Bread-Bakers v101.n011.15

Hello Fellow Bread-Heads-

I'm making bread by hand these days and am having real trouble kneading 
"without adding any extra flour," as Maggie Glezer recommends and as 
artisan-style doughs generally require.  Using a bench knife is a nice 
idea, but I still end up with sticky hands, no real fold-over in the dough, 
and no kneading rhythm.  I am wondering what types of kneading surfaces 
people have to help in this regard.  Two products I have seen interest me, 
and I wonder if anyone out there uses them.  1) The non-stick mats recently 
advertised in the King Arthur catalog heretofore sold as pan-liners.  Do 
these work as kneading surfaces?  2) A cloth-covered board that folds in 
half to store, offered in  the Cutlery Direct catalog.  The same idea as 
putting those little cloth sweaters on your rolling pin, a technique which 
works for me.

Lastly, I thought I might just order TWO non-stick bench knives from King 
Arthur and see if I could make up my own technique. . . .

Thanks,
Alexandra