A Slöjd knife from HSS steel and some thoughts

I had some HSS steel (DMo5) lying around,  pre-hardened to 64HRC and gave it a go to make some carving knives from it.  Now you often hear that this is a recommendeable project for beginners,  but it is pretty hard to achieve without overheating or ruining tools.  I used an angle grinder and constantly cooled the piece,  fixing it on a 4x4 with Carpenter clamps.  

Made a "pencil"-style handle for it and gave it a high convex bevel to zero.  Pretty hard to do,  but eventually succeeded,  even though it is not exactly beautiful.  The handle is from lilac from the old man's garden.  

Tested it,  and man, is that a slicer.  

Then I started a sheath from hazel.  

Fixed the halves with twine originally,  which has been replaced with silver-plated wire in the meantime.  

Thing is,  that little slicer is pretty versatile.  The blade being just 2 mm thick,  it just sails through the wood.  The blade is about 60mm long.  I also tend to use it in the kitchen or for foraging.  

 Thing is,  it does a lot of things really great.  So much in fact,  that I sometimes ask myself if we got it back to front with bushcraft knives.  I mean,  well,  it can not do batoning.  Or prying.  But you can carve everything you need with it,  including gluts.  It is so light you don't notice it is there at all.  I would not dismiss my Garberg or Casström knives for it or my Puukot,  but it certainly is a reality check.  

An iron age garment -does it work in the woods?

Some time ago I took out the old sewing kit.  I had this felted wool cloth lying around not doing anything for ages,  and I wanted to save it from the moths.  Also,  I have been pretty intrigued by an iron age garment used by Irish and Scottish woodsmen,  but also widely used in Rome,  Greece and Scythia,  Dacia and across the known world,  as Cuculla,  lending its name also to the Genii Cucullati,  personifications of the Asclepian Digits, and the Flamen Digitalis (according to C.G. Jung). In Eiriks Saga Rauða there is a mentioning of two Irish or Scottish fast runners who were dropped off at the Turtle Island coastline to look for resources.  They had minimal equipment and were clothed with a garment called "kjáfal", a sort of open Poncho,  fastened between the legs with a loop and toggle.  I wanted something between those two concepts,  and obviously will not wear it as only piece of clothing (although it would work) and wanted a bit more warmth,  so I stitched together the sides.  

The garment is really comfortable and offers a lot of freedom of movement,  while providing a lot of warmth. You could wear it in winter as only piece of clothing,  if you stayed active,  and Irish and Scottish scouts were famous for that.  

It offers a great insulation due to the air pocket created by the wide folds.  

Also,  other than a German Wetterfleck or Weather coif,  it doesn't make you thread on the hem. 

Also,  I really do like the Strider or Dhú Síthe vibes... 😜

Need to seam the hem,  and I want to sew in some secret pockets.... 🤪😜

 

Making mushroom patties from oyster mushrooms-delicious!

Came across a tree full of wonderful oyster mushrooms and took home some of them.  

I gave them a quick boil and boiled some red lentils (about one teacup) until they split. 

Added some all-purpose flour and a bit of stale bread.  Seasoned with salt,  pepper,  wild garlic,  lovage,  cumin,  turmeric,  finely diced onions and paprica.  Made a stiff dough. 

Fried them in sunflower oil until golden brown. 

 I really like those! 

Delicious Chicken of the woods Steak with wild herb spinach

On a recent hike I came across a really nice specimen of chicken of the woods (laetiporous sulphurea, in German: Schwefelporling), grown on some fallen cherry.  

Took home a good piece of it (please do forage responsibly and only take 25% ) 

Cleaned it thoroughly. 

Boiled for ten minutes.  

Marinated in olive oil,  salt,  pepper,  cumin,  turmeric,  onions,  wild garlic,  ground ivy,  and ground elder, a bit of lemon juice and lovage over night.  

Chopped an onion and three handful of nettle,  wild garlic,  and ground elder.  Glazed the onion,  quenched with water,  miso and lovage, added the wild herbs and cooked for five minutes.  Added a spoon of peanut butter. 

Fried the mushroom steaks until crispy on the outside and soft inside.  

Absolutely delicious! 

 

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! 

Weird licce carving knife

Dunno if you know that feeling... you got that idea nagging at the back of your brain, but it is just too weird, so you don't get started for ages.  

Well, until you don't don't get started anymore...😜. 

That one above.  

Forged a skull  bottle opener.

But with a little marking blade on the other end. 
Little bit of ball peening, too.  

 The knife is pretty handy for woodcarving, even though it is not well suited for roughing.  Steel is 80CrV2. It would also make a nice bartender knife. I am currently thinking about adding a corkscrew.  

But for woodcarving detail work, it really shines. Not the last one I made, for sure.  

Carving a container from Bamboo

This is another really simple and rewarding project. Carving a container from Bamboo is well suited for kids and beginners, too.  

The containers are well suited e.g. for coffee, but can also provide a base for other projects.  

Bamboo is hollow, with intersections at the knots.  If you saw off a section like that in the picture above, you are already halfway done.  

You can remove the bark or leave it on for further decorations (see below). 

Take a common natural wine cork and whittle it to fit in small and steady cuts. 

The bark, by the way, is pretty tough. 

Just like that, you got a functional container.  Now you can decorate it.  

 I also have a video on YouTube about the process: