Boo-Fä-Doo (Bouffadou)

Bouffadous (Bouffée (blow) Doux (gently)) are ancient French fire tools designed to add air to fire in order to get fires going and keep fires lit. Blow gently through a bouffadou and watch your fire come alive. No one knows exactly where bouffadous originated, but they are normally attributed to Gévaudan, present day Lozère, in southern France. Bouffadous have been found in use throughout the Central Massif, the Jura, the Pyrenees, and the Alps.

Traditionally made from the top of a pine tree, proto bouffadous were stripped of their bark, frozen, and hollowed with a red hot, tapered, awl (today they are drilled). The resulting choked channel concentrates air - making even the gentlest puff pointed and powerful enough to enliven embers without spreading ash. Each bouffadou is a unique artisanal object of ancient design sustainably sourced from sylvan species. We are proud to provide the finest bouffadous hand made in France and hand finished in New England with all natural US beeswax.

Legends abound from Gévaudan - one of the last parts of France to be tamed and settled and long a hotbed of enchantment and legend. Stories swirl concerning the creation of the bouffadou with a Grimm cast of characters including: witches, red breeched malice filled imps, and failed and shamed apprentice witches. All we know is that something magical happens when you bring your bouffadou to bear on winking embers - try it for yourself and see your fire come alive.

We were first enchanted by a bouffadou thirty years ago. The primal human connection between fire and this ancient tool settled in our minds until we had fireplaces of our own. Unable to locate suitable specimens stateside, we searched France and found bouffadous still being crafted by hand in small numbers. It is our pleasure to make them available to you.

Bouffadous are not only a friend to your fireplace and woodstove but also excel outdoors, assisting with all manner of fires including: cooking, smoking, bonfires, campfires and barbecues.

For more information contact us at: Ben@Boofadoo.com