Attending a wedding is not for the weak. It requires tons of patience, a lot of formality and huge amounts of self control. But fewer people suffer more than your groomsmen, who would probably rather be out walking their dog through the woods than walking your Aunt Bertha down the aisle. That’s why groomsmen gifts are a great way to honor your buddies for sticking by your side.
We all already know the traditional groomsmen gifts — the fancy pen, the fancy cufflink, the fancy flask — but those tend to be a bit too impersonal and become useless quickly. So if you’re looking for a way to show your friends how grateful you are for their dedication without sacrificing your manly bond, we’ve got you covered with these ideas.
Shaving kit
Image from Dirty Deeds Soaps
There are so many gifts your groomsmen will never use, like a silver pen or money clip, so buy them something they will use. Nothing says functional more than an old-fashioned shaving kit. Aside from the benefits of a classic shave, having a traditional wet shave will boost your groomsmen’s confidence and make them feel badass.
Engraved pocketknife
I’m sure you saw this one coming — we’re a knife blog, for Pete’s sake! — but engraved knives are a classy way to honor your buddies who would would rather be waiting for a deer to come into sight than waiting for a reception to start. The best part of personalized knives is that they can be customized and selected based on your friend’s attitude and preferences.
Update: A few people have asked if they can see emails between Knife Depot and Google Adwords staff. The short answer is yes, if it’s something you’re interested in writing about, then just email me at Dan@knife-depot.com. I also added an excerpt lower in the post, in which a member of the Adwords staff reveals his own disgust at the “double standard” Google is applying to big brands.
For seven years, Knife Depot has been selling top-quality blades over the Internet to the jubilation of knife lovers everywhere. And for the last two years, we’ve been writing about knives and knife culture on The Cutting Edge.
However, recently, something has threatened our ability to promulgate our large selection of knives to the legions of blade lovers across the world: Google has shut down our AdWords Account.
AdWords, if you’re not hip to the Internet jive, is a Google advertising program that allows companies to place text-based ads next to specified search queries. To the user, it looks like this:
Up until late February of this year, Knife Depot had generated a good slice of its revenue from Google AdWords. We’d also been careful to not ever violate Google’s Adwords weapons policy, which prohibits “the promotion of knives, such as butterfly knives, (balisongs) and switchblades.”
For this reason, we were shocked when last month Google told us they would be terminating our AdWords account unless we removed all of our “assisted opening knives,” which are legal, hugely popular across the U.S, and not prohibited in Google’s policy. Assisted opening knives, if you’re not aware, differ from switchblades by the fact that pressure must be applied for them to be opened.
Here’s a more in-depth explanation.
After some deep thinking, we decided that serving our customer base, who legally buy large amounts of assisted-opening knives, was more important than continuing to advertise with Google. For this reason, we decided to not remove the knives and forgo our Google Adwords account
Of course, we expected that our fellow knife vendors would be subjected to the same anti-knife policies, and be forced to make the same decision of whether or not to advertise with Google or sell assisted-opening knives.
We were wrong.
While Google shut down the AdWords account of a few other Internet knife vendors, it has continued to allow large brands such as Walmart, Amazon and Bass Pro Shops to sell assisted-opening knives and advertise on Google Adwords.
Just check out the images below from Amazon.com and Walmart.
Yes, the world is unfair. And yes, we have contacted Google on numerous occasions about this blatant favoritism toward big brands and despite assuring us that they would rectify it, they haven’t. In fact, even their own staff was sickened by the hypocrisy, as you can see from this February 28th email excerpt from a Google employee.
“I am still waiting on an answer to my reply where I asked for a universal enforcement of the policy OR we allow knife depot back online. I replied and said, I refuse to tell knife-depot they need to remove a product category that 7 other competitors are advertising & selling the same products. I then named each domain, called out the double standard, and requested that they state the clear differences that allows these competitors to serve & knife depot to be suspended. Still waiting on this reply.“
So for these reasons, we wanted to let you guys, loyal Cutting Edge readers and Knife Depot fans, know that you might not be seeing Knife Depot ads peppered across the Internet. However, rest assured that it’s not because we’ve softened our commitment to build the world’s most badass knife store, not even one bit.
It’s just because The Man tried to put his foot on our throat and say, “Hey, stop selling those badass assisted-opening blades,” and we refused, so The Man shut down our ads.
However, what the Man didn’t realize is that though he might be able to shut down our ads, he’ll never crush the desire of knife-loving men and women across the country to own perfectly legal and totally badass spring-assisted blades. And he’ll never stop us from selling them.
We appreciate you being a part of the Knife Depot family and we hope, despite our absence from Google Adwords, you continue to buy knives on our site. Oh, what’s that, you want me to end this blog post with a razor-sharp video of our top-selling assisted-opening knife?
Late last year, The Federal, an Ottawa-based design firm, prototyped a set of kitchen knives crafted from polished steel and Canadian maple wood. The knives’ particular proportion of wood to metal is unique, but how does it handle? Their materials are undoubtedly high-quality; plus, the warm tone of the wood makes the knives look gentler than the sleek, cold steel that typically graces our kitchens.
Here’s what The Federal has to say about these wooden wonders:
With this project we wanted to explore an alternative emotion to the standard kitchen knives you see every day. The focus is drawn to the high polished blade, while the rest of the knife’s Maple wood body sits warmly in the hand and blends in to its surroundings. The wood is sealed and food safe to allow for easy cleanup. The knife gives the appearance of being lightweight; however their weight is balanced to ensure that they can be used by any level of chef.
As you can see, these knives are quite different! They may even be the beginning of a new trend in culinary knives: one which increasingly emphasizes the home decor aspect of a knife collection. What do you think? Is this a good direction for knives to move toward?
Meet Edward Pinder. He’s a 10-year-old British boy who does his homework and invites his friends over to hang out. Oh, and he hurls knives at his mother.
No, Edward doesn’t throw knives at his mom out of malice. He’s actually a member of a traveling circus show in the UK and his mother is his assistant.
(Before we proceed with this story, we must give the obligatory don’t-try-this-at-home warning for those who are crazy enough to think it’s a good idea to throw knives at your mother.)
The young boy, who some claim is possibly the youngest knife thrower in Europe, is surprisingly precise at throwing knives dangerously close to his mother. He admits he’s never actually hit his mom but that he’s come close. His mom and dad are also part of the circus, so his developing abilities are not very shocking. But his mother must have a lot of trust in her son to allow him to throw sharp knives near her head.
Following last week’s performance, mother-of-two Mrs Pinder said: “I was a bit nervous, but Edward was really calm and everything was fine – and the audience really enjoyed it.
“It was really, really scary when I was waiting for him to throw his first knife at me.”
She added: “I had seen him practice and knew he could throw in a straight line, but my heart was jumping, I was terrified.”
Don’t think for one second that the boy is using training knives or throwing knives that won’t harm his mother because he uses razor-sharp, professional throwing knives.
This is the seventh installment of The Cutting Edge’s new article series: Hot Kitchens, Hot Knives! Cooks and foodies almost love geeking out about their knives as much as they love food (and at times, even moreso!), so we’ll be sitting down with chefs, kitchen crews, and bloggers all across the world to ask them about their knife collections and the culinary workhorses that they know and love. Check out this series every Tuesday if you want to find out what kind of heat the guys and gals in the kitchen are packing in their knife rolls.
If you’ve ever been stumped for cooking ideas for your wild game, Jamie Carlson’s blog, You Have to Cook It Right, is a lifesaver. Though venison steaks and wild boar sausage are great standbys, they can get kind of dull — especially if you’re as good of a hunter as Carlson is. His dishes are imaginative and versatile, ranging from sesame pheasant to wild game charcuterie. Even if you’ve never hunted or eaten wild game in a serious way, Carlson’s enthusiasm for hunting will inspire you to get cracking on your duck shelter ASAP.
Naturally, he’s got quite a respectable arsenal of knives. More on that after the jump! Continue reading
For the first time since 2001, air travelers will now be able to bring small knives on planes again, according to an announcement from the TSA this morning.
The change, which conforms to more lenient international rules on what passengers can take on board, will take effect starting April 25.
While this is a big victory for knife carriers around the country, there are still numerous restrictions on what knives can be carried on board. Only knives that are under 2.36 inches (or 6 centimeters), have non-locking blades and have a blade width of less than half an inch will be allowed. All other knives will still be confiscated.
The American Knife & Tool Institute (AKTI) was instrumental in working with TSA to allow this policy change to happen. “As the knife and tool industry association, we were very pleased to work with the TSA on these revisions to ease the restrictions for all Americans carrying essential and valuable tools when they travel,” noted Jan Billeb, AKTI Executive Director.
If you’re wondering why this change was made, TSA spokesman David Castelveter said that they will now focus more on what could present “catastrophic damage to the aircraft.”
This is the sixth installment of The Cutting Edge’s new article series: Hot Kitchens, Hot Knives! Cooks and foodies almost love geeking out about their knives as much as they love food (and at times, even moreso!), so we’ll be sitting down with chefs, kitchen crews, and bloggers all across the world to ask them about their knife collections and the culinary workhorses that they know and love. Check out this series every Tuesday if you want to find out what kind of heat the guys and gals in the kitchen are packing in their knife rolls.
Thousands of San Franciscans have lost their minds over Chef Hiroo Nagahara’s innovative gua bao, or Taiwanese bun sandwiches, which his crew slings out of a bright red truck called The Chairman. Their take on the traditional street food showcases premium ingredients like Muscovy duck terrine, house-pickled daikon radish, and crispy miso-cured tofu. Even the buns are gourmet: they’re locally handcrafted and baked with yeast cultures imported from China. Nagahara, a former executive chef at Charlie Trotter’s Bar Charlie in Las Vegas, successfully combines the best techniques and flavors from the world of haute cuisine with the humble trappings of Asian street food. (And at $3.75 – $6.75 a pop, his bao are an incredible deal!) And, as it turns out, he’s a knife fanatic.
Read on to see Chef Nagahara dropping some serious knife knowledge! Continue reading
After about 120 years manufacturing the Swiss Army knife, Wenger SA is retiring from the knife business.
Victorinox, the former rival and current owner of the Wenger brand, announced that it is only going to be selling Swiss Army knives under the Victorinox name from now on.
Wenger, which has now expanded into other areas, including watches and travel gear, will continue to sell these other products however.
The company dates back to 1893 when the cutlery house of Paul Boechat & Cie was given a contract to produce knives for the Swiss Army. The company was later bought and renamed Wenger not many years after. Wenger was successful for a century, serving as a fruitful rival to Victorinox. After 9/11, the company took a big hit when the Swiss Army knives were taken out of airports due to concerns over having sharp objects aboard planes.
This is the fifth installment of The Cutting Edge’s new article series: Hot Kitchens, Hot Knives! Cooks and foodies almost love geeking out about their knives as much as they love food (and at times, even moreso!), so we’ll be sitting down with chefs, kitchen crews, and bloggers all across the world to ask them about their knife collections and the culinary workhorses that they know and love. Check out this series every Tuesday if you want to find out what kind of heat the guys and gals in the kitchen are packing in their knife rolls.
Kathryne Taylor, the “Kate” behind the super popular vegetarian food blog, Cookie and Kate, regularly pairs down-to-earth food writing with phenomenal, eye-catching photography. Her blog features more than just recipes: many of her posts contain hilarious anecdotes about subjects as diverse as online dating and the drunchies. After reading just a few of her great blog posts, you’ll find yourself rooting for her through all of her fascinating misadventures and projects.
We asked her about her favorite knives, which you can read about after the jump! Continue reading
This is the fourth installment of The Cutting Edge’s new article series: Hot Kitchens, Hot Knives! Cooks and foodies almost love geeking out about their knives as much as they love food (and at times, even moreso!), so we’ll be sitting down with chefs, kitchen crews, and bloggers all across the world to ask them about their knife collections and the culinary workhorses that they know and love. Check out this series every Tuesday if you want to find out what kind of heat the guys and gals in the kitchen are packing in their knife rolls.
With 20 years of globetrotting and culinary experience under his belt, Chef Jason Wilson has the kind of insight into kitchen knives that few possess. Since its opening in 2005, Wilson’s restaurant, Crush, has earned him accolade after accolade from the James Beard Foundation, Food & Wine magazine, and others for his commitment to high-quality ingredients and the inventive and whimsical ways in which he and his team make them all work together. If you’re ever in Seattle, stop by Crush just to check out Wilson’s Bacon and Eggs dish, an orgasmic combination of local meat with smoked Steelhead salmon roe, bourbon maple syrup, and parsnip flan.
We’ve got Chef Wilson’s kitchen knife insights, which alternate between straightforward and downright mystical (in an awesome way), after the jump! Continue reading
