Adventures of an Imperfect Man In Search of a Handmade Life
Sometimes it's nice to have the security of a bag strapped closely to the body and not swinging around your neck and shoulders. This little 9 x 5 x 2 inch design has done quite well over the past year and has been a popular seller in the shop. Made from 7 oz. veg-tanned leather … Continue reading Small Possibles Bag for the Belt
This will be the last one for a while as I have other projects in the hopper. Two-toned 7 oz. leather. The complete kit will get you started and, if frugal, can start several fires. The strikers are custom made by my friend Eric at Colonial Iron. A bundle of juniper bark and ample charred … Continue reading Flint and Steel
I like to add a little character and variety, even if I'm just making the same thing again and again. I want to believe that this is what my ancestors would have done, toiling away in the craft to make a living. It keeps things interesting and more human than the soulless, mass-produced consumables. Here's … Continue reading Catching Up
I bought a small batch of unhafted Ferrocerrum rods recently. This came after finding out what a hit they were with some of my recent demonstrations. Being able to produce a ridiculously hot spark with little effort in all weather amazes even the most distracted student. Since the explosion of survival shows on television and … Continue reading Ferro Rods are in the Shop
Winter is here. For some of you it is here with real gusto. Growing up in Missouri and being sent out to 'play' no matter what the weather or who was around I learned a lot about how to entertain myself. Snowfall in the Mississippi valley could be heavy and wet throughout the winter and … Continue reading Quinzhee Snow Shelter
Excellent work from our Tuscany comrade. I hope to find the magazine and make one myself!
One of my dreams comes true!
Last month I’ve written a tutorial on making a wool bush shirt and this article… has been published in the Autumn issue of “The Bushcraft Magazine“!!!
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Thanks to Survival Sherpa for posting this look at making a pack frame. Making a quick, three stick pack frame is a valuable bit of knowledge. How serendipitous that this came up (seems to be a lot of convergent thinking around my world lately) as I am beginning to tweak my own wooden pack frame … Continue reading How to Improvise and Use a Three Stick Roycroft Pack Frame
A fun and relatively tame primitive technology event for a good price located in southwest Missouri put on by good friends of mine. Here's some information from their website: This unique event has two parts - a free knap-in/native arts-crafts show starting Thursday, with top-notch knappers, artists, and crafters from a 20-state area making and … Continue reading Bois d’Arc Primitive Skills Gathering and Knap-In
Here is a great little instruction set on how to make a European Medieval-style belt bag. You see these in paintings and illustrations on just about every traveler. Not only will you come out with a nice bag but it is a fine and simple introduction into leather working and sewing. All makers need to start somewhere and this might be the right project.
Old style bushcraft: a medieval possible pouch
During the Middle Age was common carrying small items like coins, keys, inside pouches or purses attached to the belt.
There are many archaeological and iconographical documents, you can search for your favorite patterns, but there is a model that in my opinion, is one of the best for a bushcrafter.
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I wanted to re-blog this excellent post about functional pottery construction from “Survival Sherpa”. I’m no great pottery maker but appreciate the craft for sure. Have a look.
by Todd Walker
Coffee drinkers like myself usually have a favorite mug or cup. My all-time favorite “tankard” developed a crack and DRG trashed it. A sad day indeed!
My sob story may seem petty, but there’s nothing trivial about not having a way to “contain” stuff. Think of all the ways you use containers daily. Then imagine all your modern containers being gone… poof, no more. Welcome to the Stone Age!
Here’s what else disappears with your containers. Your ability to…
This is why containers are king!
After attending a local two-day primitive pottery class, my respect and appreciation for the humble container grew…
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Starting as a field scientist in the heady days when men were men and GPS was not available to common civilians, I learned my way around a compass pretty well. I thought I knew something coming out of Boy Scouts but putting those skills to the test mile after mile in order to locate a … Continue reading Magnetic Compass, a Gimme from an Iron-Rich Earth
This is part of an ongoing theme to document travel and camping gear that has served me over the years. These will be mirrored on the Traveler's Gear page as I get them up. As a traveler, primitive technologist, peaceful survivalist, affected provincial, long-time Idler, and sometime field scientist I find the necessity for a … Continue reading Travel Essentials
Learn them, use them. I understand that some folks are topologically challenged but knots are always a great skill to have under one's belt. Learn 'em. Have someone teach you. Carry a bit of rope and practice until they come naturally. Teach your kids! I suggest learning the dozen or so from the Boy Scout … Continue reading Knots
For the Ultra Minimalists, Part 1, click here. More Historic Minimalists - religious wanderers from the East Wandering Monks part 1 - The Buddhist monks that travel much of the year throughout Asia are about as minimalist as one can reasonably get. Early Buddhist monks were instructed to own, as based on the Pali Canon, … Continue reading Ultra Minimalists, Part 3
Finished up the quiver. It's been unfinished for at least a year and this weekend finally saw some completion. It's a time for closure on unfinished projects.
For this project I moved my little operation into the living room of the house. Creating sawdust and wood chips for the dogs to track around in their boredom is a real bonus. But, on to the show... Making a Bucksaw for carpentry, bushcraft, or just because they're cool. The little bucksaw I built last … Continue reading Bucksaw Again
I've been lucky as a chicken owner for quite a few years. Very few have been stolen by predators, and we've had very little illness. Right now, with a dozen chickens both old and young, I get between three and six eggs per day with the occasional bonanza of eight. That is, if I can … Continue reading Backyard Chickens
Lynx is certainly one of the coolest people I know. An amazing person on so many levels. Here is a 53 minute documentary (mostly in French) about her lifestyle and teaching. Very well done and I'm glad, on the web. http://youtu.be/UqfvHv7Z8No
The next step in finishing the pack frame... Here's a detailed photo of the naked frame with an initial coat of oil & pine-tar coating. This will weatherproof the whole thing and make the rawhide less appealing to critters (I caught my dog licking one of the lashings this morning). This mixture is about 60% … Continue reading Varnish
One of many projects happening around here this yule-tide season. A new classic-style rucksack is being sewn, much leatherwork is occurring, and this pack frame is being finished. The wood is shagbark hickory (Carya ovata) made from a bowstave section and some other scrap from the pile. All was split before finishing so the grain … Continue reading Wooden Pack Frame
