Lovespoons Wales

The last couple of days have been spent carving a lovespoon with 4 balls in the cage to represent the four children of the marriage. This is not unusual as we have carved many lovespoons with balls in a cage.

 Also not unusual is the number of times I was asked”how do you get the balls in the cage?”.  The balls are of course, carved from with in the cage.  If a lovespoon is carved from on piece of wood, carving the balls outside of the lovespoon, would make it more than one piece of wood, and thus, technically, not a lovespoon at all.

In a similar manner, I know of carvers who carve the lovespoon and cage, then turn the balls on the lathe and then  push the balls into the cage.  A futher way is to mix sawdust with resin, shape it inside the cage, then once dry, stain it along with the rest of the spoon.

 To me, neither of these spoons can be called lovespoons in the traditional way.  I have been told to utilise technology,  I do….  I use a digital camera to take the photos - but technology with lovespoons ?? not for me