Level-up Your Hand-Tool Work
visit the Sylva Wood School Short Course website to see what courses I currently have running.
A Cabinetmaker’s Notes - Introductory Article 3
“Small delicate things - an exquisite little jewellery box, a graceful little table, or a cabinet which is intended for lovely things - this kind of work is rare, almost extinct. There is a true need to create a climate in which it can be done and appreciated” James Krenov, A Cabinetmaker’s Notebook, 1976
Hello, thank you for reading through this introductory series. Today we reach our final post - hand tool courses.
For those seeking to try their hand at woodworking, this is for you.
Specifically, it is for you if you only have limited available space, but would love to make beautiful things out of wood.
There is a problem
As I look around the woodworking world, I see a problem.
It is not a problem that affects me any more, but it used to.
And it held me back for years.
The problem is this.
Woodworking is almost impossible without machines.
If you look up ‘small home workshop setup’ online, what you’ll come across is a lot of examples of what are essentially small professional set-ups. Double-garages filled with machines and tool racks and power tools.
Which is great…if you’ve got that kind of space at home.
And the money to make the investment.
But what about the hundreds of thousands of us out there who live in small houses or apartments, and just don’t have those kinds of facilities?
Let’s put it another way:
If you want to get into woodwork you need a lot of space and some serious investment in professional kit.
Which is not the sort of investment that most people can make.
And it is such a shame
Because it limits so many people who would reap so many benefits out of making in wood.
But I can help.
High-quality. Low tech,
You see, I have a unique take on this.
Unlike most of the wood working glitterati, I was traditionally trained.
The training I went through at Rowden was archaic. We spent the first couple of months using hand tools only, and then for every major project, the hand tool use was significant. It was slow and arduous, but it showed me just what is possible in a high-skill, low-tech workshop.
And I can use this training to help to guide you towards making beautiful things
With just a simple set-up.
You see, if you work on the right projects, then you can use hand tools only. You don’t need a big workshop: you can get away with working in the smallest of spaces. Perhaps a 6’ x 2’ workbench with a simple vice, a bit of extra space for a small assembly table, and somewhere to store your tools.
Yeah, of course, you still need to get some stuff.
Including a beautiful hand tool kit that you really know how to sharpen up and use correctly.
But with the right skills and set-up, you can make some very beautiful items in a very small space.
Does this sound more achievable?
Getting started
So my end goal is to serve a community of like-minded makers with skills, projects and resources, to make beautiful pieces in a small space.
And our first step?
Hand-tool training.
Real life, in-person, hand-tool courses.
Of course, you can teach yourself online, or try and figure it out from books.
But there is nothing like turning up to be part of a small group of like-minded makers, using tools that have already been set-up, working on projects designed to be made on in low-tech, high-skill workshop.
And the process is simple.
You turn up, stand at the bench, and just focus on your work.
Everything else slips away, and for that short amount of time, you can just be with your work.
Methodically developing your skillset.
Don’t mistake this as me saying it will be easy. It isn’t. In fact, you might find it the most challenging thing you’ve done in a long time.
But you’ll be guided every step of the way by an expert.
Oh, and the best bit?
I have designed these courses specifically for those who have never picked up a plane before, and wouldn’t know the sharp end of a chisel if it cut them on the finger.
You will start at the very beginning.
(I have heard that it is a very good place to start).
So watch out for the courses
In every newsletter I send out, I will devote part of it to speaking specifically about hand-tool courses, so keep an eye on each one.
We start off with basic joint cutting using chisels. We’ll move on to properly using a bench plane, and we’ll look at how to cut some time-honoured traditional joints: the mortice and tenon and the dove tail.
These are courses that build on each other to develop your skill-set.
However, spaces are extremely limited. This is not some manufactured scarcity. This is simply the real-life constraints that come with only having a certain number of bench spaces available for each course.
So if you are interested, act quick!
Until we hopefully meet in person, stay sharp my friends.
~sh
Stephen Hickman
Studio Cabinetmaker