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Welsh Lovespoons

Spoons Full of Love

The term "wooden expression" usually describes someone whose face is as devoid of emotion, as difficult to read, as a block of wood.

The centuries-old Welsh tradition of lovespoon carving, imbues that expression with a different meaning. Needing a tangible way to demonstrate their feelings for the women they loved, young men carved them elaborate wooden spoons as tokens of their affection. Into chunks of timber, they infused emotions and sentiments that were difficult to express verbally.

For these ardent but inarticulate beaus, lovespoons represented the very essence of wooden expression. More than a way to express emotion though these love spoons also served as a declaration of intent: a desire to share a life and a tangible financial commitment.

This lens explores the tradition of lovespoon carving, examinng symbolic meanings, and showcasing the work of modern practitioners of this fascinating art and folk custom.

Carving a Place in the Heart
Lovespoon Symbols and Meanings
David Western's Intricate Lovespoon Artistry
Royal Wedding Spoon
Jenkins Lovespoons: Delicate, Exquisite
Watch Some Lovespoons Being Carved
Mike Davies Lovespoons: Fit for Royalty
Scoop Up Some More Lovespoon Info
Cadwyn Lovespoons: Traditional Designs
A Little Welsh Immersion Course
Lovespoons: What Do You Think?
A Few Welsh and Celtic Tunes

Carving a Place in the Heart

Welsh Lovespoons: A Centuries Old Tradition

I wonder what made that first young suitor decide that carving a spoon would win him the heart of his chosen maiden? It does seem a little random, at first glance. Why a spoon, rather than some other eating utensil or even -- eureka! -- a personal adornment of some kind? Whatever the original source of inspiration, the custom clearly caught on, and a tradition begun centuries ago flourishes today.

Earliest documented evidence suggests that the Welsh tradition of lovespoon carving started in the mid-17th century. While not the only nation (or even the first) to adopt this folk custom, the Welsh embraced lovespoon carving with a vigor and purpose that is unmatched.

This Welsh version of the mating dance began, as the ritual usually does, with a man falling for a woman. To notify her of his intentions, and to "sell" himself, he would carve and present her with a special spoon. Initially, these spoons might have been simply-decorated cawls -- soup spoons -- but eventually, the competition became more fierce and the stakes were raised. Carvings became more detailed as suitors strove to present themselves and their abilities in the best possible light.

Heart motifs were among the earliest designs, but over time, lovespoons became more elaborate, incorporating more symbols and more complex messages. Bells, birds, flowers, wheels, vines, and knots combined to form intricate carvings saturated with meaning.

A major challenge when making a lovespoon was to carve it entirely from one piece of wood, with no joins or additions. The more involved the design, the more skill was needed, and the more desirable the token. The task would have been difficult enough if the design elements were static, but they weren't. Many spoons had moving parts, such as varying numbers of links or caged balls, with the number of balls or links directly related to the sentiment. For example, two balls in a cage symbolized the couple; more balls might refer to the carver's hopes for a specific number of children.

A young man sits at his rough stone hearth, brow furrowed in concentration as he carefully chips away at a piece of wood. As he carves, images of his beloved fill his thoughts, obscuring the spoon on which he lavishes such care, His hand trembles. A single moment of distraction can destroy his love token and one careless knife stroke shatter the purity of his offering. His finished spoon must spring from a single piece of wood and the tiniest crack will ruin it.

While glimpses of mutual interest might spur the would-be lover to began his labors, often he had to gamble. After all, lovespoons were statements of intent, so a certain element of risk came with the territory. In addition, a desirable conquest might well receive lovespoons from multiple suitors. Not much different, really, than today's belles, who might "go steady" or even become engaged multiple times before settling on a life partner. Sometimes, these objects of affection wore their objects of affection strung on ribbons at the waist -- like so many scalps on a belt.

Today, the tradition of carving and giving lovespoons has grown beyond the original scope of an engagement gift. Lovespoons are given to mark many different occasions: anniversaries, weddings, births, and personal milestones. The expanded purpose has generated many new symbols and refinements of older ones.

The craft has grown also -- from folk art to fine art. Women carvers have joined the traditionally male domain and are producing extraordinarily beautiful and original work. New ideas, interpretations, and concepts have inspired modern carvers to create increasingly complex designs. Yet, whether simple or complicated, these lovespoons retain the original spirit and warmth of their predecessors. They remain what they always have been: tokens of love.

The Left Coast Eisteddfod Lovespoon

Featured here is the 2011 Portland Eisteddfod lovespoon carved by David Western of David Western Lovespoons. Each year, Dave designs and carves a special lovespoon to help raise money for the "Left Coast Eisteddfod", a Welsh-American Performing Arts and Culture Festival. A small donation to the group purchases a chance to win the current year's spoon. The 2011 raffle may be over, but I'm thinking ahead to 2012...

Read more about the fascinating evolution of this new spoon, which incorporates the 3 winning entries from a competition soliciting motifs. The spoon is a beauty.

Lovespoon Symbols and Meanings

By combining selected symbols and motifs it is possible to create a lovespoon whose message represents exactly what you wish to say. As with traditional fan or flower language, romantic and very personal sentiments can be expressed in these lovely, non-verbal ways.

ANCHOR
Settled love, eternal devotion and security.
BELL
Wedding bliss and anniversaries.
BIRDS
Love birds; or let's go away together. Stork represents a birth.
CAGED BALLS
Number of children hoped for. Also: the family unit, safely protected.
CASTLE
Like the harp and the daffodil, the castle symbol here is used to represent Wales.
CHAIN
Captured Love
COMMA SHAPE
The soul.
CROSS
Blessing of a couple's union; faith in their marriage; symbol of religious faith.
DAFFODIL
Growth; gentleness
DIAMOND
Wealth or good forune
DOUBLE BOWL
The loving couple
DOUBLE HEART
Shared love; love is returned; two people living as one.
DOUBLE SPOONS
A couple together forever.
DRAGON
Protection. Also a symbol of Wales
FEATHERS
Symbol of Wales
FLOWER
Courtship
HARP
Represents Wales through music and song
HEART
True love; the carver's heart belongs to his loved one.
HEART-SHAPED BOWL
Fulfilled love
HORSESHOE
Good luck; happiness.
HOUSE
My home is yours.
KEYHOLE or KEY
Living together after marriage. My house is yours.
KNOT
Everlasting love.
LINKS
Two lives linked together forever.
LOCK
Pledge of security and care.
SHIP
Safe voyage through life
SINGLE HEART
My Heart is Yours
SPADE
A promise to work and provide for his intended.
TRIPLE BOWL
The couple and hoped for offspring.
TWIST
Togetherness; two lives entwined..
TWO HEARTS
Two people sharing the same feelings.
VINE
Growing together
WHEEL
Willingness to work. Also: couple will stay on a safe course.

David Western's Intricate Lovespoon Artistry

David Western, who was born in Wales but now lives in Victoria, British Columbia, has been carving lovespoons for more than 20 years. He says carving them is his passion and comments, "My lovespoons are not souvenir trinkets; they are art which also celebrates both my client's personal stories and my hard-earned skills as a craftsman and designer."

Be sure to visit David's blog, for his moving account of a commissionhe received for a spoon that would be a final gift from a terminally ill woman to her dear friend.

The lovespoons pictured above represent a tiny sampling of his designs, many of which are individual commissions created to mark a special event or deeply personal experience of his client.

Also on David's site: a video of him discussing his art.

NOTE: For some unexplained reason, the hot link to this site sometimes fails. if you click on the picture and receive an error message, please cut and paste the following into your browser to reach the site. I apologise for any inconvenience, but I promise that the carvings you will see and the information presented on the site will reward the extra step.http://www.davidwesternlovespoons.com/www.davidwesternlovespoons.com/Home.html

Also visit David's Blog for an in-process look at his current projects. You can also reach his web page from the blog.

Royal Wedding Spoon by David Western

A Personal Challenge

David Western received suggestions that he carve a special spoon for the nuptials of Prince William and Kate Middleton. He chose not to, saying, "Because they don't know me and I don't know them, an unsolicited gift to a couple who would prefer donations were made to charity didn't seem at all the right thing to do. "

However, the idea of a royal wedding spoon piqued his creativity in a way he couldn't entirely resist. Ultimately, he did create such a spoon -- not as a gift or to sell, but as a personal challenge. See the full lovespoon with David's explanation of his ideas and the symbolism used. It's a beauty and the insights into his thought processes are enlightening.

Courtney's Art and Craft Ideas Gone Wild

I have found so many creative art and craft ideas on the internet lately that it's making my head spin!

I'm not into what I would like to call traditional crafts, it needs to be something a bit different to catch my eye. Hopefully you will see something here that will catch your eye as well.

New ideas often, so please bookmark this site! Thank you!

DabbleWithCrafts

This is beautiful sea glass jewelry. I can't say that I've heard of sea glass before!

Want to see more sea glass jewelry? Click here to see Robin's Etsy store, or click on the image to see her blog.

Taking A Great Self Portrait With Your Camera

Self Portrait Ideas: Get the Background Right

Where to shoot your self portrait

For official photos you should find a plain background - this may need to be white, cream or pale grey.

Informal shots can have a more natural background but, remember, this is all about you. Avoid distracting backgrounds. Choose a plain wall or a screen draped in a subtle fabric for head shots.

If you want to pose in the garden, keep the background simple - leaves are fine, or flowers, but avoid too many colours or people will look at the background, not you.

Here are 5 top tips on How to Compose Photos with Good Backgrounds brought to you by DUMMIES.com.

If you are posing indoors, a full length curtain can be used as a quick background solution. Bright colors can work well as backgrounds. However, the best color backdrop is one that suits your skin tone. Do you look good in blue and cool colours? Or do you suit warmer tones? Some people come alive against shades of red (warm skin tones), others look better against soft shades of pink or blue (cool skin tones).

Check out this link on DIYPhotography net if you want to make your own Muslin Photography Background. Or you can buy ready-made backdrops from Amazon.

Self Portrait Poses

Pose Like a Pro

Take some tips here from the experts.

Photographer Riccardo Cellere recommends:

lean in towards the camera to reduce double chin

angle your body and bend your arms to look slimmer

keep your shoulders back

Check out his video to see this in action.

For advice from the other side of the camera, model Josie Maran shares her secrets, including some great advice on a natural smile.

How to pose for the perfect picture

Top photographer tips on posing for photographs.

Model Posing 101

Model Josie Maran shares the secrets of her poses.

Almost there.... getting the light right

So you're looking good and all set up. Before you begin, check you have adequate lighting. Good natural light can be beautiful, as in this image from 'krystle' on morgueFile, but avoid strong sunlight that casts unflattering shadows. For some good advice, follow the advice of Photography.ca in their article on What is good light in photography.

Professionals use a range of lights and reflectors. You can rig up a reflector on the cheap if you don't want to invest in equipment. eHow show you how in How to Make a Homemade Photography Reflector.

[Image credit: user 'krystle' on morgueFile]

Setting up your camera for a self portrait

Digital cameras these days often have a whole range of features and modes. Here are my tips for selecting the best features for taking a good photo of yourself.

Red eye reduction - Most cameras will let you select red eye reduction mode. This will cause your camera to flash twice, which gives your pupils time to contract so that 'red eye' is prevented.

Portrait mode - Your camera might have a variety of modes you can choose depending on the picture you are taking, for example: scenery, people (close-ups), night shots. Select the mode which is designed for close-up photos of people.

Beauty mode - Some cameras have a 'beauty mode' which is designed for enhancing close-up pictures of faces. It does this by evening out and brightening skin tone. These days, this kind of thing is often done in any case using computer editing, so if you prefer not to spend a lot of time at the computer you might like the results your camera will give in this mode.

Image stabilization - this feature is useful if you are not using a tripod, as it reduces the camera shake that can result from hand-held shots.

Self portrait photography technique no. 1

The long arm

This only works if you have very long arms and a steady hand. It's not recommended - the results can be very unflattering - but will do in a pinch. All you do is hold the camera as far from you as you can, smile and press the shutter.

You may have seen pro Riccardo Cellere use this technique in the above video. Even though his shot is quirky and fun, it doesn't make either of them look their best - and he's a professional!

If you do want to try it, keep the camera higher than you so that you are looking up - it gives a nicer shot than straight on. Tilt your head or angle the camera to one side so that you get a cute semi-profile rather than the 'convict mug-shot' look of staring into the lens. In fact, try a few shots where you are not even looking at the camera, for a more natural style.

Pitfalls:

Short-range shots don't flatter features - particularly noses

It's hard to keep your hand steady enough, though you may be able to find something to brace it against

You will have to use guesswork to know if you are in the shot

Don't say I didn't warn you.

Self portrait photography technique no. 2

Click and run

Use the camera's timer option. Almost every camera these days has one. Check your manual or look at the on-screen menu to figure out how to set it. The camera may give you a fixed time between your pressing the shutter and the photograph being taken. This could be just a couple of seconds, or may be 10 seconds. Or your camera may give you a choice.

Of course, you won't be holding the camera this time when the picture is taken, so you either need somewhere steady like a shelf or table (at the right height to take a flattering photo of you in your chosen pose) OR the better option is to use a tripod.

Take some trial shots using a placeholder such as a potted plant or other object that you can position as a 'stand-in' for yourself while you are behind the camera. This will allow your camera to correctly focus on your position.

Self portrait photography technique no. 3

Remote control

If you have a remote shutter release for your camera, you can pose and click without having to run backwards and forwards. The camera will also be able to focus on you correctly since you'll already be in place.

Mount your camera on a tripod and check that you will be in frame when the photo is taken (using your placeholder object or background).

If your hands are going to be in the shot, you'll need to figure out how to conceal the remote unit. They tend to be small so you may be able to cover it with your hand or disguise it in a piece of fabric.

[Image credit: user 'krystle' on morgueFile]