I recently discovered Chainsaw Chic Carving on Facebook, so I reached out to the woman behind the saw, Amanda O'Neill, for more information on her Fairbanks, Alaska, business. I specifically asked her a few questions about her caribou carving shown above. I think you’ll find her answers interesting.
“Regarding the caribou carving, it is made from white spruce,” Amanda wrote. “That is all we really have around here with any size to it. I worked on it for about a month and used four chainsaws. I also used an assortment of sanders, Dremel bits, angle grinders and die grinders with different bits for smaller details like the eyes and the fine fur. The antlers are real and were provided by my client; I attached them to this carving.
“I work from a countless amount of photos as well as videos. This particular caribou was oiled, stained and painted, then all of it was sealed with an exterior varnish so it will last outdoors.
“You asked about pricing; this caribou was a commision, and I don't get into exact prices because the next project won't be the same price due to cost of logs, if the client provides antlers, if I buy them, if I carve them, etc. A very rough ballpark is $8,000 for an animal carving of the same level as this caribou. People often don't understand why one carving can be $2,000 more or less than another. There are many factors. For example, if I buy the needed antlers, they can cost $350 to more than $1,000. It just all depends.
“I don’t have any training in carving. In fact, I've never seen other people carve wood in person. But it held some interest for me, so one day I picked up a chainsaw and went for it. The rest is history!
“Carving is not a full-time job for me. I have a family; three boys in hockey, so it's about 40 hours a week at rinks for them, and my daughter is a sharpshooter, and she's at the range 6 days a week training. Side note on my daughter: We just got back from Ohio for Nationals, where her team placed 7th in the nation, despite two of the rifles breaking during the match!”
“I work around my sons’ and daughter’s schedules,” Amanda continued. “So while some weeks I may get only 25 hours of carving work in, other times, I'll put in 100-hour work weeks. I'm typically 6-12 months out at any given time on commissioned projects, so those 100-hour work weeks really help me catch up.”
Check out the photos below showcasing Amanda O'Neill and her amazing chainsaw carving skills.
