Design Sketch: Walking Thumb Stick made from a Birch Sapling and Antler with Inlay & Scrimshaw

If you are just surfing through the internet about Walking Canes, and you want to see some actual canes I’ve carved, click on the Widget Picture of the cane here. That project has more than 40 other links to other unique carved walking canes I’ve built.

This blog entry is for showing a new concept sketch of a carved walking cane design that I am working on so that the prospective customer can view the concept drawings and provide his input, or approval.

thanks for reading,
Mark DeCou
http://www.decoustudio.com
email: mark@decoustudio.com

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Cane Customer Story:

This project is a Birch Sapling & Antler Walking Thumb Stick. This style of Walking Stick has historically been called a “Thumb Stick” since you can walk with your thumb hanging in the crotch of the antler top.

This summer I met two sisters that heard about my walking canes from another lady who I had carved the Lady's Carved Rose Cane for, earlier this year.

One sister wanted to buy her sister a nice walking cane for her birthday to help with getting around after an amputation surgery just below her knee. Here is the design sketch for her cane

During the meeting to discuss the specifics of the desired custom walking cane, the 2nd sister decided to buy the 1st sister a return gift of a walking Thumb Stick for Christmas, and so I’ll be making one for each of them. They were a lot of fun to work with.

This sketch represents the Concept Sketch for the 1st sister’s “Walking Thumb Stick”.

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Walking Thumb Stick

1. Height: about 40” Tall.
2. Top Handle Detail: The antler top has two end caps, both in synthetic ivory. One cap will have an inlayed gold St. Christopher Medallion, the other cap with have the customer’s intials in scrimshaw art.
   Between the Antler and the Stick will be a set of three disc rings of Composite Turquoise and Black Vulcanized Rubber rings.
3. Shaft: The shaft will be a Red Birch Sapling that I will sand sand and buff down the limp protrusions leaving a “natural looking bump.”
4. Tip: The tip will be a brass ferrel with a replaceable rubber tip.

If you are unfamiliar with Scrimshaw click here
If you’d like to see some actual canes I’ve done instead of just sketches, you can click here

Sketch:

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(Note: This blog, project design, and images are copyrighted in 2008 by the Author, M.A.DeCou. If you want to use any part of this posting or the photos, for any Feeds, or a book, or another website, or for any reason whatsoever, even ones that I could not have dreamed about you doing before you did it, you must ask for permission first. Please. Weblinks back to this page are permitted without my prior permission.)

-- Mark DeCou - American Contemporary Craft Artisan - www.decoustudio.com