Category Archives: historical reference

Carving American Chestnut

Posted on June 8, 2021 by Dave Fisher

The solstice may still be a couple weeks away, but the first day of summer for me was yesterday. I celebrated by digging in to a special log. American chestnut. Big, green, American chestnut. I carved some chestnut a few … Continue reading →

Posted in bowls, finding wood, historical reference, layout, trees, Uncategorized | Tagged , , | 23 Comments

Pennsylvania Birds

Posted on May 23, 2021 by Dave Fisher

Birds are a frequent subject in just about every folk art tradition in the world. I’m interested in the common threads that weave through the work of different cultures. A couple books I picked up, used, have inspired me to … Continue reading →

Posted in bird bowls, books, historical reference, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , | 7 Comments

Revisiting Thoreau’s Tray

Posted on March 8, 2020 by Dave Fisher

Our life is frittered away by detail . . . I say, let your affairs be as two or three, and not a hundred or a thousand; instead of a million count half a dozen, and keep your accounts on … Continue reading →

Posted in drying, figure, green woodworking, historical reference, Lettering, quotes and excerpts, Uncategorized | Tagged , , | 5 Comments

Silver Maple Bowl

Posted on March 2, 2020 by Dave Fisher

Now that I’ve made several pieces from silver maple, I feel like I’m starting to understand its character.  I compare it to a no-nonsense laborer who wears flashy underpants beneath his overalls.  You know. Based on what I’ve read recently, … Continue reading →

Posted in bowls, finding wood, green woodworking, historical reference, quotes and excerpts, Uncategorized | Tagged , | 13 Comments

Intriguing Old Spoon

Posted on February 14, 2020 by Dave Fisher

My friend, Scott, sent me this old spoon to check out.  An antique dealer in Pittsburgh told him that he comes across a lot of these spoons in the area.  He knew nothing beyond that.  Could it be a form … Continue reading →

Posted in historical reference, spoons, Uncategorized | Tagged , | 25 Comments

Hungarian Super Bowl

Posted on February 7, 2020 by Dave Fisher

Now that the Super Bowl of American football is over, feast your eyes on some amazing feats of coordination and teamwork in Hungary.  I believe the narration is in Hungarian, but the video is multi-lingual.  Huge bowls like this seem … Continue reading →

Posted in bowls, historical reference, holding, Uncategorized, video | Tagged , | 27 Comments

8th Grade Sloyd

Posted on February 1, 2020 by Dave Fisher

As I cut the letters into this small panel earlier this month, I was thinking back to Mr. Howard Sokoloff, my 8th grade woodshop teacher.  Here was a man near retirement tasked with teaching every single thirteen-year-old in the school … Continue reading →

Posted in historical reference, Lettering, Uncategorized | Tagged , | 15 Comments

Cigar Box Reminder

Posted on December 21, 2019 by Dave Fisher

Lately, my evenings and weekends have been filled with non-carving matters, including tending to the needs of our house that was built in 1905.  When Kristin and I bought it in 1996, the same year we were married, we became … Continue reading →

Posted in historical reference, Persons, Uncategorized | Tagged , | 22 Comments

Treasures from Millersburg

Posted on November 10, 2019 by Dave Fisher

These T-handle augers weren’t the only treasures I found in Millersburg, Ohio last weekend at the Early American Artisans Fair.  I included some links in a previous post.  The Artisans’ Guild has some exciting plans, so its well worth a … Continue reading →

Posted in events, historical reference, teaching, tools, Uncategorized | Tagged , | 8 Comments

Täljfest 2019

Posted on August 28, 2019 by Dave Fisher

In my lectures at both Spoonfest and Täljfest, I referred to an excerpt from Mary Oliver’s poem Sometimes: Instructions for living a life: Pay attention. Be astonished. Tell about it. Astonishment comes easy at Sätergläntan, the traditional crafts school in … Continue reading →

Posted in classes, events, green woodworking, historical reference, paint, shrink box, sketch, Uncategorized | Tagged , | 14 Comments