Schedule
Course fee: £270.00 Tutor: Dave Jackson
This two day course will introduce you to the traditional art of green wood craft.
Green wood is freshly felled, still sappy wood. To work it requires a set of simple techniques based on an understanding of how wood reacts – both to the tools, and to the dry and shrinking process. The wood is soft and easy to work with hand tools and can utilise small trees and log with minimal wastage. It is therefore green in all senses of the word. Rustic stools are made from cleft timber which is worked and shaped with axes and a drawknife. This makes a very simple stool and is a great course to develop your greenwood craft skills, either as a hobby, or the first steps on a new craft career.
Over the course of the two days you will experience:
Day 1
- the various types of tools used in greenwood craft, such as a drawknife, splitting axe, froe and carving knife and understand how to use them safely and effectively
- the art of ‘cleaving’ which is splitting down wood into workable sections
- the use of cleaving breaks and shaving horses: what they are and how they can be of use
Day 2
- hand tools and equipment
- basic sharpening
- use of the pole lathe
- the making of a rustic stool, having ‘tasted’ the use of various equipment and tools used in greenwood craft
There may also be time to create a simple spatula, mallet or other carved item or have a go at pole lathing.
At Ecclesall Woods we pride ourselves on the high quality teaching from our tutors and our low class numbers (max 5 for most classes) and a number of our courses also have an assistant.
We have found that smaller class sizes are more productive, un-rushed and allow students to learn more.
You will need to wear suitable clothing and footwear for working outdoors in this season. Steel toe cap boots would be advantageous if you have them, but are not essential. Please note this course will require a high level of manual dexterity on your fingers and is physically demanding.
