Jonathan's Spoons at Smith Galleries

Sometimes the smallest thing can change the whole course of our lives. It may be the accidental meeting of someone, being in the right (or wrong) place at the right (or wrong) time, or even a job you thought you were overqualified for. In the case of Jonathan Simons, it was forgetting to put a spoon in his lunch bag when he was working as an apprentice to a furniture maker. He had to have a spoon to eat his soup, so he grabbed a piece of scrap wood and quickly shaped a spoon. That was nearly four decades ago. Today Jonathan is the best known spoon maker in, well, the whole world.

Lazy Spoons

An art and design major at the University of Illinois, Jonathan knew he wanted to create something—something both beautiful and functional. So he began an apprenticeship with a furniture maker in Maine. Following that, he worked in a canoe-seat factory. But when he got laid off from that job he decided he should work for himself. A home workshop in a garage in the middle of winter when the temperatures would dip to 20 degrees below zero limited his options; it was too cold for glue to set, so he could only make single piece products Re-enter the spoon!

Folding Tongs

A move back to his home state of Pennsylvania put him in a milder climate and also provided him with a plentiful supply of native hardwood. In the following years Jonathan expanded his product line, solidified his business practices, and developed a wide market for his spoons. But he didn’t stop with spoons! After all, spoons aren’t the only utensil we use. One of the highlights of visiting the craft markets is seeing what new utensils Jonathan has developed since the last time we saw him! At our last visit I was brave enough to request Jonathan work on something I needed. He immediately started throwing out ideas of

how it could be accomplished, so it wouldn’t surprise me to see something along those lines the next time we see him.

As Jonathan says, “Wooden spoons are some of the simplest tools in our homes, yet have an unlimited variety of uses and designs to explore.” He’s still just as excited exploring and creating utensils with a balance of function and quality so that they function beautifully and are beautifully made. I don’t promise that they will make you a better cook, but I do think they will make your time in the kitchen more enjoyable.

Smith Galleries is located in the Village at Wexford, Suite J11 (UPSTAIRS), on Hilton Head Island. Gallery hours are 10 - 6 Monday through Saturday. 843-842-2280