Green wood carving: start with a spoon!

Kiko started carving stone when he was ten. For the past 15 years, he's been carving spoons and other greenwood wares, from bowls (on a foot-powered lathe), to rakes to shovels, dustpans, coffins, and perch stools. He's taught spoon carving, natural building, art, and urban design, worked in carpentry, community development, and education; he's built houses, stoves, ovens, and public art projects, published books and articles, raised a couple of boys, tended a garden, and helped start a couple of folk schools.

This full day green woodworking class begins with a piece of a freshly harvested tree. Using just hand tools, I’ll show you how to work safely and efficiently with two or three VERY sharp blades. I will introduce you to the basic grips, hand positions, and posture so as to maximize safety, power, and precision. Then we’ll split, chop, and carve until we have a useful, beautiful spoon that will feed you beauty as well as breakfast! The students shape the class, and I adapt to meet whatever experience and skill that you bring.

Cutting and splitting wood with just hands and a sharp blade deepens our understanding of grain, density, structure, volume, line, and form, and opens doors of knowledge that you can apply to all your other woodworking adventures, whether you’re working with electricity or not.

We’ll also talk about where and how to source wood, what kind of finishes to use, where to get tools, and basic sharpening strategies. (Some knives may be available for sale. And please bring any carving tools you may already have!)

The materials fee for this class is $10 for the use of tools during the workshop. If you would like to keep your tools after the workshop, there is an additional $50 restocking fee. This fee is separate from the ticket price and is to reimburse the instructor for any tools or materials used in this class. This will be paid directly to the instructor at the start of the first class meeting. This instructor accepts payments in cash or through Venmo.

knowledge: how to carve a spoon from greenwood

skills: knife grips, safe and efficient work strategies, wood processing and finishing, tool sharpening

end result: a spoon!

takeaway: understanding, knowledge, skill, the joy of shared experience, and a useful beautiful thing

Carving knives and green wood

Pen, paper, and suitable carving knives if they have them (fixed blades with comfortable handles such as Opinel or Mora, crooked knives).

Students must be 16 years old or older. All students under 18 must be accompanied by and under the direct supervision of a responsible adult.

Students must have enough hand strength to open a jar of peanut butter.

Learn more about our class and ticket cancelation policies here.

Please email [email protected] with any questions.

Event Venue & Nearby Stays

Artisan's Asylum, 96 Holton Street, Boston, United States