Houtmoeting! 

From our desire for a Belgian spoon-carving community, the idea emerged to organize a casual and accessible event. The goal was to bring like-minded individuals together to share experiences. Andy quickly joined the initiative, and over a cup of coffee, the concept of the first extraordinary spoon gathering took shape, inspired by the Irregular Spoon Gathering.

On July 1, 2022, it finally happened. We brought together around 35 enthusiastic spoon carvers from near and far. We enjoyed delicious food, camaraderie, and the casual exchange of knowledge, skills, and experiences.

Janne and Kenny from Studio Jahe created a video that captures the atmosphere of our gathering well. Thank you for that!

This first edition was more than successful and leaves us eager for more!

Everyone Famous

For the still life section, VRT came by to create some poetic, slow-motion shots allowing me to showcase my love and passion for greenwood and spoons.

Can someone help me to review this film fragment?

Heart for Wood

I had the opportunity to create drawings for the new book by Harald Lamon.

As you can read on the cover:

"A wonderfully practical book that immediately infects you with the wood virus. An engaging story about carving wood with step-by-step descriptions for simple projects carved from a fresh branch or trunk. Suitable for both the novice woodcarver and the passionate craftsman/woman."

The book launch event at the House of Time brought together many greenwood enthusiasts as well.

Interview Prijs Jonge Makers

As inspiration for the new winners of Prijs Jonge Makers 2022, I had the opportunity to share my story and recount my experiences from the past year.

Klaas De Buysser captured this beautifully! 

Welkom Silas

On December 12, 2022, I became the father of a beautiful son, Silas. The dark winter days suddenly became a bit brighter.

Marit is also a very proud big sister!

Midwinterfeest 

During the midwinter festival, I had the opportunity to give a spoon carving demonstration at the folklore museum. 

There was a significant interest from both young and old.

Definitely worth repeating!

Brookhouse Woods

I attended a course in bowl turning and hook forging under the guidance of the masters Yoav Elkayem and Mikey Elefant.

It was a very intense and special experience to learn and share in that environment.

A first Flemish spoonfest! 

As the culmination of the master-apprentice journey of Harald and Thomas, the first spoon feast in Flanders came to fruition. And what a celebration it was!

The event had a flying start despite the wet weather.
In addition to a lot of Belgian and Dutch spoon carving talent, there were some international instructors: Mikey Elefant, Jill Swan, and Aaron Garrett. Alongside the extensive workshop offerings, there was fire, delicious food, and good company.

We had the honor of hosting Mikey, Hadari, and Ruth for an entire week. The highlight for us was an unplanned pizza sleepover with Ross, Jill, and Aaron. We are thrilled to count these wonderful people as our friends!

On to the next edition!

A logo for lepelfeest Vlaanderen

When I heard that Thomas and Harald wanted to organize a Spoonfest in our country, I suggested designing a logo for them.

For the design, I opted for a distinctive image.

I am already pleased with the result!"

Lepelfeest Netherlands '22

This year, Lepelfeest got a new location.
It was a challenging journey, but once we arrived, we were warmly welcomed by Maurits and Sjors.

I conducted various workshops: kayak spoon, Welsh dolphinspoon, and kolrosing.
Despite Marit's fall and the stomach bug that took turns affecting each of us, we returned home with a happy and satisfied feeling."

Spoonfest '22

The weather in Edale always remains a challenge, and this year was no exception. Amidst the showers and strong winds, we enjoyed time with both old and new friends. A special thanks to Mikey Elefant, Peter Kovacs, and Yoav Elkayem for supporting young fathers with an insatiable passion for making.

Despite a fairly thick pregnant belly, we stretched our dancing legs during the barn dance. In addition to captivating demonstrations and a spoon swap with Dave Cockcroft, I attended workshops on Romanian spoons by Andrea Grad and carving a ladle with Lieuwe Jongsma, among others.

Once again, we gathered a lot of inspiration and energy in the center of the spooniverse!"

Spoontown '22

First edition of Spoontown! We were there... and wow, what a beautiful event with high-quality workshops and top host Jill Swan.

Together with the family, we descended to Spoontown, where we could all indulge our hearts in many ways. There were workshops, storytelling and singing evenings, delicious food, and above all, a great atmosphere.

I attended some workshops with Lee Stoffer and Adam Hawker.
Two top craftsmen from whom I learned a lot.

Spoontown 2023 is already marked on the calendar.

Logo for Lepelpost

Carolina Sloyd asked me to design a logo for lepelpost.
A kind of secret Santa but with handmade spoons.
After a long wait for results, this came out.

And a nice logo for Lepelleut!, an online meeting where you carve spoons together, is still on my to-do list.

Medieval Festival in Snellegem

We were also present at the encampment in Jabbeke.
In the shade of the tent, it was ideal to escape the heat and have a spoon chat with interested passersby."

Quondam

In late May 2022, we headed to Berlaar to spread the spoon carving virus at Quondam.

During this medieval encampment, I gave spoon carving demonstrations, sold spoons, all while enjoying a delicious pie from our Dutch oven.

Tastes like more!

Winner Young Makers Award

On March 8, 2022, the moment had arrived—the award ceremony for the Young Makers Award 2021 organized by Handmade in Bruges and Turbo.

During an exciting event, the winner was announced.
And, against all my own expectations, I won!

Thank you for the generous cash prize of €500, donated by Peter De Blieck of PL/NK, and the annual subscription to 'het mam.'
But most importantly, thank you for the kind words from the jury and their trust in me.

From now on, my intensive mentoring journey begins to become an even better maker and entrepreneur.

Exciting!

Meanwhile, I've already been featured in the newspaper!

Both Krant van West-Vlaanderen, Het Nieuwsblad, and Het Laatste Nieuws came for a visit."

An own storefront

Thanks to my participation in the Young Makers Award, I got the opportunity to showcase my work in a temporary storefront. Super exciting but also a bit nerve-wracking.

During the setup, I discovered that:
1. Nylon threads are not my best friends.
2. Wood shavings were also indispensable here.
3. There were more than 50 spoons scattered around the house!

You could admire my storefront until the end of March 2022 at Sint-Jakobsstraat 33, Bruges.
(Diagonally across from the Republiek)."

Masters of Sloyd

Masters of Sloyd is a webinar series where craftsmen share their craft knowledge for free. Every other week, well-known makers present their craft online on Thursday evenings, providing demonstrations and answering questions. 

On November 25th, I had the opportunity, thanks to Carolina, to speak about the decorative technique of kolrosing. It was quite an experience where I discovered that talking to a computer screen without seeing anyone, but with nearly 100 following heads and ears, is not that simple.

By the way, be sure to check out Carolina Sloyd. She's an amazing woman with a lot of fun spoon initiatives. In addition to the Masters of Sloyd series, she also organizes Lepelpost (a kind of secret Santa but with handmade spoons). And every Monday evening, you can join Lepelleut!, an online meeting where you carve spoons together.

Lepelfeest 2021

The Dutch Spoon Festival for greenwoodworkers!

In early September, I had the opportunity to conduct workshops surrounded by nature in the Veluwe near Epe, accompanied by a lot of enthusiastic spoon carvers. It was an unforgettable, positive experience. Not only because we went camping for the first time with our 6-week-old daughter, but also because we were immersed in an infinite, positive spoon atmosphere.

Here, my spoon passion was ignited into a blazing fire. I drew so much energy from teaching and sharing my knowledge and experience that on the way home, I decided: 'more of that!'

Thank you, Sjors and Maurits!

Welcome Marit

On July 13th, I became the father of our beautiful daughter Marit!"

"And guess what, she is crazy about being outdoors and spoons!
Gradually, she is becoming my personal advisor for form and function."

Lepelhout

On a dark January day, I found myself in Midgaard, the home of greenwood craftsmen Job and Sjors. During a chair-making workshop, we got to chatting. One thing led to another.

In the spring, I wrote a piece in their book 'lepelhout' about the decorative technique of kolrosing. Additionally, I created a number of drawings of spoons that you can replicate.

As they themselves say: 'Lepelhout is entirely devoted to the art of spoon carving. All our skills and (teaching) experience are incorporated into it. In addition to the techniques, we also take excursions into the forest. From reading the trees to an ode to the woodlouse.' See also the YouTube presentation."