Tattooing Wood: Kolrosing Foundations with Liesl Chatman

Get started with a very old, very portable decorative craft! At its simplest, kolrosing is the art of cutting a very thin incision into a wooden surface, filling it with pigmented powder, such as coffee or cinnamon, to reveal the pattern, and burnishing the cut closed to create a smooth, durable decoration. It is a wonderful way to decorate woodenware such as spoons, spreaders, and plates because it is smooth to the touch, but can also be used on any flat wooden surface. It requires no special tools, strength, or studio space; everything you need can fit in a pencil case!

In this course, students will learn the basics of kolrosing through good technique and practice, allowing them to confidently and joyfully explore kolrosing beyond this class. Over six sessions, kolrosing artist Liesl Chatman will cover layout and design, surface preparation, knife techniques, cutting straight and curved lines into letters and patterns, and techniques for working on both flat and curved surfaces. Students will work on simple pieces such as letterboards and basic commercial kitchen spoons. In the final weeks, students may have time to play with other designs or bring different questions to class to work with the instructor on expanding their foundational knowledge.

Additional Information

• A $60 materials fee is payable to the instructor at the first class and covers all the consumable materials in class as well as a small instructional notebook and travel kit sized to fit everything you need for kolrosing at home or on the road. Kolrosing knives are provided to use in class and may also be purchased separately to take home; if you already have one, please bring it.
• Physical ability: Kolrosing requires average hand strength and dexterity.
• Skill level: Previous woodworking experience is helpful but not necessary.
• Ages: Suitable for ages 13+.