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Spoon Carving Workshop – One Day
On this therapeutic one-day beginners’ course at Stanwick Lakes you will learn how to carve a spoon using basic wood carving techniques and tools.
You will begin by learning how to cleave wood and use an axe to produce your spoon blank. The rest of the day will be spent using a sloyd knife and a hook knife to carve to shape your individual home-made spoon. The course covers a selection of knife grips, which will keep your carving under control as well as keeping you safe. Time will be spent looking at how the spoon develops in a 3-dimensional form, covering the spoons ‘crook’, bowl and handle to get a well-balanced and functioning spoon.
Wooden spoons like you will make have been carved for thousands of years and for most of the population, were used as an eating utensil until relatively recently. ‘Spoon’ was originally an Anglo-Saxon word that meant ‘a chip of wood’. The oldest known wooden spoon in England is a ladle found at Glastonbury Lake Village dating to 250BC. Another notable find of wooden spoons are the personal spoons found on the wreck of the Mary Rose. These spoons may have been whittled by their owners.
The course takes place in and around the purpose built oak framed craft barn at Stanwick Lakes which is managed by Rockingham Forest Trust as an environmental charity.
Stanwick Lakes is a protected Nature Reserve and a Wetland of International Importance, covering 750 acres of open space with seven miles of paths, a perfect inspiration to crafters and makers.
During your lunchtime you can enjoy the onsite cafés and visit the heritage museum or sit by a lake and watch the wildlife.