Update for the month of February

So, Grimm got this cool blog all set up and I subscribed and what do I get, crickets!.

Sorry about that. Some of my projects have gotten bogged down and some are just spinning their wheels. I was hoping to have a new update each week or more, but I have been lax.

So where are we:

  1. Cooking Table:

    The work on the cooking table has ground to a halt. The next few steps involve setting the table up and doing some woodworking. These steps are going to wait till warmer days. So other then forging the accessories, I am at a standstill.

  2. Jewelry

    1. Mistress Amie Sparrow has requested that I set the diamonds in her Laurel medallion that I had originally hoped to have set before I ran out of time for her elevation. I was going to channel set the diamonds, but this is proving more difficult then I first thought in this piece. Now I have gone onto plan 2 and need to order some new parts.

    2. The other piece I am working on had been back burner-ed for the time being.

  3. Spinning.

    With my increased hours at work, i find i am having trouble finding time to work on projects. Because of this I find myself spinning in front of the TV as a way to relax. This has resulted in several skeins that I need to write up. They are pictured below and the details are forthcoming.

  4. Book Binding.

    As if I did not have enough going on, I have been asked to make a vigil book . The original request was for a book cover, but in my typical fashion, I feel the need to actually make the book. Below are some pictures of the binding practice I dd the other night to make a practice book. Once I have the technique down again ( I have not made a book in 30 years), I will start on the vigil book.

Some images of what has been going on:

Cooking table notes

Below are the notes I made for the completion of the cooking table. As an update, the “A” frame boards have been drilled for the top bar and the support poles. The support poles have been knotted and varnished. the next step will be to assemble the pieces to determine the correct angles for the bottom supports. The top pole will need to be drilled to hold the frames in place. None of this will be going on till the weather snaps. It is just to cold to work in the Garage. Time to turn to indoor crafts.

Prep for side supports:

Shave support poles

1. This has been changed to wrap and varnish cord stops.

2. Cut poles to length

Drill support poles for shims

These should be done as slots with a metal shim used for locking

Cut 1x6 with locking ends

Need to determine length.

Drill locking ends for shims.

These should be done as slots with a metal shim used for locking

Forge 8 locking shims

Forge nails for holding 2nd layer of inside supports

Cut and work top bar.

1. Cut to length

2. Drill 4 holes for stops

3. Round ends

Side supports setup:

Drill top hole for iron pole

1. 1 inch for iron bar

2. Down 1 foot from top for decoration

Determine height of table and drill holes for poles.

Cut and nail 2nd layer on inside supports

Cut holes for bottom supports

Cut slots for side bars

Assemble, mark and cut bottoms

Finishing parts:

Forge 4 cross bars for stability and hooks for hanging

Drill crossbars for hooks and bolts

Rivet hooks on crossbars

Cut planks for storage table

Glue and nail cross bars/locking bars

Hanging grate:

Cut angle iron to grill size

Forge corners/hanging bar

Accessories:

  1. Lid lifter

  2. Coal Shovel

  3. Broom

  4. Wisk broom

  5. Ladle

  6. Coal Tongs

  7. Coal Rake

  8. Trivits

  9. Hanging Spit

  10. “S” hooks

One additional note from this week, I finished the bottle I was making for Mors:

Research

Today’s adventure will be in research and possibly some jewelry making.

The research I am doing ties into my cooking table (https://www.grimmsfield.org/cooking-table) and requires some backstory. Last year at Pennsic, My wife and I tried to cook several pieces of meat over the fire on a spit. The main problem we found was keeping the meat (or Fowl) from turning. The spit we used was round and the heaviest part of the meat was always facing down. In trying to combat this I came across the picture to the right. This was a genius idea and looks like it would be fun to forge.The ability to pin the meat to the spit bu means of a skewer would solve our problems quite nicely. I also came across another image using the same idea seen below that image.

I was also able to find several examples of cooking skewers being kept by the cooking fire and used on a regular basis. These were quite common in colonial households. Most of these were from auction sites with little or no history given.

The question now became, was this style of spit used in period? Finding examples of meat or fowls cooked on spits in period was easy. I plan on devoting more time to the research presented by these images. However, today my main quest is to find a period pierced spit. Even though I was planning on making my spit with this feature for the Grimmsfield cooks to use, I would much prefer to have it be documentable.

The first image I was able to find of a spit with holes for skewers was The kitchen maid by Joachim Wtewael . This image shows very clearly the slots in the spit, but unfortunately was painted between 1620 and 1625. So close but no cigar. The quest must continue.

The second image I was able to find was even better. Not only did it show a spit with the skewer slots, but the meat being held on with the skewers. Kitchen Scene is a perfect example of the spit and its use! Helpful in every way but one. It was painted by Peter Wtewael (Dutch, Utrecht 1596–1660 Utrecht) in 1620. Again to late to be used for documentation.

As I was begining to give up hope and decide to just make the spit anyway, i stumbled onto the works of Joachim Beuckelaer (1533–1574) pintor flamenco. What Awesome work he did and with details that any blacksmith would love. Not only did he paint a kitchen scene with a slotted spit, he painted three! The first one Christ in the House of Martha and Mary.1565, shows a spit with a clear slot below the roast. It also gives a tantalizing glimpse of the stand attached to it.

The second work by Joachim Beuckelaer (1533–1574) entitled The Well-Stocked Kitchen.1566. again shows a long spit with a slot for a skewer near the other end of the spit.

The final image, Allegory of the carelessness (undated) shows yet another kitchen scene with a spit with the slot worked into it.

Although the painting by Peter Wtewael is the best from a working standpoint, all of Joachim Beuckelaer works fall safely within period. This has allowed me to look at the spit as both a working tool and as an A&S project in its own right. Some of the other kitchen scenes that I am saving for future reference are:

Joachim Beuckelaer: Cook (in the background Christ with Maria and Martha)

1600 vincenzo campi, la cuisine, détail droit

Joachim Beuckelaer--The Four Elements.- Fire. A Kitchen Scene with Christ in the House of Martha and Mary in the Background

Kitchen Scene with the Parable of the Rich Man and Poor Lazarus, Pieter Cornelisz. van Rijck (attributed to), 1610 - 1620

Well, not as much jewelry making as I hoped. Plenty of research done though, plus my scattered images bundled into one place. I hope to get working on the spit soon. For those of you following the fire table, I think that blog is going to be phased out in favor of all ramblings by Grimm being posted here.