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It has been a while since I carved a spoon and showed the progress on my blog. I took down some limbs on a black cherry tree on my property and decided to use it for spoons.

This is the first time I have carved cherry and it cuts so well. It really is a joy to carve. I am always surprised and amazed at how different woods smell. When I started peeling the bark off the strong aroma of cherry started filling the air. I always think that is cool to smell aromas from fresh woods that are scented like food. Carving pear wood is the same way. These woods kind of make me hungry for what they smell like. Hehe..

Anyways this limb was only 2″ in diameter so I was limited on spoon designs. However that did not deter me. I am finding that the more I carve the less worried I am about these things. I guess it comes with getting faster. If a spoon does not work out it is not a big deal as it would have been when I first started.

I started by splitting the log in half and then laying out the general design with a permanent marker. If I am carving wood that has had a little time to dry I use pencil, but when it is fresh off the tree it is usually too wet and I find that a permanent marker works better.

Then I use my Hans Karlsson Sloyd Axe to do most of the stock removal. This axe has proven itself to be a great asset to my carving. This has become my favorite carving axe.

Next I use my Mora 120 carving knife to refine the profile.

After a little more work this is where I am at right now. This time I opted not to use the Mora 164 full curved carving knife for hollowing out the spoonook (my term for the bowl part of a spoon, pretty clever eh?) and instead decided to use some of my new Pfeil gouges. This works so much easier than the curved knife and I think I will probably stick with this method from now on. I still need to spend one more carving session and then I will be finished. At that time I will post the final photo’s of the completed spoon.

Thanks for looking and keep an eye out for the finished spoon sometime this week.

Dave