Woe is me....

I thought I'd have a go at shaping the seat on an oak stool I've had planned and in my mind for some time. A friend had given me a slab of cut oak and I'd left it in my shed to season a bit, after an initial thining with my side axe.

I don't have a great holding method, so I simply clamped the wood to my work mate and went at it with adze and chisel. It took a couple of hours but eventually I'd roughed it out.

I don't have an inshave or travisher, nor any bowl gouges, so I wasn't entirely sure how I was going to finish it, but that's all academic now.

I took the seat to my chopping block and began trimming it by axe, when the darn thing split in two. Oh well, at least I got a lot of practise in with my adze, which should pay off when I start over.

I don't really mind too much that it didn't work out. I guess I begrudge the time investment more than anything. I don't have a lot of time to dedicate to my hobbies, and I certainly don't have time to waste on failure.

On a completely unrelated note, I thought I'd show you a little carving experiment I did on the handles of my whittling knives. I was lucky enough to see Jogge Sundqvist's knives at Spoonfest last year - they are a work of art in their own right.

So, whilst I knew I wouldn't be able to match his skill at carving, I thought it might be nice to personalize mine.

Not finished yet - a work in progress so to speak. I would like to paint them when they're finished.