Poplar is a hardwood, but do not be fooled by its category because it is among the softest hardwoods you can find. This types of tress vary in color where you can find it with a creamy or yellow hue, and sometimes, it appears with mineral streaks of various colors in it, where in this case, it is referred to as “rainbow poplar.”
So, is poplar good for carving? Even though poplar is not the first choice I’d choose when looking for the best carving wood, it is good for carving and it is one of the woods I would recommend to a beginner. Not only is good for carving, but poplar is also is one of the most available and cost-effective hardwoods,
It is also very durable and characterized by a relatively high density that gives excellent bending strength.
Is poplar hard to whittle?
Being one of the softest hardwoods, poplar is not hard to whittle. If you don’t own any power tools or a chainsaw, hand tools will work just fine. because it is soft and has a straight grain.
With a sharp knife, You won’t have to use too much pressure because you will easily slice through the wood. Nothing feels good like a smooth slice that does not resist.
What are The Different methods Of Carving Poplar?
Chainsaw carving is getting popular each day with more people wanting more of it. Chainsaw carving does not limit you on the size you want to do your carving. This is a good method to consider when carving outdoor carvings. With poplar being soft and straight-grained, a medium powered chainsaw will do.
Another method of carving to consider is power carving. Power tools are very efficient when carving and they are very easy to use. With power tools, you have more than one choice of blades you can attach to the tool. Power carving gives you the ability to make tiny details like hair easily.
What Are The Best Finishes For Poplar?
The best finishes for wood carvings will come in form of either wax, oil, or varnish. We use finishes to protect wood carvings from external conditions and enhance, change or retain the color of the wood.
Before applying any finish on wood carvings surface, you need to understand the material available to choose from, how the materials work, and what degree of protection and decorative effects they produce. So when asking yourself ” Is poplar good for carving?” you should also ask yourself what are the best finishes for poplar.
When using different types of finishes, there are some safety precautions you should take because most materials used in finishes are bad for you. Some chemicals like oxalic, chlorine bleach, and lye can cause respiratory problems and skin problems. Other chemicals like naphtha, mineral spirits, and lacquer thinner can cause dizziness, headaches, nausea, and dermatitis.
To protect yourself from such problems, make sure that the place you are applying finish to your poplar carving, is well ventilated to provide a constant source of clean air. Wear a NIOSH(National Institute for Occupation and Health)_approved organic vapor respirator mask and gloves to protect your hands when they come in contact with the finish material.
Finish with sealant properties would be the best finish for poplar because it is a porous wood. All hardwoods have pores hence the name porous. The pores vary in number, where you will find some hardwoods have more pores than others and others vary in size where you will find some trees have larger pores than others.
A sealer will protect the wood surface and it gives you the power to carve outdoor carving.
Why Is It Important To Apply Finish After You Are Done Carving?
Sanitation and Protection
Poplar being a hardwood, it is obvious it is a porous tree and contains various holes of various sizes. Finishing will prevent the wholes from accumulating dirt and grime from handling, atmosphere contaminants, and food. It can be a health hazard if the holes are left like that because once it is full of grime, it will provide a breeding place for bacteria. When you use a finish on your carving, it will seal the porous surface, making it less susceptible to soiling and easier to clean. So for this reason, you can say you are finishing your wood for sanitation.
Stabilization
Like all woods, poplar wood is also hygroscopic, meaning it absorbs and releases moisture. All woods have moisture within which is known as moisture content while the moisture that is in the environment is in either liquid form or vapor making and the amount of water vapor in the atmosphere gives the humidity of the area. Applying finish to your wood, slows the moisture exchange thus reducing the stresses and stabilizing the wood.
To have a better understanding of how moisture affects the wood I will try to explain it in the easiest way possible. For example, if you had a carving that you had not applied the required finish and immersed it in water, The cell walls will swell to accommodate the excess water, and when the water leaves the carving, the cell walls will not go back to their original size and this will cause splits and cracks on your carving.
It is important to know that no amount of finish or paint stops moisture exchange and the only thing a finish does is slow the rate. Meaning, that the thicker the coating of the finish, the better it limits moisture exchange.
Aesthetic Appearance
Aesthetic appearance is the pleasant, positive, or artful appearance of something. How does finish give an aesthetic appearance to your poplar carving? Finish gives aesthetic appearance by highlighting the grain or changing the original color of wood to give it either a darker or a lighter shade.
There are three ways to approach when you want to add the aesthetic appearance of carving namely; color texture and sheen.
Color
In color, there are three ways to apply it on wood; staining, glazing, and toning. Staining refers mostly to applying color directly to wood. Applying color in-between the finish is known as glazing and adding color to a finish is what we call toning or in other words shading.
When you stain your poplar carving, it amplifies the figure and grain of the wood. It also highlights the problems in the wood like scratches, machine marks, or even uneven density.
Glazing, on the other hand, changes the tone of the wood color and adds the appearance of depth and age by highlighting pores and recesses when applied thinly. when you apply thick coatings, you can manipulate them to imitate wood grain, marble, or leather and these are called faux finishes.
Shading, toning, and paint change the tone of the wood’s color without highlighting pores and grains. With toning and shading, the figure of grain of the carving is visible but painting totally obscures the wood’s features.
The difference between toning and shading is that toning changes the color tone evenly over the entire surface whereas changes the color tone only in the areas you want.
Texture
The size and distribution of pores determines the wood’s texture. For nonporous woods which are the softwoods, the texture is normally soft because they have no pores. Poplar on the other hand is a hardwood and it has pores. The best way to preserve the texture is by keeping your finish very thin.
The thin finish is popular among woodcarvers and woodworkers in general and it is known as the natural wood look.
If you want to change the texture of the carving, you can use a sanding sealer that fills the pore and use high grit sandpaper to smoothly sand the carving before applying any other coat of finish.
Sheen
Most people don’t really know what sheen is and that could affect your understanding. Sheen is the measure of the reflected light (glossiness) from a finish. In other words, the sheen is the amount of gloss the finish has.
There are three different types of sheen namely gloss, satin, and matte. Depending on the outcome you want for your poplar carving, you can choose either.
Conclusion
Poplar is a good choice but not the best wood for carving. It is one of the most available and cost-effective hardwood you will find. Poplar is also among the softest hardwoods for carving and if you are a beginner and you would want to start carving, poplar is not a bad choice to start.