Barn the Spoon & Jarrod Dahl at Woodspirit School in 2023

Barn the Spoon & Jarrod Dahl will teach together at Woodspirit School in 2023, www.woodspiritschool.com

We have some exciting news to share. As part of Barn’s visit from the UK to the US this coming Spring, 2023 he’ll be teaching a workshop at Woodspirit School in Ashland, WI. Actually we’ll be teaching it together.

We’re calling it a Spoon Carving Masterclass and the class will happen March 31-April 2, 2023.

Barn and I collaborated on a project in 2018. I added micro finials to his spoons, he carved handles on my porringers.

Barn and I are excited about teaching together. Co-teaching a class was something we’d talked about for a while, but hadn’t sorted out how to pull off until now. We first met at the inaugural Spoonfest back in 2012 and have been good friends since then.

If you’re plugged into the spoon carving scene in any way, Barn needs no introduction. He is a craftsman and entrepreneur and a true master at spoon carving. He makes not just one style well, but many. He creates sculptural shapes that stand on their own with little ornamentation (something I really admire). His spoons are visually balanced and intriguing. They feel good in the hand and work well. He’s the mastermind behind The Greenwood Guild and Spoonclub (THE online spoon carving resource) and co-founder of Spoonfest. And If you have met him, you’ll know that Barn is an all around great guy and hilarious too.

Jarrod’s Spoons 2019, www.woodspirithandcraft.com

The caveat for our class at Woodspirit School though is that it will be for folks who can already carve proficiently. In other words, the class is for people who can use knives and axes accurately and safely as well carve spoons without much fuss. Now, your designs don’t need to be dialed in to perfection—that’s what the class is for, but you should have taken a spoon carving class and/or have a foundation in carving basics. Our thinking is that we can spend more time on the subtle or in-depth stuff since folks will already know how to carve.

We’ll throw everything at you which will help you take your spoon carving to the next level. We’ll help you to develop your own unique designs, we’ll cover advanced carving techniques, we’ll get into the minutiae. And if folks are feeling ready to teach, we’ll cover some teaching techniques as well.

It’ll be 3 days of serious geeking out and it’s going to be a blast. Hope to see you there. Spread the word.

A couple weeks before the Masterclass, Jazmin and I will be bringing Barn and his wife Cath up the Lake Superior shores to North House Folk School for Wood Week. Wood Week is a special time at North House, with a wide variety of woodworking classes and events happening. It’s no surprise that the two classes Barn is teaching during that time are full (with waitlists), however other classes still have open spots. I’ll be teaching Pole Lathe Turning at Wood Week and there are still spaces left—hint hint. Check Wood Week out here. Come hang out and carve with us in Grand Marais, MN, then come to Ashland afterwards for more spoon fun.

Join the Woodspirit School News for more details on upcoming craft classes in 2023.

Barn & Jarrod score some wood at the Greenwood Guild woodpile. thegreenwoodguild.com