HAND CURVED WOODEN SPOON
(Page 2 of 3)
After you've sketched your design, saw any excess wood from either side of the handle and cut the corners from the "dipper" portion of the block of wood to bring the rough spoon's bowl closer to its eventual oval shape. Be sure to leave plenty of space to allow for errors or changes of plan. (In fact, if there isn't much extra material around your pattern, skip this "roughing out" step completely.) You now should have something that looks like a miniature canoe paddle. So far, so good.
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Now pick up your rasp and use it, carefully, to round the spoon's handle and shape the outside of its bowl. This is the most tedious part of the entire operation, and you'll probably be tempted to use a blade to remove large areas of wood in a hurry. Don't. Instead, stop often, have a look at your spoon-to-be, and remember that a fast" knife doesn't offer nearly as many second chances as that good of "slow" rasp.
Before long you'll find yourself working on the transition point between your spoon's bowl and handle . . . the really ticklish part of the project. I usually get nervous when I start to shape this compound curve, fiddle around, and—finally—do something that looks like total ruination (such as, maybe, cut too sharp a shoulder between handle and bowl, or carve the stem" too thin). Out of these disasters, though, comes the spoon's final shape. It was in there all along.
Once you have the outline of your scoop nearly finished, you can start to dig out its cavity. Use the gouge to cut the wood away, but leave plenty of material all the way around . . . a spoon with a hole in its bowl will have to be alibied into a stirring stick or a fork!
As soon as your project is correctly shaped, you can start to sand it . . . first with coarse paper, and later with a finer grit. This will be a pleasant task, because sandpaper does noticeably improve the appearance of a "roughedout" carving.
After you've sanded the utensil's surface until it's "smooth as a baby's bottom", wash the spoon (or put it through a cycle in the dishwasher), and let it dry completely. If that makes the wood's grain "raise" enough to feel rough again, give the spoon another rub-down with your fine-grained sandpaper. Finally, oil the scoop with plain old salad oil, and it's ready to use!
WHY MAKE A SPOON?
It takes me about three days to finish a spoon, but I put in my time in dribs and drabs, and I don't know exactly how many hours each dipper requires. I have thought, now and again, of tryin' to turn a profit with my woodwork, but I don't have the space that such a large-scale operation would require. Besides, I only pick up my tools when the mood strikes me. I guess I'd like to keep it that way.
On the other hand, I do believe that a do-it-yourselfer with modest skills (and a jigsaw or bandsaw) could make good money if he turned out a line of standard (but classy) spoons . . . to sell at art fairs and in craft and gift shops.
