Category Archives: SteveTomlinCrafts

Damson spoons

Posted on September 21, 2011 by stevetomlin

The Lyth Valley, close to where I live is famous for it’s damsons which are out at the moment. It’s a good year in terms of the crop but difficult harvesting, I’m told because of the wet weather. I’ve used … Continue reading →

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A well used spoon

Posted on September 7, 2011 by stevetomlin

Nearly everything I make is designed to be used, whether it’s a chair, spoon, bowl or rake. I especially like it when someone meets me at a show and tells me how they’ve been using something they’ve bought from me. … Continue reading →

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Leela's rake

Posted on September 5, 2011 by stevetomlin

Last October I met Miss Kathloon Peart from Bishop Auckland who told me how she’d received her first hayrake when only 3 years old and had been making hay on her farm for the 50-something years since then. So I … Continue reading →

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Romanian Rakemaker

Posted on September 3, 2011 by stevetomlin

I’ve been in the Transylvania region of Romania taking part in an International Haymaking Festival. During the week we called in to visit Viktor-bacsi (an honorific for older people translated for us as “Uncle Viktor”) who, despite ill health makes … Continue reading →

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Double bow rake

Posted on August 8, 2011 by stevetomlin

My first completed rake, post-fire, a double bow model based on one at MERL. The head is 695mm wide with 12 tines, the bows are made from cleft ash, shaved almost to size and then drawn through a dowel plate. … Continue reading →

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Steambending Course 2011

Posted on August 7, 2011 by stevetomlin

After last year’s success, Charlie Whinney and I again ran an intensive steambending workshop for four furniture makers demonstrating the amazing possibilities in bending solid wood using steam. My role is to organise the workshop and ensure that everything runs … Continue reading →

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Kosenka spoons

Posted on July 26, 2011 by stevetomlin

I’ve been away in the White Carpathian area of Czech Republic, taking part in a conservation project to manage 6ha of upland pasture for wild orchids using scythes. You can read about the mowing on scytherspace, my scythe blog. All … Continue reading →

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Rust cleaning

Posted on June 29, 2011 by stevetomlin

It’s summertime and the living is a bit hectic but exciting with all the current scythe goings-on so not much time for making. Charlie and I are getting close to finishing the cleft-oak signposts  and, when I get a spare … Continue reading →

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Heat-treating tools with Robin Wood

Posted on May 28, 2011 by stevetomlin

During the fire in the workshop, the heat of the flames caused the metal in my tools to soften so the first step in repairing them is to heat-treat them to the correct hardness. I’ve done a little bit of … Continue reading →

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My First Fan Bird

Posted on May 26, 2011 by stevetomlin

Ever since I first saw these fan birds, I’ve been itching to try making them but other projects always seem to have got in the way. Made amazingly from a single piece of wood, fan birds originated in Russia and … Continue reading →

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