Diggin' On The Long Spoons

Hey all I'm back! It's been much longer since my last post than I would wish. My goal is to post at least once a week or every 10 days; something like that. I had a pretty busy January though, between the family and the "real" job that actually pays the bills, I haven't had much time to sit down and write. I've been bouncing around a bunch of good post ideas in my head, so I should be able to get a few out in a short time. I was able to take care of some housekeeping issues on the blog, though. I had heard back from a bunch of people that you couldn't comment unless you had a google+ account; I changed that so anyone can comment, anonymously or not....whatever you prefer. Also, I added a couple of gadgets (I think that's what they are called..)  You will see them in the upper right hand side - one is to follow by e-mail and one is to follow on google+.  If you follow by e-mail you will get updates on posts, comments, and all that good stuff. One more thing and then we'll get to the long spoons; I've got a new batch of spoons that should be ready in the next couple of weeks and I will be adding a paypal button on the blog so you'll conveniently be able to buy spoons right here!

Now to the spoons.....the big spoons. The two spoons in the picture up top are two of the longest I've made thus far.  The one on the left is maple; it's about 13 1/2 inches long and has a long, skinny, but shallow bowl.  The one on the right is a monster...cherry, 15 1/2 inches long, again with a skinny, shallow bowl. These are primarily cooking spoons which is why I keep the bowls shallow and thin, as they function more like a paddle or a boar oar.  You don't need to hold all that much in a cooking spoon; just enough to take a taste of your favorite sauce or broth.

 



skinny shallow bowl on the cherry

 



 

In this picture, the maple is in front and the cherry is in back. You can see in this shot that I like to put a little bit of scoop in the bowl; I feel this helps get right into the corners of pots and pans. Also, you might notice how thick the handles are. For my eating spoons, I try to make my handles as thin as the wood will allow me so they feel comfortable between the fingers, but with a cooking spoon, I like to keep them robust for leverage and durability. The maple is in regular use for me, and I find myself reaching for it more and more .

 

My only true spoon design philosophy is to make what the wood gives you and I was fortunate to come into these long pieces of wood, because that is what it comes down to. If I have a long log I make long spoons... if it is short then short spoons....bent then bent, and so on and so forth.

 

Maybe next time we'll talk about the short spoons...I've got a little lilac and a little apple I just finished up that I'm dying to show off!