Spoon Carving Intensive

Name: Spoon Carving Intensive
Start: 2026-06-12T23:00:00+12:00
End: 2026-06-13T07:00:00+12:00
Location: The Suter Art Gallery Te Aratoi o Whakatū

Schedule

Fri, 12 Jun, 2026 at 11:00 pm to Sat, 13 Jun, 2026 at 07:00 am

UTC+12:00

Location

The Suter Art Gallery Te Aratoi o Whakatū | Nelson, NE

Led by Liz Wylder.
Delve into the fulfilling craft of spoon carving in this fun and immersive workshop.
Over the course of the day you’ll learn which trees to choose and what to look for in a section of wood, how to use a carving axe to form the basic shape of your spoon blank and lessen the time spent chipping away with a knife, and how to use a hook (crook) knife correctly.
You'll cover finishing techniques, surface design and how to protect the wood with food-safe finishing oils. Suitable for total beginners to intermediate carvers, cut-proof gloves provided.
You will have plenty of time to work on your creations in a casual, friendly environment, and for people who finish ahead of others there will be an option to make a spatula or butter knife. There will be tea, chats and flapjacks!
Liz Wylder is a lifelong crafter, and she's taught pottery, green woodwork and felting to participants in my small studio back in the UK and at festival workshops here in Te Tau Ihu.
Before covid changed life for us all, Liz ran a pottery studio in a small market town in the UK, and learned spoon carving as a side hobby from some very talented friends. Not long after, she attended a women’s green woodworking course in the forest in Wales and fell in love with the art of building without power tools, and the connection she felt to my ancestry through this slow, methodical craft. Liz believes slow making is radical resistance in these overwhelming, technological times.
Liz in incredibly excited to guide you through a day of learning new skills and ways of working with your very capable hands!