Up in Coburg I also periodically run Woodworking Hand-tools classes. They are generally devised as courses or projects with students attending one night a week, from anywhere from three to six weeks depending of the skill level and complexity of the particular course.
The classes give everyday people the opportunity to jump into the rewarding world of woodworking. Some students are just craving get out of the office to use their hands, others attend because they've had woodworker inklings for years but just didn't know where to start.
Students almost always express to me their feeling of empowerment from the skills they learn, a sense of instinctual relation to timber and also a feeling of practical creativity.
The classes invigorate and quench our natural reward systems, we shouldn't forget that the trades were once oft referred to as the practical arts.
The classes are generally focused on using Hand-tools and only power tools where absolutely necessary. The tools and techniques as use often lean towards Japanese and oriental traditions. The Japanese woodworking tradition is very intriguing, with many timber joints made with beautiful and downright complex timber joints made using interlocking timbers rather than the steel hardware and nails relied upon in the European tradition.
We cover all aspects of Sawing, Chiselling, hand planing, timber selection, measuring or 'setting-out', sanding, oiling and also all aspects of sharpening and honing our chisels and planes.
I've created a a mailing list as the main source of info regarding upcoming classes, so subscribe below for notification about upcoming classes. I get many people messaging me from many other platforms and its hard to keep track, so rest assured if you signup to this then you wont miss the next class. They also generally fill up pretty quickly too!
I'm also open to one-on-one training or guidance for particular projects depending on how busy I am at the time, just get in touch.