How To Make Charcuterie Boards

As a wood worker, charcuterie boards are a great small craft to make as gifts for any time of year! We made these walnut charcuterie boards out of a live edge slab using the following steps.

First you will want to find a live edge piece of wood, we recommend around 20‑26 inches in length for one board. Next you will want to plane the board down on both sides. After planing comes the fun part!

Using a piece of chalk or pencil shape out the handle and design you want, be creative and don’t worry about drawing all over it because it will be sanded off later 😁. Once you have your shape, cut it out using a jigsaw or a bandsaw.

Next using a drill press, or a drill with a forstner bit, cut out a hole in the handle (if your design has one). Also optional, you can round over your edges with a router bit or you can use a sander during the sanding process. For sanding we recommend staring with 80 grit and then going up in grit using the following order 100/120/150/220/320.

(Note: after 150 grit you can raise the grain sometimes referred to as "water pop" by spraying/misting the board down with water. Once the board dries re‑sand with 150. This method will help remove any fibers that would have risen when the finish is applied)

Once you finish with 320 grit it’s time for the most satisfying part, applying finish! It’s always recommended to use food safe finish on charcuterie boards, we use Bumblechutes on all of our charcuterie boards but there are many choices out there.

Now the board is ready to be served on and enjoyed for years to come 🌳😄