Classic Laguiole Pocket Knives
Laguiole en Aubrac made every one of these classic Laguiole pocket knives by hand in France, with the slim, gently curved Laguiole outline and a single blade that folds into the handle. They’re single blade knives in the plainest sense: no corkscrew and no extra tools, only the blade and a handle you’ll enjoy turning over in your fingers. Keep one in the desk drawer for opening the post, or by the back door for twine, parcels and odd jobs in the garden.
On a classic pocket knife of this kind, the handle is where the real choice lies. Stag horn and cattle bone give the familiar penknife look, while ebony takes a deep, almost black polish. Many of the woods are given a satin finish, and a few models change the shape itself, from the rounder Crocus to handles twisted into a spiral. If you want a traditional folding knife chosen above all for its handle, start with the range below.
•Laguiole en Aubrac, crafted by hand in France•One blade, no other tools•Finish matched to the handle material•
Stag and bone, the traditional penknife handles
In Sheffield, stag and bone were long the handles of choice for a good penknife, and to most British eyes they still look exactly right. A stag handle pocket knife comes in stag horn, which is deer antler, with tones running from cream to deep brown. A bone handle pocket knife uses cattle bone, pale and smooth. Both are polished here, and both are natural materials, so the knife that reaches you won't match the photograph down to the last fleck. That's the charm of a natural handle.
Video · 0:46
Watch the stag horn pocket knife
See the natural tones of the stag horn handle up close.
View this stag horn knife
Ebony and the satin-finished woods
Ebony is the dark choice: a close-grained wood, polished to a deep gleam. Many of the other woods in the range are satin-finished instead, for a soft, low sheen with the grain in plain view. Picture a satin-finished wood in your hand, then polished ebony, and you'll soon know which you prefer. On a single blade pocket knife, the handle is most of what you see, so the finish deserves a moment's thought. For a fuller walk through the options, read How to Choose a Classic Single-Blade Laguiole Pocket Knife.
Plain classic, or a little decoration?
Most models in this range keep the plain traditional outline, and the appeal lies in the handle material. Some go further. The Crocus has a rounder, fuller handle, the twisted models wind into a spiral cut from the solid, and a few add hand-worked plates or a patterned Damascus blade. If you like a clean shape, go for one of the plain models. If you enjoy fine detail you can pore over, look at the decorated models: still a single blade, still the same maker. Each one has the maker's name, Laguiole en Aubrac, on the blade.
Classic pocket knife questions
What is a pocket knife?
A pocket knife is a folding knife small enough for a pocket: the blade swings into the handle, so it can be closed and put away once you've finished with it. Traditional British patterns often have one or two blades and a handle of stag, bone or wood. Every classic Laguiole in this category has a single blade and comes from Laguiole en Aubrac, made by hand in France, so all that's left to choose is the handle.
What is antler made of?
Antler is bone. Deer grow a fresh set each year and later shed it, which makes antler quite different from true horn, a sheath that keeps growing. In British cutlery, antler handles are usually called stag or stag horn. On these Laguiole pocket knives, stag horn is polished, and its natural tones shift a little on every handle.
Where does ebony wood come from?
True ebony comes from slow-growing trees of the genus Diospyros, found mostly in tropical Africa, southern India and Sri Lanka, and parts of South-East Asia. Its heartwood is dense and very dark, and it takes a high polish, which is why cabinetmakers and instrument makers have long sought it out. On these classic Laguiole knives, ebony comes polished, a glossy near-black that feels dense and silky in your fingers.
Care instructions travel with every order. Hand-wash the knife, dry it without delay, and the dishwasher is never an option.
Black Synthetic Sheath for Laguiole Knives
9€
Brown Horizontal Leather Sheath
46€
Brown Horizontal Leather Sheath 
Black Horizontal Leather Sheath 
Cacao Curved Synthetic Sheath for Laguiole Corkscrew and Pocket Knife 
Laguiole 12-Piece Knife & Fork Set Thuya wood 
Set of 6 Laguiole Dessert Spoons Wenge wood 
Horizontal Black Leather Belt Sheath - Le Millésime 
Black Soft Sheath for Knives & Corkscrews 
Laguiole en Aubrac Oak Box for Fofding Knives without corkscrew 
Brown Leather Sheath 
