Hilltop Spoonworks

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Poland, ME
Hilltop Spoonworks

Located in Poland Maine, my goal is to bring a little elegance to your utilitarian kitchen utensils.

09/06/2026

So my family and I enjoy going to renaisance festivals in our area, and this year was the first time we decided to dress up. I have a long beard, so I braided it and dress up in full viking gear. The only pieces I was missing were a shield and axe. I have the axe, but no shield to speak of. As soon as we got home, I looked around the shop to see what I could come up with.

I had a few nice planks of Rhodesian Teak and a bunch of 1/8 inch oak craft boards laying around, so i got to work. After researching the dimensions and construction of the originals I figured I should start looking for a center boss that would bring it all together. I ended up ordering one straight from England that was the perfect size. As soon as it arrived, I etched my logo onto the face of it and clearcoated it to prevent rust. The planks of teak I had were all 1.5 inches thick, so I resawed them down and book matched the sapwood/heartwood combo to accentuate the center of the shield then used the solid heartwood for the outsides. I glued them all together, then glued the 1/8 inch oak boards to the back in a perpendicular pattern for strength. Next, I started looking for a design to carve onto the face. My property has tons of ravens throughout the year, so I knew I wanted ravens as the main focus. It worked out perfectly because then I looked up Odin's two ravens named Huginn and Muninn. I found a perfect original design from back in the viking days of them that worked perfectly. Then I found runes that spelled the names, and placed those on the wing of each. Once the design was complete, I got to work routing and carving. The leather edging came next. I found some natural leather at a local shop for cheap and just finished gluing and stitching it all on this morning. The only thing left is the strap to wear it around my back. For that I'll have to reach out to a friend who does custom leather work because I definitely want it to be adjustable and comfortable. Thanks for looking!

07/09/2026

The African Springbok skull is finally finished! Because the antlers are jet black, I decided to go with mahogany for this guy. I really like the red/black combination. I'm really enjoying carving these skulls, especially after seeing the real antlers attached once I finish them. Thanks for lookin'!

05/19/2026

After carving the last buck skull for a friend, I decided I needed one for myself. I also wanted it to be as refined as I could get it with the tools and limited carving knowledge I have. I started by asking my good buddy Steve Trask and his wife Niki if they have any skulls laying around that they wouldn't mind selling to me. That may sound strange to some, but together they own the coolest oddities shop on Lisbon Street in downtown Lewiston called 83 & Co. They make super cool things from bones and have a bunch of vintage oddities and other cool stuff. Anyway, they didn't have a complete skull and antler set, but they had skulls from taxidermists that had the antlers already removed, and they had 1 set of nice antlers that would match. So I scooped them up, figuring I could eyeball the connection points and just wing it on the back of the skull. Because this one was for me, it wouldn't be a terrible loss if it didn't work out.

Here are the photos of the finished piece, along with a few before antlers were attached, and one with the actual skull beside my carved one for reference early in the process. I absolutely love how it turned out, and can't wait to do more later on. I would love to offer this for hunters who don't want a full mount but want more than just an antler mount. Thanks for lookin!

04/12/2026

The deer skull I carved a few weeks ago was only partially finished when I posted the pictures. I didn't want to ruin the original skull by cutting the antlers off wrong, or messing it up in any way without the customer being here while I did it. He made it by yesterday, and together we got the antlers attached just like they were on the original. It looks so much better like this, and now I can let it go home with him for good. I'd love to give one a go in walnut next, stay tuned. Thanks for lookin!

04/08/2026

After finishing off the cherry measuring cup set for the donation the other day, I decided that if this cause is good enough for someone to buy a set like that just to donate, I should add a little something from the shop as well. Here's what I went with.

Full seven piece cooking spoon set (3 of which are right handed) in curly yellow birch. I hope it helps raise some money for the cause!

03/30/2026

Cherry measuring cup set with walnut center strip headed to a raffle drawing very soon. I don't know much about the raffle honestly, as I am not the one donating it. My very generous customer purchased it specifically to raffle it off! I do hope it brings in lots of money for the cause though! One more coat of finish on the backer tomorrow and its ready to go!

(U.S. Patent # D897,871)

02/04/2026

Something a bit different off the bench tonight. I got a commission for a deer skull recently. The original had damage on the snout area and some of the right side of the face, so my customer wanted to see if I could do a wooden replica of the original. As this is only my 8th or so "sculpture" type piece, and my first attempt at an animal skull, I didn't get super detailed, and used fine permanent marker for the suture lines. It looks much bigger than the real one because so much of the original has broken off.

I carved it out of bass wood because it's soft , yet stable, and I had a decent sized chunk on hand anyhow, lol.

12/18/2025

Some highly figured tiger maple cookers, thin spurtle, and serving spoon after a week of drying. Just a few more days of curing and they're off to their new home!

10/15/2025

Light coat of oil for a picture, then back into the oil for 24 hours. I just finished with these Tiger Maple cookers, strainer spoon, and spaghetti spoon. I wasn't quite sure how well the spaghetti spoon would match with the rest because I used the same piece of wood for the spoons, but a thicker plank for the spaghetti piece. But I was pleasantly surprised to see that the inside of the thick plank was also nicely figured! It is definitely darker, but the customer was okay with that before I even started.

Right handed #6, right handed #5, strainer spoon, and spaghetti spoon. Thanks for lookin'!

09/26/2025

Something a bit different this time. I have been commissioned to carve a replica of a swan sculpture that a client currently has at his home. I have photos and measurements of it, but that's all. I haven't seen it or held it personally yet, which would definitely help. He wants one exactly like his current piece, but wants multiples of the same piece half that size to gift to friends. This was my test piece for him, it's a half size piece. I went with cherry for this one because that's what I have the most of right now. The final pieces (if he likes my first attempt) will be in a different wood because they will be painted and all of them carved in solid cherry would be very expensive for him. I will be keeping this one for myself. It still needs a little more fine sanding, then I'll stain the beak and face black and then clear over the whole piece. Something about the darker cherry on the bottom is appealing to me, and I'd hate to paint over beautiful cherry wood, lol.

Address

Strout Road
Poland, ME
04274

Website

https://www.hilltopspoonworks.com/

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