More Spoons

Here's an interesting comparison. These two spoons were carved from Hazel wood. One has a coating of linseed oil and the other is bare wood. The linseed oil gave the spoon an amber tone. The bare spoon was eventually coated with non-drying mineral oil, and that didn't change the color of the wood at all.

This spoon was carved from Japanese Maple. It is coated with mineral oil and doesn't look much different than the Hazel wood spoon coated with mineral oil.

Here are two blanks cut from Hazel wood. They will be my next two spoons. Unfortunately I cut these out and then let them dry for a week before carving them. The big spoon developed cracks because there was so much mass in one piece. I need to begin carving them right away before they dry out, or put them in plastic, or under water, or in the freezer in plastic if I can't begin carving right away.

Possum Sighting

Yesterday I spotted a possum walking heedlessly across our back yard. It was about 10:00 AM in the morning so it was an unusual incident. He didn't look well, with ruffled fur and a wobbly gait so maybe he was sick and that's why he was out and about in the daytime.

He ducked under our garden shed so I ran to get Monya so she could see too. He came out from under the shed and walked around the house, heading for the street. Just then the garbage truck arrived and that scared the possum. He ran back and ducked under the shed.

I got out my camera and waited for about five minutes for him to try again for the street, but then decided he may elect to stay under the shed for the rest of the day. We didn't see him again.

This morning Monya was headed out the door to get her daily exercise. I asked her to keep a lookout for returning migratory birds since it's nearly Spring. She agreed to get her camera, grumbling "just in case I see a possum."

Spoon #2

Following up on the wooden spoon post, here are two photos of the second spoon I carved. This time I made an effort to put some "style" into the shape. The bowl of the spoon is tilted relative to the handle so it looks more like a gravy ladle than a stirring instrument. The walls of the bowl are much thinner than the first spoon, so it doesn't look so crude. I was more cautious with the neck of the handle this time and was able to get a more symmetric shape.

I applied a coat of linseed oil dissolved in turpentine for a hardened finish. The white Hazel wood turned a delightful shade of amber, very close to the color of the maple board in the photo background.