I personally like a double sided hoof knife for such carving projects. I like the U turn at the end for carving deeply into wood to make the bowl portion of spoons and ladles and I often find myself carving in both directions when hollowing out. The long bladed crooked knives are not well suited for such carving projects, imo. For planing cuts though, I definitely prefer carving torwards the body. You get a lot more control that way but again, a long blade is wasted on small items like spoons and ladles. Better suited for canoe paddles, snowshoes, canoe parts, etc. and green wood shaves a heck of a lot easier than seasoned wood.
Some great looking spoons here! Nice work!
Some great looking spoons here! Nice work!