Carving for Christmas

Wood carving is a meditative activity that you can do almost anywhere. Handmade spoons and forks are usable forms of art that will last for years if carved well and taken care of. Using simple tools: a fixed blade knife, hook knife, saw, and sandpaper, you will be instructed on the techniques of selecting wood, safe carving techniques, and how to care for your new eating utensil. You will go home with at least one wooden spoon and/or fork (students usually make more than 1) and a whole new skillset!

Class is open to adults and children.

SKILLS COVERED:

• ​Knife Safety

• Sharpening Techniques

• Wood Selection

• Carving Methods

• Saw Use & Safety

• Hook Knife Use & Safety

• Spoon Carving Techniques

• Fork Carving Techniques

• Sanding & Oiling

• Aftercare of Utensils 

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REQUIRED MATERIALS:​​

• Fixed blade knife

• Hook knife

• Folding saw

• Knife sharpener

• Cut resistant gloves

• Leather gloves

• Appropriate clothing for weather

• Water, lunch, and snacks

• Notebook and pen

ABOUT TIM SWANSON

FOUNDER & LEAD INSTRUCTOR OF OEWS

From a very young age, Tim Swanson held a strong interest in spending time outdoors. As a child, he would be outside identifying insects, building shelters, and looking for animal tracks. Throughout high school, he found activities such as hide tanning, foraging, and backcountry camping. He attended Unity College from 2010-2014 where he received a double Bachelors degree in Adventure Education Leadership and Adventure Therapy. While attending Unity College, Tim was the Training Officer for the volunteer search & rescue team as well as the President of the college's primitive skills club. After receiving his degree, Tim worked as a field guide for various wilderness therapy organizations in Vermont and Utah. While in between shifts working wilderness therapy, he taught animal tracking and foraging at local conservation lands. Through leading these educational walks, Tim started Owl Eyes Wilderness Survival. 

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Tim has extensive professional training in leading backcountry wilderness expeditions, and hundreds of nights in the field leading groups of teenagers and adults. Tim's specialties are ultralight backpacking, stone age living skills, fly-fishing, and foraging for wild plants. He also has a strong background in many wilderness activities including rock climbing, cross-country skiing, and whitewater canoeing.

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Tim has over 20 years experience as a practitioner of wilderness survival. He has trained and taught in various environments including deserts, rainforests, mountains, and coastal habitats. Tim has taught wilderness skills professionally across the United States in Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Vermont, Maine, Utah, Colorado, Washington, and Arizona. He has adapted his survival style of teaching to encompass and combine recreational backcountry activities and stone age living skills. 

Classes with Tim Swanson have been described as supportive, humorous, and very informative. Tim has turned his passion into a career and constantly pushes his skills to their limits to develop a deeper understanding of what it means to be human.