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  • Billy Spendlove

The Xmas Period - Paddle

With three weeks off for the xmas holidays, I wanted to make use of that time to create the junk wood paddle as a physical item to go with our project. I was also hoping to get a feeling for what the process is to actually make something like that which could be used like our character will use in our game.

To make the paddle, I took some pieces of scrap wood and cut them down into strips around an inch thick. These were then laid side by side to roughly cover what would be the shape of a paddle (2nd image). Gluing these pieces together overnight, I had only to spend a day to have a heavy, rough and blocky shaped paddle. Then the longer process of shaping, cutting and sanding the paddle, stripping lots of material off to reduce the thickness and weight while maintaining strength down the shaft.


I found the whole process much tougher than I had originally anticipated. I guess dependant on my first experience and the types of tools, it felt like a longer task than it should have been. But this is also why I wanted to make it, to learn by doing rather than just reading or watching. I've got a whole to appreciation for a wooden, handcrafted paddle. And after spending six days working on this on and off, all I want to do is to get in a canoe and use it. Feeling the wood in my hands that I worked on it a much more valuable understanding of being mindful of the moment. I spent a lot more time than I probably wanted to on it but all that time spent sanding, back hunched over, I was able to just focus on the one task at hand. Something which I feel relates to being on a journey and focusing on the moment.

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