Soup Spoon

Posted 17 May 2019

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Follow alongside Paul as he shows you how to make a Soup Spoon, a great design with the added feature of a hook placed on the back of the handle. For those who take pride and care when cooking, this feature helps you to avoid those pesky drips by hooking on to the side of the pan. What more could you want from a spoon?

For anyone who is just starting out in the wonderful world of woodworking, why not check out our step-by-step spoon course on Common Woodworking: https://commonwoodworking.com/courses/how-to-make-a-spoon/

Click here to learn more about how to handle and get the best out of your Spokeshave. It’ll give you all the information you need to help you be on your way to mastering this versatile and underestimated tool: https://commonwoodworking.com/spokeshave-control/

Missing a tool off of the list below? Do you not own a curved scraper? Well why not create one yourself! You can learn how to create your very own curved scraper here: https://commonwoodworking.com/rounded-card-scraper/

Tool List

  • Gouge
  • Chisel Hammer
  • Curved Scraper
  • Spokeshave
  • Rasp
  • Bandsaw or Coping Saw

23 Comments

    1. Almost anything that isn’t poisonous. Pine is easy – here in Australia a lot of spoon carvers use Huon pine, because it’s soft, but a lovely wood.

      Looks to me like 2.5″ by a little under 2″. But again, part of the recent surge in popularity of spoon carving, I would suggest, is that it lends itself to scraps you have lying around. How big do you want your spoon to be?

  2. I cant think of a more pleasant way to spend some time than watching and listening to Paul work his masterful way through a delightful little project. Time invested in a spoon like this would surely be an added ingredient to a soulfully prepared meal.
    As always i picked up so many tips…never would have thought of having the blade of my spoke-shave set for a course and a soft bite…seems so obvious now!
    an oval handle as opposed for round to prevent slipping in the hand…or even enabling less tension in the holding …who needs more tension?
    i like the thought of a rounded scraper…re-purposed saw blade metal tempered by the heat of the angle grinder perhaps ? not sure about this.
    are flexible scrapers available, or is this another home-made tool?
    I have a 19mm/3/4 inch Marple’s gouge, a bit small perhaps but i will try on a bit of pine to see if i can get an adequate concave with it.
    Thank you Paul for another wonderful masterclass and also for the PDF.
    kind regards, Aidan.

  5. Paul adeptly and quietly demonstrates his wisdom on bandsaw use at 9:50 where he turns off the saw before attempting to pull out of the cut he made. On a bandsaw, there’s little to prevent a blade from walking off the front side of the wheel when an operator pulls material back towards themselves with the saw running. So patience waiting for the blade to stop spinning will always serve you well in those cutting scenarios.
    And when Paul speaks to how to best trim off the corners of the spoon blank on the bandsaw, it gives voice to the underlying precept that stock control on a bandsaw is very predictable when your stock sits flat on the table, fully supported, with no space between the blade exiting the bottom of the material and the table. But when you cut with a gap between the blade exiting the bottom of the material and the table, the risk of the material getting out of your control increases (with larger gaps increasing the risk of an unexpected “event” occurring). Another example of a gap becoming an issue is when making rip cuts (and even a crosscut at times) on round logs.

  7. I’m not sure anyone else had the same reaction as I did, but when the piece of wood making the bottom of the bowl and extending into the hook was removed, I thought “here’s a good spoon rest to double up the spoon itself”. So you get two things out of the same piece of ‘leftover wood’!

    Nice going, Paul.

  9. I always thought of the spokeshave as a toy or accessory not a serious tool. Boy! I’ve learned how wrong I was. I like the spokeshaves that have the blade attached to the body of the handle at the bottom of the tool, like the wooden ones from the good old days.

  10. I don’t like the spoon’s shape as a whole but I love working with the spokeshave and this project is definitely a must do for spokeshave users and novices. I made 2 of these a couple of days ago and gave them to friends who loved them. Newbies, please try this project, you will love it!

  12. my favorite soup “spoon” isn’t a spoon at all but has a a flat slightly angled blade that scrapes the bottom of the pot. like a thick wood spatula. and making them doesn’t require a gouge, always great to see another video from Paul.

  14. Would it work to use a drill press and a small bit to drill out the end of the pot slot rather than using a coping saw?

    Excellent video especially the part using the gouge to hollow out the bowl of the spoon.

    Than you!

    Rob Drown

    1. Hi Rob,

      Paul says:
      I’m not altogether sure but the question comes to me, ‘Why, if we’re teaching a whole project using hand tools, would we suddenly suggest to people to use a drill press?’

      A major investment of both cost and space. Additionally I don’t think it would improve matters by any degree at all.

      Kind Regards,
      Izzy

  15. Yes but I dearly miss the precision of making perpendicular (or angled) holes in all sizes and materials for auto or home, outside of woodworking. I am thinking two machines for a well rounded shop: a band saw and drill press. And the vast collection of hand tools necessary to make whatever projects I am up for with your (and others) expert guidance.

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