"he knows a hawk from a handsaw"Perhaps this is a phrase from the building trades. We all know a handsaw is a tool, but a
hawk is as well. It is a flat board with a handle on the bottom used to hold a big dollop of mortar or plaster for easy access while working. There's a picture of one here:
http://www.homestore.com/home_improvement/howtoguides/
CreativeMixingAndHandlingMortar.asp(Just scroll down to Fig. 7 and ignore them if they try to sell you anything)
A hawk is also known as a mortar board, which is also the name for the goofy flat-topped hat people wear at graduation ceremonies that looks like, well, like a mortar board!
EDIT: Oops, forgot this thread is for new folks only. Well, since "I might as well be hung for a sheep as for a lamb" (thanks, of troy!), rkay mentioned putting doilies under a cake, but you can also make a simple chocolate cake look elegant by putting a doilie
on top of the cake, then sprinkling it liberally with confectioner's sugar (powdered sugar, I think it's called in other countries?), then removing the doilie!
