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Kitchen (Woodworking) Party
Over the years I've made wooden objects of all shapes and sizes. Some things are so large I had trouble getting them out the door, while other are so tiny they're easy to misplace.
You could also divide my work into often-used and seldom-used camps. One side table in our home almost never gets used, other than to hold a lamp about 24″ off the ground. And some objects are seasonal, only to be unwrapped a few weeks before Christmas, and then stored away a few days after the big day.
I’ve also made many items that get used (and sometimes abused) in the kitchen. Cutting boards, serving platters, a salt cellar, some spoons, about half a dozen sets of chopsticks, a small dish and many other things. My kids have also helped make a recipe box for my wife, which also lives on the kitchen counter. Many of these items get used daily. Every time I use one of these items I get a certain satisfaction from doing so. Our kitchen table is likely the only thing that gets as much use as many of the smaller kitchen prep items I’ve made over the years.
Serenity now, serenity now
Come to think of it, I also take care of these items just a bit better than most of the other things in the kitchen. If a spoon needs a fresh coat of oil, I’ll bring it to the shop the next day for a careful application. If we used a bowl, and it was just cleaned, I’ll make sure it was patted dry and put back on the shelf right away.
I can’t get quite that picky about caring for the kitchen table, as it would have about 60 coats of finish on it by now. For example, I’ve been doing my very best to ignore the scratch – well, cut – that my son added to the top of the kitchen table a few months ago. He decided to cut down some corrugated cardboard for recycling directly on top of the table and happened to go through the cardboard and into the black walnut surface. The scratch ended up near the cedar waxwing bird I had inlaid in the top. To quote a line from Seinfeld, “Serenity now, serenity now.” The boy and I will one day refinish the top and get rid of that ugly mark. If only 13-year-old sons cared for their fathers’ woodworking projects as much as their dads do. He’s a good kid, though, so I do my best to ignore the scratch.
Unique, but not overwhelming, pieces
Our cutting board is about as plain as it gets, short of the fact that it’s made of ancient, clear Douglas fir. Many of the other items have a little detail that stands out, though. A brass pin in the ends of the chopsticks. Some texture carved into the inner rim of the bowl. Some Japanese paper adorning the lid of the recipe box. The hand-carved facets of some of the spoons we’ve made. I say “we” because my son made the more utilitarian spoon pictured here, while I made the more decorative cherry spoon. Each piece has a special little detail that makes it unique and beautiful, which is what I really enjoy about these items.
Here is an article about how my son made a maple mixing spoon.
How about you?
Do you have a lot of kitchen items you’ve made that are still getting daily use? Are they strictly utilitarian or do they have a bit of pizzazz? Maybe they’re downright over-the-top in their design. Or maybe you don’t have any kitchen items, but have a lot of other pieces you’ve made in your home. What do you like about them? It’s always fun to hear about what other makers like about the pieces they’ve made.
A Healthy Collection
Here's an assortment of the kitchen items I've made over the years. My son made the maple mixing spoon, which appeared in an issue a few years ago.
Rob Brown - rbrown@canadianwoodworking.com
Rob is the editor at Canadian Woodworking & Home Improvement and a studio furniture maker.
Good to pass on the skills to the next generation !