Monthly Archives: May 2012

Kelvin Wong’s Julius Pettersson Knife

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The following post was kindly supplied by Woodlore customer Kelvin Wong, who used the Julius Pettersson Knife Blade to create his own custom Bushcraft knife:

Hi everyone,

I’d thought I’d share some photos of my new Julius Pettersson knife. It is my first attempt at knife handle making and I’d love to hear what you think.

Kelvin Wong's finished knife

Kelvin Wong's finished knife

I used reindeer antler pieces, purple and white liners, and a piece of dyed box elder burl, with nickel silver end cap and bolster. The end piece of antler was a bit small and didn’t polish up as pearly white as the front piece, but I am still quite happy with the results.

Any comments/advice on how to improve would be appreciated!

Kelvin Wong

Thalia Georgiou – An Arctic Experience

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In early 2011, Thalia Georgiou took her first steps into the world of Bushcraft by joining Ray Mears and the Woodlore Team on our Arctic Experience Expedition. Her time spent in the wilderness of Northern Sweden helped Thalia to gain not only new skills, but a greater understanding of the isolated environments of the world and the peoples who call these places home.

Upon returning to her life in the UK, Thalia took this newfound appreciation and put it to use, travelling to Canada to help support a number of First Nation and Inuit communities. Hers is a fantastic story of how even a short time spent in the wilderness can be both humbling and incredibly inspiring, and it is moving to hear how Thalia has used this boost to provide help to others:

Thalia Georgiou in the Arctic, after sleeping out on the frozen lake

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Ray Mears Sightings – May 2012

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Welcome to the very first of our ‘Ray Mears Sightings’ blog posts. As a new venture of ours, the aim of these posts is to bring you the very best articles, interviews and videos of Ray Mears found online each month. Throughout this past month, Ray has been busy getting involved in a variety of projects that are occurring around the UK, as well as participating in interviews with a number of publications. To simplify things, we have rounded up the cream of the crop and hope that you will enjoy them as much as we have.

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Ray Mears Featured in Carlsberg’s Euro 2012 ‘Fan Academy’ Advert

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The eagle-eyed among you may have already spotted Ray Mears popping up in the latest Carlsberg TV advert, known as ‘The Fan Academy‘. Made in preparation for this year’s UEFA Euro 2012, the light-hearted commercial features a bevy of English stars – including Sir Bobby Charlton, Peter Shilton, Brian Blessed and Linford Christie – as they help train 300 England fans to be the best supporters they can be:

Appearing at 0:56, Ray Mears is on hand (complete with 5.11 garb), preparing the fans for the worst the English weather can throw at them on the terraces:

Ray Mears - Carlsberg Fan Academy Advert

Ray prepares the fans for an 'English Summer'

Darren Morris, Brand Controller at Carlsberg, said:

“As England fans ourselves, we know how important supporters are to the England team during a major tournament and we wanted to acknowledge the unique characteristics that make England fans amongst the best in the world – such as commitment, loyalty and passion.”

Coming Soon – The Swazi Tussock Range

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The Swazi Clothing Tussock Range

Here at Woodlore, we’ve been firm believers in the Swazi Clothing brand ever since Ray brought his very first Tahr Anorak back from a trip to New Zealand. Their claim of producing “the world’s most durable outdoor clothing” piqued our interest, and we’ve been putting their gear to the test – and proving them right – ever since.

The Tahr Anorak quickly became Ray Mears’ favourite and most reliable piece of outdoor clothing, and has remained so ever since. Their distinctive designs and trademark Tussock Green colour can now be found on outdoorsmen and women the world over, helping them through wind, rain and snow, while the production of all their garments has proudly been kept in New Zealand.

In 2012, Woodlore continues to be the UK’s exclusive distributor of Swazi Clothing, a title of which we are very proud. And so, it is with great excitement that we announce a brand new series of exclusive products to the Woodlore shop, in the form of the Swazi Tussock Range:

The Swazi Nahanni Shirt

The Swazi Nahanni Shirt

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Jim Little’s Julius Pettersson Knife

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The following post was kindly supplied by Woodlore customer Jim Little:

Hi Woodlore,

I’ve noticed a couple of people have sent in finished articles regarding their Julius Pettersson Knife. So, getting in the spirit of things I thought I would do the same.

Other than purchasing the blade itself and the pommel section of Reindeer Antler, the other materials have been collected on rambles with my son Alex. The thin coin sections are deer antler from the nearby fields, they have been separated with sections of deer leather given to us by the local game keeper. The central wood section was brought back from an olive farm in Corfu, from a dead olive branch. Yes, I did get funny looks from immigration!

Nearly there...

Nearly there...

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The Joys of Spring

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With Woodlore’s 2012 course season now well underway, Aspirant Instructor Sarah Day shares her thoughts on working and living in the outdoors at this time of year:

Woodlore Aspirant Instructor Sarah Day

Sarah Day

I started working at Woodlore in 2006. But since then I’ve not been able to work courses during the early part of the season due to other commitments. I think I’d forgotten just how much I love spring.

Watching summer mellow into autumn is a different affair, the last flush of colour before you wake up one morning and know the summer is over. The day when it seems the birch leaves have turned yellow and started to drop almost overnight; it always makes me feel a little sad. I love winter, and I love autumn but the end of the summer means the end of the course season and a few months until I’ll be back outdoors properly again.

Spring is a season of firsts – the first Woodlore course, the first butterflies and bluebells, the first bumblebees. The woods are so alive with the hustle and bustle of life that it’s impossible to ignore. The changes are so much more tangible than in other seasons too. For two weeks I watched buds on the beech tree near the store tent swelling almost imperceptibly, then burst into a riot of vivid green in the space of three days. The leaves start thin and crinkled, like a butterfly that’s just emerged from its chrysalis, but quickly spread into a beautiful emerald canopy, until the whole wood is dusted with a delicate sprinkling of green. It looks good enough to eat – and some of it is – nettles, hawthorn, dog rose shoots, ramsons and beech leaves are all spring delicacies.

The sun setting over one of Woodlore's bivi sites

The sun setting over one of Woodlore's bivi sites

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