The new year has taken off well

We have already entered the new year with an excellent start. And I am already preparing for my next trip to teach masterclasses at The Woodworking Shows in New Jersey and Virginia, having spent the best part of the first month in the US with some of the same and working with the newest New Legacy School of Woodworking in Upstate New York.

 

 

 

 

Since we opened our New Legacy School of Woodworking UK we have seen so many of you grow into what we call real new-genre woodworkers. That means that you are serious in striving for high standards of artisanry in your work and prepared to invest time and effort to make certain that it happens for you and others. This is a reward in itself and so there is very little need to talk of our other successes along the way.

 

Another UK class starts tomorrow morning. To those of you on the road today, flying in or walking from home or hotel tomorrow, I look forward to seeing you at the Penrhyn Castle workshop. Those who cannot come can follow the blog and see our progress here.

 

This is my favourite workshop because it opens the eyes of students in such a very short space of time. It took me a long time developing this as a foundation for the new-genre woodworker, but it has paid dividends in the lives of thousands of woodworkers and it’s this that prompted me to produce the book and DVDs so many of you write to me about. Please keep your letters coming in, as it spurs me on to complete the next book in the series. Following a course like this, where each step paves the way for the next, reinforces the skills it takes to make really fine woodworking and furniture making work. My plans for training craftsmen this way gain new ground every day. It’s been an exciting passage for me for almost two decades and I hope that you enjoy the fruit of those who laboured to bring it about; especially those behind the scenes.

My days are pretty full at the moment. Today I have some things to prep for the class and of course I still must work as a craftsman producing pieces. The Hope Chest is done, but I still need to make a sliding tray for the inside and locate a good quality lid stay. I have a temporary chain on it right now. This of course is the content for the next book I am currently working on in the coursework, so by the time you have finished the foundation course you will want to progress straight on with this important follow-up phase. I am not certain as to the title of this book yet. I have dubbed it the Hope Chest book as a temporary title, but we actually have other chests included in it too, so that’s not really the title.

I think this next box, which is a jewellery/silverware box made from some of the same Texas mesquite we used for the Cabinet Room pieces we made for White House Permanent Collection back in 2008/9. So I will post when I get started on this.

Off to work now. Beautiful day to walk in. Have a nice day!