Green Spoons - Seaquam Wood Technology

CRAFTSMAN CLOSE·UP
treen
are
Spoons and such from greenwood
from Roger sandstrom
"001' (h.nd<hopp<d)
2. Cherry pierced spoon
J. Ash crotch ladle
4. Sassafras flat spoon (hand.
chopped)
s. Sassafras scoop <hand<hopped)
6. Sugar pine carved love spoon
I. _
9. Apple scoop
10. Persimmon slotted spoon
II. Cherry flat serving spoon
12. Sassafras flat spoon (hand·
<hopp«l)
1J. Wild plum ladle
14. Maple burl hand dipper
7. Pecan skimmer
8. Sassafras scoop (hand<hopped)
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WOOD MACAZINE SEPTJOCT. 1984
A
tall. imposing man, Connecticut·born Roger
Sandstrom came to his appreciation of nature at an
early age. This interest was nurtured by a father who
taught Roger how to use the tools of a great uncle, and
later by the works of Eric Sloane.
Roger had always enjoyed working with wood. but
on a trip to Missouri in 1972, he discovered a myriad
of native woods there that broadened his woodworking
horizons. Roger has fashioned items from a great
number of species, including lilac, redbud, mulberry,
wild plum, osage orange, peach, grapevine, and even
Hewing woodenware Item. from avaDable woods
was a way of We in colonial times, and before. II
was the local cooper's Job to make and repair conlainers and ulens&. But sometimes U wasn't praetie,l to wall for him to do Ihe needed work. More
often than not, people would take thinp into
their own huds and fuhJon their own ladles,
dippeD, spoons,. scoops, boxes, bowls, even cups.
For this project, Roger chose one of his favorite local
woods, sassafras, a wood he likes for its workability
and grain pattern. Here, Roger is "squaring up" the log
with a mallet and froe. One of the splits taken off in
the process will soon be shaped into a one-of-a-kind
stirring spoon, You can use green or dried wood.
WOOD M"C"Z1NE SErTJCK:T. 1984
poison ivy. Bowls, spoons, and ladles made from burls
are among Roger's favorite pieces.
Since moving to MisSouri in 1973, Roger has devoted
most of his time to his art. except for tflat spent exhibiting and lecturing at nature cenlen and schools around
the country, He, his wife Mary, and their children live
on a farm near Seymour, Missouri,
Why has he chosen the quiet lifestyle he so prizes?
Because "I'm doing the'things I wanted 10 do as a
child. I'm never going to get rich, but it pays the light
bill, and the price of bread, and that's all that counts:'
While the making of lreenware Is prelly much a
lost art, It is something that can be learned, And
the needed lools are few: a sharp ax or hatchet, a
gouge to hoUow out the bowls, a knife, a file, and
some sandpaper. Who knows, after watching
Roger Sandstrom handcraft a sUrring spoon on
Ihis and the following pages, you may be tempted
to try your hand al Ihis fascinallng craft.
Wilh his trusty ax, Roger begins to shape the front side
of the bowl end of the spoon. The sycamore burl bowl
in the background is the second largest in the world.
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CRAFTSMAN CLOSE-UP
Removing the bark from the back side of the split
comes next. The natural curvature of the split makes
shaping the back side of the bowl fairly easy.
To scoop out the material from the bowl. he calls on a
gouge and mallet. The spoon is several inches longer
than its finished length. This extra length allows Roger
to vise the utensil between his legs. Again, he cautions
against imitating his technique. He recommends instead
using a "real" vise to hold the work.
To finish the rough-out stage, Roger cuts away excess
material along the length of the handle. He is especially careful near the end of the split to take a like
amount of wood from either side of the handle to keep
the symmetry intact.
72
VVOOO'MAGAZINE SEPTJOCT. 1984
Roger now cuts off the excess material at the handle
end with his ax. (The length of this particular implement is 13 inches.) Then, he does some final touching·
up with a knife. It took Roger about 20 minutes to
fashion the spoon.
Once the shaping is complete, Roger turns the proj'ect
over to his wife, Mary, who sands and applies a finish
of raw linseed oil immediately to minimize splitting
and cracking. Mary prefers this finish because it's
nontoxic and it accepts wax well.
How to take care of treenware
The Sandstroms list seveml do's and don'ts in a flyer
they give customers of their product.
• Don't expose treenware to water for long periods.
• Condition treenware you will be using by washing it with soap and water, rinsing it quickly, and
letting it dry thoroughly. If the gmin rises, sand
smooth, wipe clean, and apply a light coat of
cooking oil. Wipe away excess oil.
• With decomtive pieces, a light coat of paste wax
from time to time will revive their natural beauty.
How to locate treenware In the woods
One of the neat things
about making treenware is
that the raw material is no
farther away than the near·
est woods. You can use
almost any wood, so locat·
ing a piece won't be hard.
Look for fallen portions of
trees that have not begun
to decay.
Once you find d likely
tree. try to spot config·
urdtions that approach those
of the item you pldn to
fdshion. Burls-those
unsightly bulges sometimes
found along the trunk or
branches of a tree-make
ideal material for bowls and
cups. And if you want to
make a curved·handle
\o\QOO MAGAZINE SfPT..<X:T. 19M
scoop or a ladle, you'll
probably want to take
home a section of tree that
has a branch extending out
from it.
One more thing about
burls and crotches: the
erratic grain typical of these
areas often yields extra.._ ...
ordinarily beautiful objects.
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