For me Spoonmaking is a complex combination: For one part it is the completeness of making a simple product, from the respectful slaughter of a 10 yr old birch on to finishing by soaking in linseedoil-
It has ritual aspects: Making something which is fit for daily use, something "humble", over and over many times perfecting the methods and forms, over the same phases.
It always gives me doubts about my own capabilities, it is always a struggle.
The proces isn't too long, and over the years gets even shorter.
Finishing a spoon gives special pleasure, especialy after oiling and seeing what you've got.
It has ritual aspects: Making something which is fit for daily use, something "humble", over and over many times perfecting the methods and forms, over the same phases.
It always gives me doubts about my own capabilities, it is always a struggle.
The proces isn't too long, and over the years gets even shorter.
Finishing a spoon gives special pleasure, especialy after oiling and seeing what you've got.
The "horizon" shifts: Over and over I see more and more what it's about: I could do this for many years, on and on.
It certainly has therapeutic aspects, but "therapy" is a process that has some mental problem as a subject- With spooncarving it's different: It's just what it is and puts the mind straight along the way. Like you say, seeking focus and peace, following an unknown path- (sounds more like meditation than therapy to me..)
It certainly has therapeutic aspects, but "therapy" is a process that has some mental problem as a subject- With spooncarving it's different: It's just what it is and puts the mind straight along the way. Like you say, seeking focus and peace, following an unknown path- (sounds more like meditation than therapy to me..)
For me it is also important that this struggle always must have been like this for our ancestors, too: It's a way to plug into "continuity"-
All our spoons are unique, handcarved from fresh wood from real trees- mostly birch, some alder, spork, maple or mountainash-
Prepared in the rough with the axe, carved with straight- and crooked knives (spoonknives), and finished with scrapers and saturated with pure, unspoiled linseedoil. We sell our spoons and also carve on demand: from ladles to guaranteed plastic-free babyspoons with- or without inscriptions..
Price indication: small sugarscoops start at € 10, dutch model round spoons start at € 20, Swedish models start at € 45 (ex vat and postage)
Lepels
Spooncarving is a complex combination of different aspects to me: For one part it’s about the completeness of the process of producing a simple product- from selecting an appropriate 10 yr old birchtree in the forest, Followed by respectfully felling and slaughtering for usable parts, to finishing a product with submerging to saturation in linseedoil- Spooncarving has some ritual aspects as well: Making a humble but usable product, fit for everyday use by yourself, perfecting methods and design, every time through the same steps.
Working this way always comes with doubt- your skills have to be proven time and time again: always struggling to succeed.
The proces is not too long or tedious, and will become shorter in time: A simple small scoop can eventually be made within the hour, a Swedish porridgespoon in half a day.
Finishing a spoon gives special pleasure- After the linseedoil has -after days of saturating- made a spoon partially transparent en you finally have the product of your work in your hands.
In the course of time, my horizon shifts- I can see better and better what it’s about: Form, function and material in interaction with myself as creator. I know for sure that I can go on for years from now, in search of further skills and quality.
Spooncarving is a way to focus, to concentrate while following a yet unknown route-
And finally, the carving of spoons and in broader perspective working with fresh wood offers an excellent way to plug into ones local history- We humans have done things like this for thousands of years.
