I just finished making this. The wood is American Hornbeam (Carpinus caroliniana).
http://www.wood-database.com/american-hornbeam/Since it is winter and the sap is down, I steamed the wood for a few hours to make it a little easier to whittle. Then I blasted it with a blow torch, sanded it, and used a mixture of Tea Tree Oil and Clove Oil to polish it up and help protect it further. The blowtorch helped make sanding easier, helps protect the wood, and helps surface harden a good bit.
