New tools require new skills.

Besides the lovely adze I got recently, I have also received a parcel in the mailbox containing a lefthanded spoon knife made by Robin Wood. I am lefthanded, and have always used a righthanded mora hook. You can imagine I was excited to finally have one that I could use the way a spoonknife should be used. 

I put a quick but solid handle on the blade, gave it a stropping and carved a spoon from some plum wood. The knife is very nice, but using a lefty for the first time was pretty awkward. Over time I have become adapted to using a right-handed blade in my left hand. Figuring out new grips will take me a couple of spoons, but judged by the way this blade can slice I think it will increase the quality of the tooled finish in my spoon-bowls. 

I also practiced with the adze and carved this little bowl from plum wood. The angle at which it cuts took a while to figure out but it wastes wood very nicely and it made carving this bowl a very fun project. I never really did bowls since the hollowing out was awkward and time-consuming, but those days are now over!

I am looking forward to getting some larger diameter wood, and throw both of my new shinies in the mix for some decent kuksa-carving.