Tools, Craft Supplies, Books, Music

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Monday, April 19, 2010

The Romantic Welsh Love Spoon


Here is the romantic old story of the Welsh Love Spoon...
In the 1500s, during their long voyages at sea, longing for affection,  Welsh sailors would carve spoons for their intended sweethearts.  Most of the sailors could not read or write in those days, so they carved what they wanted to say, in the form of a spoon.  Each symbol that they carved had a special meaning.  A cross for faith, a heart for love, leaves for a growing family, an anchor for the sea, intertwining ropes for their life together, a flower for rememberance and lots more.  Hence the phrase "spooning". 
The pictures here are spoons that I have carved myself.  Some I carve purely for decoration like the fancy, more traditional spoon, in the center.  Others I carve so that they can actually be used in the kitchen.  I use various wood including mohogany, walnut, and basswood. I create my own original designs on graph paper and carve each one by hand. It takes several hours to do the actual carving.  It then takes even more time to sand it smooth and do the final hand shaping of the bowl.  It is a pretty labor intense project to carve a spoon in this fashion.  It really makes a person appreciate what a sailor went through to make a spoon at sea, with little more than a pocket knife.  Sandpaper in those days was probably made from sharkskin. 

I sometimes sell a few of these on Etsy, or at the antique shows.  There are a couple spoons on my sidebar that you can click on to go see some more, and maybe purchase one, if you like.  I think they would make a teriffic Mother's Day gift. 
I hope you were all as thrilled hearing this historic bit of romanticism as I was for the first time.  I plan on doing a tutorial on Welsh spoon carving soon, so check back, if you are interested in tackling one of these yourself. 
Keep up the good work.




Rory



12 comments:

ClassyChassy said...

Those are so unique! Very pretty!

ClassyChassy said...

Thanks for the tip on my statue restoration - much appreciated!

Cat Nap Inn Primitives said...

you do such a great job..I can't wait to get mine and display it proudly in the kitchen.;)

Room to Inspire said...

What a beautiful tale - I had no idea they were so romantic! Thanks for linking up to Be Inspired today.

Chelsea

Helena said...

Wow, these are amazing. I love the history!

Thank you for linking this to A Little Craft Therapy, with Life in the Pitts.

Recycled Rita said...

I have a couple of these! My dad's side of the family is Welsh and they brought them to us on one of their trips! Thanks for the history! karen....

Unknown said...

Grand! My house is filled with old pine pieces from around the south ... Following you now- hope you can stop by place when you have time ;-)

Rachelle S said...

Very neat! When we lived in Wales (Navy brat), my parents started collecting Welsh Love spoons. (and those little faces you hang on the wall to, forget their name)

Carolyn @ My Backyard Eden said...

Very pretty! Thanks for sharing the history!

Thanks for linking up to Make it Yours Day!

Its So Very Cheri said...

Wow that is amazing. I love the story behind it.

Cheri

Gay Vaughan said...

Thank you for joining my hodgepodge party! I love these and the story! I hope you will join again.
~Gay~
itsahodgepodgelife.blogspot.com

Unknown said...

wow! Amazing job carving those!

Thanks for linking up!