Spatulas for the kitchen

[Ironwood]

The spatulas I made nearly 20 years ago are starting to look a bit ragged, so I dusted off the gear and made some new ones.
I used Robson Valley's finish recipe described here - http://www.woodworkforums.com/f9/finish-spoons-226864 in post #4.

The 2 bigger ones are Khaya ( African Mahogany )and about 300mm long, and the 2 smaller ones are made with some Wattle that I felled on my property.

453665

453666

453667

453668

[Euge]

Wow!! Very beautiful utility items Ironwood. Maybe too nice to use.
Love them! :2tsup:

[Ironwood]

Wow!! Very beautiful utility items Ironwood. Maybe too nice to use.
Love them! :2tsup:
Thanks Euge.
They will get regular use, like the old ones they will replace. My wife's favourite one which is also made from Khaya, has been put in the dishwasher at least twice a week for nearly 20 years, apart from some colour loss, it still looks pretty good really.

[coffenup]

Nice work there my friend I'll have a set thanks. Saves me a job for the boss woman in my life[emoji1787]

Sent from my SM-G960F using Tapatalk

[Optimark]

Thanks Euge.
They will get regular use, like the old ones they will replace. My wife's favourite one which is also made from Khaya, has been put in the dishwasher at least twice a week for nearly 20 years, apart from some colour loss, it still looks pretty good really.



Very interesting, any chance of a picture of the one that has endured 20 years of dishwashers?

Mick.

[Ironwood]

Try this, copied from a post from a couple of years ago. If it doesn’t work I’ll take another photo tonight.
blob:http://www.woodworkforums.com/f160770f-fb00-4b75-8291-0c75b9005791

[Ironwood]

Well that didn't work. Heres a new photo.
The old one would have been made between 2000 and 2002 I reckon. Pictured here beside a new one made from Khaya so you can see how much colour it has lost.
It was coated with Olive Oil originally, but not put in the oven like the new ones. Goes to show how durable Khaya is.
I reckon it has been put in the dishwasher at least twice every week since I made it.

453680

[Optimark]

Thank you for that, very impressive. I never would have thought timber of any kind, could withstand twice a week in a dishwasher over decades.

Mick.

[Ironwood]

I have another survivor that was made at the same time, this one from Sandpaper Fig, it’s not as popular with the head chef so hasn’t been in the dishwasher as frequently as the Khaya spat, but it still looks relatively good for its age. I made 4 or 5 at the time, obviously not all have survived as well.
It will be interesting to see how this next generation fares. I made another one from Camphor Laurel today, as well as another from Khaya, they still need the finishing regimen but will wait until I have a few more to make a full cake tray.
Family members will receive some of the extras.

[Redbeard]

Well that didn't work. Heres a new photo.
The old one would have been made between 2000 and 2002 I reckon. Pictured here beside a new one made from Khaya so you can see how much colour it has lost.
It was coated with Olive Oil originally, but not put in the oven like the new ones. Goes to show how durable Khaya is.
I reckon it has been put in the dishwasher at least twice every week since I made it.

453680Lovely work.

Based on my experience with wooden spoons in the dishwasher, exactly what I would have expected. Do you refinish your utensils over time?

Cheers
Redbeard

[Ironwood]

Lovely work.

Based on my experience with wooden spoons in the dishwasher, exactly what I would have expected. Do you refinish your utensils over time?

Cheers
Redbeard
Thanks Mate. It’s good to hear I am not the only one who puts their wooden utensils in the dishwasher. I see posted so many times, people saying that you shouldn’t do it or there will be a catastrophic failure.
If they had to be handwashed every time, I would probably start using plastic ones :C

[Robson Valley]

BRAVO!!!! Those are drop-dead beautiful. Well done!
Finish: I just use very hot water on the ones in my kitchen.
Not even boiling can move the oil in the wood.

Thank you for showing the "dish-washer" finish. Always thought that the detergent was XXX caustic.

[Redbeard]

Thanks Mate. It’s good to hear I am not the only one who puts their wooden utensils in the dishwasher. I see posted so many times, people saying that you shouldn’t do it or there will be a catastrophic failure.
If they had to be handwashed every time, I would probably start using plastic ones :CI just recently had to "prune" a wooden spoon which had been chewed on by an errant puppy. The wood inside was still dark and hard. I figured while doing this I should hit it with some oil, for the first time in twenty years or more.

We should have more faith in our favourite material.

[Ironwood]

BRAVO!!!! Those are drop-dead beautiful. Well done!
Finish: I just use very hot water on the ones in my kitchen.
Not even boiling can move the oil in the wood.

Thank you for showing the "dish-washer" finish. Always thought that the detergent was XXX caustic.
Thanks RV. My wife wouldn’t have it any other way than the dishwasher, so if they didn’t last long , I would be making new ones much more often.


I just recently had to "prune" a wooden spoon which had been chewed on by an errant puppy. The wood inside was still dark and hard. I figured while doing this I should hit it with some oil, for the first time in twenty years or more.

We should have more faith in our favourite material.
Gotta love those puppies :U
What type of wood are yours made from ?

[Redbeard]

Iron wood, my spoons are ones I bought (or stole from my mother) before I got married. They could be anything really. Certainly unidentifiable now. But certainly apart from some remnant teeth marks they're fine.

[Gary H]

I made another one from Camphor Laurel today, as well as another from Khaya, they still need the finishing regimen but will wait until I have a few more to make a full cake tray.


I would not have thought of using Camphor Laurel, but if it's OK for cutting boards I guess it's OK for cooking? And my guess is your blanks are around 75x25x225mm - am I close? :?

Cheers, Gary

[Ironwood]

I would not have thought of using Camphor Laurel, but if it's OK for cutting boards I guess it's OK for cooking? And my guess is your blanks are around 75x25x225mm - am I close? :?

Cheers, Gary
Thats exactly what I thought Gary. I just made one out of the Camphor to see how it lasts. If anyone has any thoughts about it being detrimental to ones health, speak up please.

The smaller ones are about that size. The bigger ones are about 300mm long and about 28-30mm thick.