More courses; more shows
Despite some miserable weather it’s been an absolutely lovely summer in the workshop. We’ve run almost a dozen courses already this year and met many wonderful chair makers. Thank you to everyone who has attended; it’s been an absolute pleasure.
Our stool making courses have been sold out so we’ve added some more later in the year. Chairmaking courses are more of a commitment but we’ve been really happy with the response and have seen some beautiful chairs leave the workshop, most built by absolute beginners.
Shows
We exhibit and demonstrate at craft and country shows during the summer. It’s a lovely way of meeting potential new chairmakers! If you’d like to have a chat about our courses and see some of the chairs, stools and benches you can make come along to a show and we can meet:
We look forward to seeing you there!
- 4th May 1pm-4pm Eadenstone Craft Fair, Cambridge – see you next year!
- 18th & 19th May Makers Central, NEC Birmingham – see you next year!
- 8th & 9th June Cambridge Town and Country Fair – see you next year!
- 13 & 14th July Clare Priory Craft Fair, Sudbury
- 10th & 11th August Cambridge Country Show, Stow Cum Quy
- 14th & 15th September The Wonder of Wood Fair, Burwash Manor, Cambridge
- 2nd November London International Woodworking Festival, LDE UTC, Royal Docks, London
How do you get that shine?
One of the most frequently asked questions on the course is about how we finish our furniture. Is it oil, lacquer, varnish? How do we apply it? Brush, roller, sponge, spray? How far do you sand? 240? 400? Higher?
The truth is: we hate sanding. And we’re not all that keen on smelly finishes and oil soaked rags. When we’re making a commissioned piece for sale we pull out all the stops but if we’re making a piece for us or a friend we have a very simple formula:
- Sand with 80 grit
- Burnish and wax
- Polish
That’s it!
The key to this is a burnisher made from the offcuts of seagrass or Danish cord. These are based on the traditional French Polissoir which was just a bunch of straw wrapped up tightly with some more straw. We rub the burnisher in a hard wax that we make ourselves and then rub it hard on the sanded or planed timber. Rather than abrading the surface it burnishes it creating a smooth and silky surface. Then we just rub off any excess wax and call it done. It leaves a lovely smooth, soft sheen.
If it starts to look dirty or dull in a few years then we wash it with warm water and burnish it again.
Building a tall stool
We get a lot of requests to build a tall stool in the style of the simple stool. It’s a huge amount of work for a two day course so we’re offering an option to extend a two day course by one day (before the scheduled course weekend) to do all of the stock prep needed for a tall stall.
On craftcourses.com we’ve added these extension days as separate courses. You will need to book the extra day for the course you’re booking.
What’s for lunch?
Since this was so popular last time here are some pictures of Bryony’s gorgeous food!
As always, if you’re interested in coming on a course please give us a ring (07778 397328) or drop us an email. You can book all of our courses through craftcourses.com
Enjoy the better weather,
StJohn & Bryony
Thanks for the photo of the wonderful stools, the shop update and your wood finishing information. I always enjoy reading your blog even though I am in the USA and it is unlikely that I would be able to participate in your courses. Nevertheless, I do get good information and ideas that are much appreciated.
Cheers,
Michael (Alabama USA)
Michael,
Thanks for your comments. I’m really happy if our little corner of the internet is helpful or inspiring.
Best wishes,
StJohn
Thanks St John for replying. Your blogs are always interesting to me.