On tour with The Woodworking Shows

On tour with The Woodworking Shows 

In the next few days my time here in the UK comes to a swift winter close and I return to the US where I begin the new year with a new winter beginning by touring with The Woodworking Shows. I first started demoing with them back in 1995 when we were a bit more of a novelty because we promoted hand tool woodworking. Back then we were quite unique in presenting for the first time the cordless router at the show. Since then we have made great progress as more and more people discover the art of hand tool woodworking. Today we have earned the reputation as educational providers for redefining woodworking for hundreds of thousands of people worldwide and this show needs our support.

 

Over the years, along with others, I have tried to help new and seasoned woodworkers find that unique balance between mass manufacturing and simply removing some of the hard work it takes to work wood. I rely quite heavily on my bandsaw for downsizing baulks, beams and billets into section I can then work by hand. It’s symbiotic if you will. Both aspects rely on one another. Yesterday I took some 3” x 9” thick oak to the bandsaw I have at our Penrhyn Castle workshop. I needed to cut the some legs I need for the next Online Broadcast filming we are working on in the last few days of my being in the UK. This is for me what machines do best and it’s this that I recognized many years ago when I started to teach others and train them to work wood by hand.

Last year as I toured with The Woodworking Shows I asked each audience how many of them mass manufactured product for any kind of trade or market. Occasionally, in an audience of between 100-200, someone might raise their hand. I realized then that woodworking had redefined itself into a remarkable following of what I can only describe as New-Genre Woodworkers. A uniquely special, classless society of woodworkers whose main quest was indeed to work wood and to better understand its substance and value in a world perplexed and dogged by the digital age of virtual rather than real. We began the Real Woodworking Campaign to help people find the balance between two worlds and we succeeded. Over the past two decades amatuer woodworkers from around the world have defined how they want to work with wood and so, this show is for you and for me. Its educational and inspiring, aspirational and stimulating and of course you can find what you need alongside your fellow woodworkers within a few feet or inches from one another. For my part I will be demonstrating a range of things and during my tour I will of course be promoting the use of hand tools. As soon as I arrive in new York next week i will team up with New Legacy New York to mill my demo wood and gather my tools that will travel with me. The first venue will be Baltimore in Maryland and already I feel excited at meeting up with some of my friends there who invited me to dinner and a chat around the restaurant table on Saturday evening.

Please stop by our Masterclass demonstration area for a chat during the show whether I know you or not and be sure to take in at least one of my demonstrations. The first month’s shows of the season are:

January 4-6, 2013

Friday 12-6; Saturday 10-6; Sunday 10-4

Maryland State Fairgrounds Cow Palace
Cow Palace 2200 York Road
Timonium, Maryland 21093

 

January 11-13, 2013

Friday 12-6; Saturday 10-6; Sunday 10-4

Eastern States Exposition
1305 Memorial Avenue
West Springfield, MA 01089

 

January 18-20, 2013

Friday 12-6; Saturday 10-6; Sunday 10-4

Indiana State Fairgrounds Toyota Blue Ribbon Pavilion 
1202 East 38th Street
Indianapolis, IN 46205

 

January 25-27, 2013

Friday 12-6; Saturday 10-6; Sunday 10-4

Kemper Arena Grounds
American Royal Court
Kansas City, MO 64102

We look forward to seeing you there!