Some time later I decided to have another go, so I found the old duck head pattern I'm made up and tried again, this time as a cane topper. I've seen some pretty inspiring things done with a wood burner recently on another site, so I thought I'd try that instead of paint. The photos below show the result... a mallard hen this time. After due consideration, I think I much prefer the hen to the painted drake.
After trying it around the town yesterday, I have come to realise that this is a really comfortable pattern in a cane. Sometimes you can get a cane that looks good but doesn't work as well as one could hope. This one fits the hand beautifully and the patina that has started to build up on this type of finish just makes it look better the more one uses it. I can't take any credit for it, but I'm quite excited about it. I think I'll have to make more as I don't think this one will take long to sell.
