Soak your whetstone in water. After 5 minutes take it out of the water and put it on a steady water-resistant surface.

Note that there are two different sides of the whetstone. Coarse grain is marked with blue color and number 2000. Fine grain is white and marked with number 5000.

Start with the coarse grain, when dealing with blunt knives. Sharpen your knife evenly at an angle of 10-30° (non-sharp side of the knife blade is raised for approximately half of the thumb). Use smooth, constant back and forth motion while applying gentle pressure. Stop when the edge of knife is sharp enough.

Finish sharpening with the fine grain. Use the same motions as described above. Fine grain is suitable for everyday sharpening. A properly sharpened cutting edge should have a shiny finish and cut thin paper smoothly.

A good whetstone and a little practice will keep all of your knives sharp and in perfect condition. The beauty is that it doesn't take much effort to learn, just a good bit of practice to get the angle right and keep a consistent angle while you're sharpening. Use it once a week to keep your blade sharp.

When finished rinse the waterstone with water and then dry it.