Blunt kitchen knives. Rusty tools. Dry, brittle wooden boards. We all have them. But maintaining your stuff is easy ? when you know how.

Professional knife sharpener Gareth Heaton draws from many hours of practical experience at his kitchenware business Community Cutlery, to provide step-by-step instructions on how to look after your tools. Using whetstones and other abrasives, you will make kitchen knives sharper, more effective and safer to use ? and discover the hidden joy of maintaining the things you own.

In Do Maintain, you will learn to:

• Sharpen kitchen, pocket and serrated knives
• Maintain scissors, secateurs and other garden tools
• Treat wooden handles and chopping boards
• Season cast-iron cookware

So, stop neglecting those tools you rely on every day, break the cycle of buy and replace, and start looking after those well-worn, cherished items that make your life easier.