fine millwork found in homes are made from Kiln Dried wood. View the MasterWoodCarvers website to view our custom hand carved products.

Wednesday, September 17, 2008

We Made the BIG time


We just delivered Corbels to the home of an internationally known figure (Can't tell you the name, but for sure you have heard of him).

Anyhow the requirement was for a special size of one of our Corbels that had to be custom made. We got a drawing and the details and delivered all 18 of them within 30 days.

Why do I tell you all this, because we want you to know that if we can satisfy the architect of this customer we can satisfy you and any requirement that you might have.

Check our online catalog for all the beautiful things that we have in stock from Corbels to hand carved, onlays, capitals, moldings, Fireplaces and much more that can transform your home from ordinary to extraordinary.

Thursday, September 11, 2008

What are these things called Corbels?


As we all know Hand Carved Corbels are available in different styles as well as sizes. The styles are varied by region.

The Ancient Romans used leaves from the Acanthus plant to weave into Crowns that they bestowed upon the heads of the winner of Athletic events. It wasn't only the slaves against the Lions that occupied their leisure time. They adorned their homes with these plants as well. It was a sign of wealth and prestige that motivated the Romans to decorate their homes with these beautiful arrangements called acanthus corbels.

Grape designs were very popular among the Ancient French and Italians since the wine grape was so important to the economy of these two countries. It only follows that honoring the grape in their decorating schemes was a given.. The grape Corbel with the care given to carving the fine details of the cluster is one of the more beautiful examples of the Corbels found in old palaces and the homes of Royalty.

Floral Corbels carved in great detail and deep relief were a favorite of the ancient Grecians and are found in the homes of the affluent and important people of the old Greek cities. They are somewhat similar to the Acanthus design but with subtle differences in the size of the leaf.

All of these different styles of Corbels and more are to be found in the website of MasterWoodCarvers.com.

Check out the beautiful architectural details that we offer to make your home speak of your individuality.