England 2025 still fresh experiences part I.

Where do you always enjoy carving together? Where to find new ideas and lots lots (but really a lot) of great quality spoons on the table, in the backpacks, baskets, pockets and in the making? Mesdames et messieurs – at the SPOONFEST! Campfires in the groove, venues in the barn and chapiteau, demos in the field of lush, verdant grass amidst the beautiful hills of Peak Districk National Park in Edale romantic village!

But anyway, everyone is busy around carving, chatting, dancing in the evening ;)( Have not seen anyone dancing wild around the chopping block as that is for safety reasons luckily rather personal affair ..)  and appreciating others work in the brother(/sister)hood of dear spooncarvers.

I happened to find myself teaching Spoonfest prefest course starting two days before the main event in a company of great Barn the Spoon, Jojo Wood, Amy Leak and Sean Hellman. All my best and respect for what these people do for the community for many years, the knowledge they share and how perfectly “just slightly off-centered” (by greenwoodworking :)) and friendly they are.

My group of students were all excellent guys (We even had two beginners!), working hard, creating their own version of the Drinking Spooon which was the topic of the course.

This design has developed from my serving spoon and brough in bloom bowl design too ( I never regret to teach as much as possible at once 😉 Courage mes amies, i challenge you for the best 🙂 *TAC*TAC*TAC*). It has 7 sides only for extra function shared with the serving spon mentioned above – easier scooping. Following clockwise starting from b&w picture you can notice pouring area in the upper right corner, then drinking side, backside with walls curved in a bit and wide, less curved front part for scooping near the bottom of the container (whatever zero-waste style storage you have at home – bags, boxes, big jars). This design has variations (regardless the length of the handle) depending on preference in use or look and various sizes to measure if you want.

Now I share everybody’s work in the process bathing in the pupil of the bucket and at final stage.

Now, I must say that I feel a great debt towards friends that come around to Spoonfest. I wished I had more time to talk and chat and laugh together. It is not just teaching takes some energy as it returns with smiles and sparks of ideas in the eyes around. It is green green rocky Treenfolk’s life that is beautiful but can be taxing if there’s too much karma to spend (or drink) or something like that.

My special thanks to Robin Wood for the love he shares with people there (not only him of course) and support with fantastic tools and my hero of the Spoonfest secret organisation team Tim.

And thanks everyone ☺️

Ps: We are everyone entirely different in perception of what’s happening around us. The bigger is our imagination the greater illusion and distance between us it can create. I appreciate all these worlds meeting there in the valley very much. May we use the gift of right words at the right moment if we can, because it can simply do something, connect. Perhaps it is since there is the internet with socials that we have sometimes difficulties to introduce ourselves or ideas or point from where we start conversation so it can be understood well. I do sometimes talk too much, to myself 🙂

Pss: thanks for all other teachers doing so much needed sharpening workshops during the event (Dave the Bodger, ..)