Carving a coat hanger from yew

Sitting beside the creek,  I brought myself some aged yew for a coat hanger.  The branch needs to have another branch forking away asymmetrically.  I split it with my bushcraft knife (Casström Sweden SFK 10). 

Shortened the fork with a saw.  

Then I added a little heart at the end to add that extra dose of whimsy 😉. 

Like so.  😉 I carved into the grain and got lucky! 

For the small radiuses it is more recomnendeable to use a Slöjd knife, because it typically has a more slender tip.  This one is my all-time favourite by some of the awesomest craftspeople I know,  Elsa and Svante Djärv . 

Bit of carving later,  I added some details.  

Now it is ready for a first oil coating and drying out completely in a bag of shavings. 

 And I earned myself another cuppa.  😉

Even though I do have to live through some pretty nasty times at the moment,  projects like that do go a long way in order to keep my resilience.  The place beside the creek wasn't too shabby either.  Don't let something like that be taken from you.  

Resilience is resistance.  

Nice and satisfying carving project: Carving a tea infusor

The other day I came across some wild bamboo that is invasive to Germany,  so out came the pocket knife.  I sawed off a section,  carved off the bark and smoothed out the rings.  With the awl I drilled two holes at the end. 

Next came some holes in the bottom. Take care not to drill too deep.  

Actually,  I did drill some holes into the sides later on, since it works a lot better.  

Then I carved a stick for a handle and to remove the tea from the infusor after use. 

Then I tried it out.  

 I made a Video of the process,  too.  

I hope that you enjoy the project as much as I did,  and I do trust you will best me! 

Take good care! 

Really awesome new book

(Doris Fischer: Flechten, Färben, Schnitzen, Aarau und München 2017) 

Got myself a really cool book, which is rather unusual compared to other works. The systematic approach is centered around plants from the forest.  

Centering around plants and their properties and resources, Doris Fischer offers comprehensive botanical knowledge, and describes fun little carving, weaving and dyeing projects, often with really enlightening moments. Learning is fun with this book. 

I can really recommend it, especially, but not exclusively if you have kids. 

Have fun and take care!