The Kaufmann Mercantile guide: how to split wood, shuck an oyster, and master other simple pleasures

A visual field guide to what we ought to know how to do, and what we'd like to learn how to do, from beloved craftsmanship-focused online shop Kaufmann Mercantile.

Kaufmann Mercantile thoughtfully curates and sells timeless products for slow living, with a focus on functionality, quality, and craftsmanship. Building from that philosophy, The Kaufmann Mercantile Guide is an everyday, accessible reference book for the utilitarian in all of us.

In this comprehensive field guide to life, editors Alexandra Redgrave and Jessica Hundley share Kaufmann Mercantile’s collective expertise on 48 helpful life skills that range from what we ought to know how to do, from frying an egg to tying a tie to brewing coffee, to what we’d like to learn how to do, like splitting wood, building a fire, growing our own food, or shucking an oyster.

Organized into five instructional sections (Kitchen, Outdoors, Home, Garden, and Grooming), each is prefaced by an expert and includes original artwork to visually walk you through each “how-to” step. Supplemental sidebars feature the best tool for the job, whether it's a dibber for planting, the best rawhide-and-ash snowshoes, or flammable smoking bags for making authentic BBQ.

This guidebook is a well-considered collection of how-to’s, perfect for anyone who wants to live a slow and thoughtful life, or a gift for someone who does.