Yukon Tongs

We make salad tongs from four hardwoods: black walnut, red oak, cherry and hard maple. Two blanks (the two sides of the tongs) are made from a straight-grained board of the desired specie of wood and sanded to the desired smoothness. Next, the grooves are cut in the blanks and the hinged end is steamed and bent to provide the "spring" of the finished tong. After the wood has dried, the hole for the brass hinge pin is drilled and the tong is assembled. The final steps involve a finish sanding and application of mineral oil to bring out the grain of the wood and provide a protective coating.

Yukon Salad Tongs

The "springs" of the tongs allow the user to keep the tongs open while using them and also allow the tongs to be folded flat for storage. Since the "springs" have been formed using water, when water is applied to the "springs" it will take the spring out of them. Therefore, we would suggest hand washing only, and only in the area below the "springs". You may occasionally wish to apply mineral oil to the tongs, wipe off the excess and allow to air dry overnight.