Woodworking

I've had a recurring dream for a few months now of carving wood. I'm always sitting at my painting table, using a small knife or other tool to carve shapes of some kind.

It inspired me to decide to try it in real life, so I made some pens from branches in my yard, which I enjoyed doing. It took me a while to figure out what else I might like to make so I watched a lot of videos and even took a free puppet-making workshop.

Now I've decided I would like to make bird feeders and bird houses. I'd love to discuss the best wood to use, the best (read: safest) paints and finishes to use, and the best shapes and styles for use by real birds. I like the decorative versions, but I really love birds so I'd like to focus on functional models.

Of course, as I write this I only have branches from my yard and some cheap hobby knives to start with, but hope to buy some proper supplies later this year. If anyone would like to chime in with advice about the equipment a beginner will need it would be most appreciated.