How To: Carving Bone

Preparation

• 1

  Sketch a design you want to make out of animal bone, and visualize how the design will look in 3-D.

• 2

  Obtain an animal bone, and cut it to the appropriate size for your project with a coping saw.

• 3

  Scrape and clean the bone with a table knife. Remove all excess tissue and marrow from the bone.

• 4

  Soak the bone for 24 hours in a plastic container containing 2 quarts of water, 1 cup of bleach and 1 cup of laundry detergent.

• 5

  Rinse the bone and let it air dry.

• 6

  Place a leather mat on a large, flat surface. This will serve as your workspace.

• 7

  Outline the design on a cutting board or a piece of paper.

Carving the bone

• 8

  Create the bone into the shape you want by using an etching knife to cut off pieces you don't need and 100-grit sandpaper to smooth rough edges so the bone resembles the shape of the outline you drew.

• 9

  Carve the bone with engraving chisels while referring to your sketched design. Use smaller chisels if you are working with a small bone or are carving an intricate design, and use larger chisels if you are working with a large bone or are carving a simple design.

• 10

  Sand the bone to smooth the surface and remove the scratch marks left by the chisels. Start with 100-grit sand paper, switch to 150-grit sandpaper and finish with 220-grit sandpaper.

• 11

  Polish the carving with a small hand drill with a 600-grit drill bit.