Hand Tool Headlines
The Woodworking Blogs Aggregator
NOTICE:
Norse Woodsmith will be going offline for possibly up to a week during the month of April (OK, May and maybe June) to attempt a major site upgrade. If it is successful it will return, however it may look wonky for a while while I dial it in. If not successful, well.. then your guess is as good as mine! Thanks in advance for your patience.
Be sure to visit the Hand Tool Headlines section - scores of my favorite woodworking blogs in one place.
The Quiet Workshop
The Quiet Workshop Spring Newsletter
There was so much space before we put the benches in!Come and visit our workshops in July!
We finished the expansion of the workshops over the winter and are now running all of our courses with six participants. If you don’t have the chance to come on a course why not visit us one weekend in July? This year we’re taking part in Cambridge Open Studios and invite you to come in and see what we’re doing. There might even be biscuits…
COS has been running for over 50 years and is an annual opportunity to meet artists and craftspeople in their studios. This will be our first year opening our doors for this event and we’re really looking forward to it.
There are several local artists in the Wilbrahams and Fulbourn who will also be taking part and they’re very much worth a visit so if you’re free for a weekend in July come and see us.
We’ll be open from 10-5 on both Saturday and Sunday of the 5/6th, 12/13th and 26/27th. We’re running a course on the 19th and 20th so we won’t be open for visitors then but look forward to seeing you on any other weekend in July.
Course Dates: 2025
Loads more courses and more spaces on each course. Our course schedule for 2025 is now on our website. There might be a couple of tiny changes but if you book a course we won’t change that date.
Shows this year
We’ve had a couple of changes to our show calendar and are delighted to have been accepted to Living Crafts Festival at Hatfield House in Hertfordshire. If you haven’t been before it’s worth the trip; it’s one of the biggest and most diverse craft shows we’ve been to and has an unparalleled range of workshops and activities.
- 8-11th May Living Crafts Festival Hatfield House, Hertfordshire
- 14-15th June Cambridge Town and Country Fair, Parker’s Piece, Cambridge
- 9-10th August Cambridge Country Show, Stow Cum Quy
- 13-14th September The Wonder of Wood Fair, Burwash Manor, Cambridge
- 24-25th October London International Woodworking Festival, LDE UTC, Royal Docks, London
If you think there’s a craft show within an hour’s drive of Cambridge that we should attend please drop us a line. We’re always grateful for new opportunities.
Books
We often get asked for book recommendations. Whilst there are lots of books about building Windsor Chairs there are fewer that are great for ladder backs, post and rung and rush-seated chairs. The two I got started with are often available used and are both an excellent introduction to the craft. They’re by no means exhaustive though. When describing the process of building the legs of a chair one of the authors writes, “Turn or otherwise round the legs…” which leaves plenty to the imagination. A little face-to-face instructions won’t go amiss!
Jack Hill’s book is often very reasonably priced but copies of Langsner’s book are sometimes eye-wateringly expensive. Setting up a search on Abebooksco.uk is worth doing.
What’s for tea?
All of the food on our courses is hand-made by Bryony. She trained at Le Cordon Bleu as a patisserie chef so her standards are rather high!
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 the links on our website.
Enjoy your time in the workshop.
StJohn & Bryony
