Carving simple household objects from reclaimed wood has lately become a favorite pastime of mine.

Background
Creating things with your hands isn’t only a nice change from working with a computer, it’s also surprisingly satisfying and meditative. I discovered wood carving during my first year as a master student, on a field trip where we learnt about sustainable production. The same year the storm Alfrida passed over my family’s summer cottage and fell many trees which I could use as material for this new hobby.

Process
After having split the wood into workable pieces I let the the shape and size of the material dictate what object to make. Depending on the complexity of the shape I use Illustrator to draw one or two silhouettes of the object. Once I’m happy with the the shape I print the silhouettes and trace them onto the work piece to use as guides while carving. I then rough out the shape with an axe before moving on to more refined cuts with a carving knife and a spoon knife. To complete the piece I sand it and seal it with wax or oil.