Spoon carving course.

My spoon carving course is now up and running, February's course is now fully booked.
I have set up a new site here please feel free to take a look, if you wish to get in touch about future courses you can get in touch by Email from the site.

Eating with wooden spoons

My daughter Elizabeth has been eating more with wooden spoons for a couple of months now and is enjoying using them. Yesterday she asked me to make her another spoon, this one is made from Cherry from a bent branch. It has a lovely curve and is perfect for her hands.

It is finished with the knife and oiled with flax seed oil.
It will be nice to see how it ages over its years of use.

Passing on skills.

Passing on skills and carving to my daughter is something I have been trying to do for a couple of years now. My daughter Elizabeth is 3 years old and watches me carve, she loves to help out when she can, sometimes if I'm carving she will walk up to me and ask to see what I'm carving, she will look at it and then say something like, "it needs a bit here" pointing to the handle or bowl. Alot of the time her eye is good and she will point things out to me that I hadn't seen.
I dont want to brainwash her into carving, more let her find her own way and if she enjoys carving encourage her fully.

I made her a knife last year from wood, mainly because she seemed keen to get started. I was amazed to see her holding the wood and knife in the same way as I do. She has picked up so much just from watching me carve. Although she cant carve the wood yet she still mimics the actions and seems very happy to do so along side me as I carve.

She asked me last week if I could decorate her knife for her. I did some chip carving and made a Birch bark sheath for her, sh is really pleased with it.

Hopefully their is a little spoon carver in the making but if not its cool, I'm just enjoying spending time with her this way.

2012 spoon.

2012 has been a year of new beginnings for me and my family, I started my own tree surgery business and have been concentrating on my craft work.
My daughter Elizabeth started school, a big step for her and a day Me and Janet will always remember.
And one of my spoons was published in a book by Norman Stevens.
 
To mark these positives I have carved this spoon from Cherry.
So here's to 2013 who knows what it will bring but let's hope things will go from strength to strength.