Anyone ever use Briwax on a relief carving?

[Gray_Fox]

Recently I completed a relief carving and used Briwax to color/finish it. The carving is very detailed with many features. The maximum depth is about 11/16' in a 1' thick basswood board about 12' square. The picture is an eagle in flight with legs and claws extended preparing to land on a dead tree limb. The eagle covers about 1/4 - 1/3 of the picture. There's another eagle soaring in the distance. The background is pine tree covered hills.

I rubbed the Briwax into the wood with a cloth and used a toothbrush for the grooves and edges. I chose a light brown wax color for the entire picture except the eagles, with were done in a darker brown for contrast. I painted the head and tail feathers with a white latex acrylic. Then I waxed the entire picture with a clear finishing wax and buffed it out to a satin finish.

Wow - I was very impressed with the way it turned out. It was just an experiment that worked out great. Anyone else here done anything like this?

[Guest]

Re: Anyone ever use Briwax on a relief carving?

The relief carving instructor, (Can't remember the name) at the Creede Rendevous used a mixture of dark and clear Briwax thinned with mineral spirits and melted on a hot plate.
It was applied with a small paint brush. It left a beautiful finish with some darkening in the low spots.
I have used thinned and heated Briwax on some carved signs that were used outside.