Stickmaking: A Complete Course

Your complete guide to the art of stickmaking!

• Learn how to make thumbsticks, walking sticks, cardigan sticks, crooks, and more
• Sourcing wood and finding, cutting, and seasoning timbers for your projects
• Attaching handles for two-piece wooden sticks, with details for shaping, fitting, refining, strengthening, and finishing
• Working with horn including ram's horn, buffalo horn, antlers, and cow horn
• Step-by-step processes, clear diagrams, and hundreds of how-to photos to walk you through making your own sticks

This comprehensive introduction to stickmaking is a complete course explaining how to craft a wide range of traditional walking sticks, market sticks, and crooks from start to finish!

Craftsmen of every level will benefit from the detailed explanations on identifying, cutting, and seasoning suitable wood and selecting alternate carving materials such as antlers and ram or cow horn. 200 beautiful color photographs and helpful diagrams provide clear instructions for a variety of projects, including thumbsticks, shaping and shanking handles, one-piece and two-piece wooden sticks, and buffalo horn sticks. This revised edition also contains an expanded toolmaking section covering tools, moulds, formers, jigs, and materials, plus in-depth discussions on the history and philosophy of stickmaking.

Co-authors Andrew Jones and Clive George are stickmakers, with Andrew specializing in horn crooks and cardigan walking sticks. Throughout these 176 pages, the authors will walk you through everything you need to know to make a wide range of traditional walking sticks, market sticks, and crooks. You'll find information on sourcing wood, what characteristics to look for in a potential stick, seasoning wood, adapting material, shaping handles, fitting collars, decorating, coloring, finishing methods, and much more—all aspects of this long-established craft are covered!

A special chapter is dedicated to carving in wood and horn, with three projects to try for those who prefer to add their own woodcarvings to their handmade sticks. A gorgeous gallery of finished work with full-color photos of a variety of sticks and crooks will inspire you in your stickmaking craft. The book concludes with a list of suppliers for sourcing your components, tools, paints, and more, a helpful glossary, and a complete index.

Get started making your own walking sticks, with the ultimate guide to the craft suitable for beginners and enthusiasts alike, Stickmaking!

Andrew Jones makes a wide range of sticks. An uncle cultivated his interest in making sticks and encouraged him to enter his work in local craft shows. He lives near Lampeter.

Clive George's life-long interest in stickmaking and a fortuitous meeting, led him to collaborate in the production of this book.