Carving a wooden kiltpin with a celtic design using a knife: part two

So.... I had carved a kiltpin that I thought was very beautiful.

After it had been completed, my kilt arrived in the post. I put the kilt on, attached the pin and...

It didn't quite work with the kilt outfit! The golden yellow colours of the kiltpin clashed with the colours of the kilt more than expected and the pin felt slightly too heavy hanging on the cloth. The round shape also felt a little odd and I realised that a longer, narrower shape was more suitable.  The carving would make a stunning brooch, especially for a plaid, however it was not going to be my kiltpin. It was time to carve another one.

I decided to use the laburnum wood that was used in making the handle and sheath of the sgian dubh again, so that the two pieces would be linked and would look good worn together.

What to carve on it? One design that stood out was originally from the Book of Kells. It was reproduced in Courtney Davis' book 'Celtic and Old Norse Designs', published by Dover Publications.

The design could be easily adapted to work on the kiltpin. Although it looks a lot like a classic celtic knotwork pattern, in fact it isn't a single knot. If you look carefully, the two dragons run through an infinity symbol.

The kiltpin is 6cm (2⅜") long from top to bottom.

It was entirely carved using my trusty old number 10 Opinel lock knife, with which I originally taught myself whittling over twenty years ago, and was then lightly sanded with some sandpaper to finish it off.

The only parts that weren't produced with the knife are the tiny drilled holes into which silver wire or hand-carved dowels of reclaimed ebony and found plum timber were inserted to make the eyes, nostrils and neck patterns. The laburnum was first shaped whilst sitting on the Centenary bench that I made a few years ago and which is now installed in Leigh Woods.

The kiltpin was polished using beeswax polish at the end, which really brought out the grain patterns and colours. It has a bought brooch pin glued to it and then fixed on with brass rivets (made by cutting down two brass pins). The carved recess means that the pin doesn't hang too far off the surface of the cloth and roll from side to side.

Making a carved wooden brooch with a celtic design, to be worn as a kiltpin

A kiltpin is traditionally worn pinned to one corner of the front of a kilt. It's not supposed to go through both of the layers of material underneath, as this would make the kilt move badly and could possibly damage the material. Instead it is more of a decoration on the kilt's apron (the flat, unpleated part worn to the front).

The origin of wearing a kiltpin is thought to go back to Queen Victoria using a hat pin to secure her kilted skirt on a windy day. I had made a sgian dubh (the knife carried in one's sock -called the 'hose'- with a kilt) and wanted to make a matching kiltpin to go with it. Obviously, it had to be carved too!

 

The kiltpin is 50mm (2") in diameter. The yellowish wood is box (Buxus sempervirens) wood, which I picked up whilst out walking in Gloucestershire. Box is a native tree in Britain and a traditional use for the timber is in wood engraving plates. It was the ideal wood for the kiltpin as it is very tough but carves well and can take a good finish. You can see the piece of found wood with the sanded start of the kiltpin in this picture:

It is inlaid with laburnum from the garden of the house that I grew up in - the same wood used to make the handle and sheath of the sgian dubh. Apparently my father would hang a hammock from this tree for my mother to rest in when she was pregnant with me.

There are also three pieces of solid silver inlay and the central setting is a piece of microgranite that originally came from Ailsa Craig. This interesting stone is also set into the end of the sgian dubh and you can read more about it here.

The boxwood was sanded to shape to begin with. The stone to go in the centre was then ground to shape with diamond burrs and polished.

Once the position of the stone setting was known, marked and hollowed out then the rest of the design could be drawn on with a pencil...

... before being carefully carved using my Opinel lock knife. No tricks for that part of the process, just a lot of practice and a sharp blade! The holes for the silver inlay were drilled and then the stone and silver were fixed in with two-part epoxy.

The pin on the back was fixed on using epoxy and three small brass rivets to give extra security.

Here's the kiltpin with the sgian dubh. If you are interested, I would consider commissions to make similar ones. Now I'm looking forward to seeing the knife and pin being worn with the kilt!