Even the finest knives need sharpening, at least once a year. And what better time to get a new edge than before all that holiday cooking? That's why we've brought in Woody Bailey and his Zen Blades knife-sharpening service this fall for a series of next-day sharpening events.

Woody is the go-to guy for knife sharpening in Portland's culinary community. He teaches at the Oregon Culinary institute, and he has forgotten more about knives than most everybody else has ever known. He puts what he terms a "wicked sharp" edge on just about any kind of kitchen knife by reconstructing the knife's original blade geometry. The cost is quite reasonable, just $6 for knives under 6" and $8 for knives 6" or longer.

Bring in your dull, tired knives, yearning to get sharp, to any of our stores by 5 PM on the following days. Woody will be there with his mobile sharpening truck, and he'll have all knives back no later than the next day, ready for you to say, "Whoa, now that's a sharp knife". Click here for store locations, maps, phone numbers, etc. Get there at 10:00 AM on the Saturdays or at 11:00 AM for the Sunday event, and you can talk to Woody about knives for 45 minutes or so, before he starts sharpening.

• Saturday, Dec. 1st, Clackamas Town Center