A while back, when we were on holiday in Wales, I saw an old pastry crimper in a manor house.
When I saw it I wondered how they made that fine crimped wheel and decided I had to make one myself to see how it was done.
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In the end I made two, as the first was such hard work. The second was easy though! Watch the video to find out more and to see how I did it.
Let me know what you think! Have you ever made anything like this before? How do you think they made it in the past?
Well done, that looks complicated.
ReplyDeleteMy mum had one of those, although she never used it .. Pies were crimped by thumbs
yeah, I think that was often the case. my mum has one but I've never seen her use it. When I told dad though he was telling me how his mum would always use one and was describing it quite vividly. They can be used to cut as well, so to make lattice over the pies
DeleteThat's the sort of wooden item I would love but never use, like Sue says, crimping always done by hand.
ReplyDeleteYeah, I think it could be something slipped out of regular use. I suppose it was fashions of pies of the time maybe.
DeleteNot sure if this makes me sound stupid or not but . . . I have a "modern" metal version of your crimper but have never thought of using it to seal the edges of a two-crust pie! I do that by hand but use the crimper to cut the strips of pastry when making a lattice top crust! It gives a fancier look than to just cut the strips with a knife. That said, I don't think there's anything you are incapable of doing when working with wood!
ReplyDeleteThis probably has a blunter end than the metal one and so can be used for cutting or crimping. There are lots of plastic versions out there as well. I've come across quite a few where the wheel was made from bone.
DeleteThanks for the video! You are a very skilled turner. Allan Batty and Bill Jones were personal friends of mine. Allan Batty was the master with the skew, and would love seeing you use yours. Bill Jones - the master of ornamental turning - called the skew the 'spiral cutting tool.' They'd both be your fans! Good job.
ReplyDeleteI always feel a little out of my depth with the turning, like I should make less mistakes than I do. Really I just need to get a lot more hours behind me. I was lucky to be taught by a very skilled turner so years ago in my mid 20s, but when we moved house it was years until I had space for the lathe again. Luckily I'm writing regularly for woodturning magazine so that gives me perfect incentive to really increase my skill level. I tried to turn the handle with as few tools as possible.
DeleteSounds like you were in quite the circle with your woodworking friends, some serious talent there!
A work of art. Is apple wood an hardwood?
ReplyDeleteYeah, it's a hardwood and also it's a "hard" hardwood. fruit wood is really hard and makes great mallets and the like because of this.
DeleteInteresting and very clever on your part. Is there an historical reenactment community around that you could market period tools and gadgets to?
ReplyDeleteI've no idea to be honest. I sell mainly on Etsy and it seems to give me a fair idea as to whether there is a market for something. I'm sure these would sell, the tricky bit would be the price point. I'd say at a good run I could probably make one every 1/2 hour or so, and there is little in the way of material costs, so it could be viable. Just.
DeleteLooks great Kev! Reminds of Cornish pasties that my mother used to make when we were growing up.
ReplyDeleteI love a good pasty! Reminds me of my days as an apprentice where I'd take one to work every day in my "bait" box for morning break (bait).
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