Choosing stones

The most important is to get a sound stone. It means the stone should be free of cracks and unsound areas. To test the stone, take a hammer and hit the piece so that it can ring. If it sounds like steel (“ring, ring”) with a clear sound, your stone is good. If the sound is a “toc toc” or “cloc”, the stone can’t resonate well because of a crack. You should either leave the piece and test another one or try to investigate to see where is the crack. Its location it important. If the crack is at the edge, it will have to come off sooner than later. If it is right in the middle, you’ll have to divide the stone in 2No. pieces. If you don’t separate them, glue them. I don’t like this option as it might be a waste of time working on a bad stone which could result in a broken sculpture later anyway.
It is important to know that some stones don’t sound at all. Some alabaster pieces might sound ok but can be cracked because of the nature of the piece. Experience is the only way to know how dangerous a crack is. But usually, an open crack means it is a dodgy stone, if it is a closed crack (not through the stone) it can be ok.
After the hammer test, a close look at every sides of the stone should be done. Search for cracks, discolouring and staining (especially oil contents which penetrate the stone permanently. They can’t be cleaned by a chemical agent. Remove the stained material until a clean stone is emerging). Use water to pour onto larger blocks. If the water gets in the stone and shows a zone which is getting dryer than the rest, there is a crack. In any case, the stone should be clean (meaning free of dirt) for close inspection.

Not even a stone in your shopping bag?

Well, this material should be easy to find for very little money. As long as there are stone carvers and stone masons in your area, you will be able to get some off-cuts for free. Don’t forget that in their yard, stone masons don’t have much space for the stones they don’t want. Why? When they have to restore a cathedral for example, they buy blocks of stones direct from the quarry. Each piece is about 3-25t. To carve each piece, they saw these huge blocks in smaller blocks to suit their needs. Even if they will try as hard as possible to maximize the cuts to use as much material as they can, they will have to get rid of material they can’t use for the near future, and can’t store for too long. In the end, they skip what you want: freshly quarried blocks of good stone, with possibly all faces saw cut which is perfect for any job.

That's it for today.
Fred Stone

For a good start: stone sculpture tutorial

Hello everone,
I will publish some parts of a new section from my website, it's al about stone sculptures, hoping someone will be interested.

Afraid of carving your first project?
Try to have a go at wood first, it’s everywhere. Take a sharp knife, a small piece of soft wood and have a go, it’s easy. Why not considering soap, a candle (wax) for a cheap trial. You’ll get a boost of confidence very quickly. Even a child could do it.

If you can buy a few inexpensive kilos of clay and try to find an idea, that would help a great deal as the idea can be changed easily. Nota: to keep your piece of clay wet, spray it with water before leaving it overnight and put it in a closed plastic bag. That will buy you some time to think about your first project in stone.
See you later.
Fred Stone