Typically, I prefer a wooden utensil’s most salient feature to be the wood. With other art, I’ve sometimes found myself wondering whether I’m using the wood simply as a carrier, or with tribute to the wood itself. These sentiments apply much less to some art, and I’m probably being silly even thinking about it this way.
But I can’t help but perceive a line, or boundary, where for some items, the design becomes an insult to the wood, no matter how nice the piece is. I should not overstate this though. I do draw a firm line with paint, which I have always loathed applying to wood, however mundane the species. Stain, however, doesn’t bother me a bit. As often mentioned, I use a natural oil & beeswax finish. When I can afford a high quality natural tung oil, I will begin using that.
This fork isn’t pushing things much. It is unambiguously made of wood, and while it has elements of symmetry and a shapes not native to any wood I’ve seen, it seems tolerable, if not admirable. The images below show the fork beside my favorite spatula type, which happens the simplest and easiest of my spatula designs.
I’ve made many different styles, most being more elegant and pleasant to view, but none more pleasant and useful in the hands. The angle of this simple spatula, and the sharp point, allow it to gracefully govern a full skillet while having the ability to stab and even cut as needed. It’s what I use. As for the fork, it’s another pending gift.
Unexpectedly, there has been close to zero interest in any of my items. Even more to my surprise, I now have more cocobolo wood than I may ever use. Although I make art mostly as a personal affair, the absence of interest does leave me less motivated to create variable things. I have since stopped making utensils and begun making hairpins, for which I enjoy the process of more than spoons or forks. So this may be my final handmade fork or spoon, perhaps apropos with the slight detachment from my usual, more organic style in which the wood does most of the talking.