When most artists speak of inspiration striking, the sentiment is usually rhetorical, but not for Juan Ferrer, whose pursuit of woodworking also came with a clap of thunder. “I was kind of thrown into this journey when lightning struck my backyard,” he says, telling the story of how the act of nature felled a 50-foot maple tree 10 years ago. An experienced chef, Ferrer had been working in kitchens since early high school and was well-versed in the world of fine dining – and wood utensils were his preferred tools of the trade. “I had this idea that I wanted to explore woodworking, but I was pressed for finances at the time.”
So when the serendipitous bolt of lightning granted him the resources, he had no choice but to buy a cheap chainsaw and start breaking down the maple. “I was just sort of taking what I could get and slowly cutting it apart to make projects with it,” explains Ferrer. He honed his craft organically over time, growing his arsenal of tools and skills, and selling wooden spoons and cutting boards to friends and family.
By 2021, he was working in construction but found himself at a crossroads when he lost his job. The same week, Tim Kearns of the Pawtuxet Village Farmers Market reached out, inviting him to join as a vendor. “I didn’t know whether my product would be marketable,” Ferrer reflects, but he brought a box of spoons he’d carved over the past several years and set up his first market table. “The reaction from the public was so extraordinarily overwhelming in a positive way – I sold almost $1,000 worth of spoons in one day.”
Spoon & Board has since taken off, with a mission of crafting chef-inspired utensils that last a lifetime. “I think it fills people with a sense of pride to work with high-quality tools,” he says. For Ferrer, the artistry of cooking carries over into woodworking. He describes wood as a “living and dynamic thing,” with different patterns of grain and porosity levels. “You have to learn how the grain reacts over the course of the curing and drying process, and as a chef, you can use that to your advantage. Certain trees and cuts behave in many ways like different cuts of beef.”
And customers benefit from his expertise when it comes to crafting pieces with different culinary utilities in mind, whether selecting spoons best suited to stewing, saucing, or sauteing, or with shapes that conform to cookware they already have. He fashions rolling pins that range from heavy bodied to light, French tapered or flat. “Each customer has an intuitive experience when exploring my kitchen wares,” notes Ferrer. No two items are exactly alike.
Another key element to Spoon & Board’s mission is a commitment to only using foraged wood from Rhode Island, which he often happens upon as fortuitously as the lightning maple. “I don’t cut trees down – that’s another big part of my ethos,” he shares. “Nine times out of 10 times, the trees find me.” Mother Nature knocks them down, market goers or other connections alert Ferrer to them, and he gives them a second life. Most notably, when the Lincoln School in Providence had to bid farewell to their beloved 200-year-old copper beech – which had sadly succumbed to beech blight – Ferrer was enlisted to harvest the East Side landmark. He crafted over 200 items to be gifted to school donors.
In his Pawtucket apartment that doubles as a woodshop, Ferrer has built “a library of species” over the years. He estimates he has about 1,000 pieces of wood that he’s managing at one time, from drying and curing to milling and carving. He seals the foraged sections with paraffin wax emulsion to slow down the drying process, a step that will later prevent the wood from cracking under tension, which is just the beginning of the deep level of reverence he brings to the process.
Ferrer describes the labor-intensive craft as a sort of catharsis, to wait upwards of two years for the wood to dry and then gradually shape it into an object that will become a part of someone else’s culinary ritual. “Cooking, to me, is about forming good relationships, whether it’s your family or friends, and being a part of that is extraordinarily humbling.”
There’s a Spoon & Board item for everyone on your list this year, whether professional chef or foodie enthusiast.
A hand-carved spoon to suit the recipient’s unique cooking style can’t be beat, and a high-quality cutting board shows you care.
Ferrer designs spatulas tailored to right- or left-handed cooks, perfect for sauteing or stir-frying. Handmade chopsticks are also essential for sushi lovers.
Charcuterie boards, which come in unique shapes and styles, make beautiful statement pieces that can be hung on the wall when not using. Salad bowls are also both decorative and functional.
Ornate salt cellars and sugar boxes add panache to countertops, while bespoke rolling pins are a game changer. Throw in a honey spoon for good measure.
Any wooden kitchenware user will benefit from the gift of Ferrer’s own all-in-one Organic Board Butter, a finishing product he formulated to not only maintain Spoon & Board utensils but also restore heirloom and antique wood pieces.
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