The Throughline

The renovation of the new shop is coming to a close, just in time for springtime, which is making the move a little less painful. I’ve been reflecting a lot about why I would do such a thing. I’ve invested everything I have into this, which can seem a bit crazy when I think about how I got started. So much of my path into chairmaking was about needing less and keeping things simple. I made my first chairs in tiny shops and don’t actually need much for myself. It was when I started inviting others into my space, as students and guest instructors, that my ideas and goals changed. I have been mulling this shift over in my head as I labor to finish this huge, expensive project and I’ve gained a bit more clarity about the “why”.

Here’s the latest on the shop progress!

It’s simple, in my classes, and in the classes of the people I chose to teach in my shop, the students learn to move the material and add it up in ways that empower them, usually well beyond their expectations. I’m a bit loathe to talk about this, preferring to keep it between myself and those in attendance, but I think it’s worth talking about, because it’s guiding all my choices and efforts. It’s easier to talk about the guest instructors, so I’ll focus on that.

Here is the Helix class, all wrapped up. We are missing one student (Alicia!). We arranged the chairs so you could see the bend from differnt angles.

Each of the teachers, Follansbee, Fisher, Glenn, Manney, Chandley, Golann have spent years doggedly pursuing their craft in a very personal way. When they share their techniques, they are offering hard won knowledge about the material and how to move it in a ways both practical and unexpected.

I suppose I need to address the hand tool part of this. When I began learning hand tools, I got a bunch of books and advice on how to use them. But it was mostly about sawing, chopping and planing already sawn wood. I think this is a bummer and can easily derail a beginner, as it did me. For most of those activities, power tools are a more practical answer. I wanted a way to work the material with hand tools in a way that amplificed of my effort and was truly practical. Resawing boards by hand didn’t do this for me, but splitting surely does…

Without conscious effort, I chose the guest instructors who all share the ability to unlock the power of working wood with hand tools. These instructors are outstanding and each, in their own way, will change the way you see working wood by hand. Stating this so directly may seem immodest, but damnit, it’s true and I’ve put (all) my money where my mouth is.

I want to make more chairs. I want to make more tools and write more books. But mostly, I want to spend my life where people from all different walks of life can come together and share the experience of learning to work wood in a comfortable space, with supportive and inspiring instructors. When you support me here, you are contributing to that goal. How so? I’m not a non profit, but I run the school leaner than one. The instructors keep most of the money generated from each class. They contribute a small portion for insurance and the cost of handling registrations etc… but the rest is theirs. Trust me, they deserve it. When you support me here, you are directly helping me keep the lights on (once they get installed) and providing access to these extraordinary craftspeople.

I hope you will look at our schedule and find the few unfilled classes and consider joining us. For those of you who have already come and played with us, I look forward to seeing you again.

In case you missed it, in the picture of the class you can see Mr. Joel Paul, standing strong after a week of assisting me. One year ago, he was fighting for his life in the ICU after a terrible accident. I can’t express how great it was to get him back in the shop sharing his skill, knowledge and great vibes with the class.

The watchful eye