Chair Making - July 15 July 15, 2009

On this chairmaking course participants will learn the principals and advantages of working green wood. Each participant will choose a style of post and rung chair and will be guided through the process of making the chair components and then assembling the chair. All components will be cleft from round wood ash and worked with a drawknife and on the pole-lathe. The legs and slats will be steam bent and finally a woven seat will be made Aims: By the end of the course participants should: Use traditional green woodworking tools; Understand the principles of green woodwork; Be able to choose the appropriate tools for green woodwork; Be able to make chairs from green wood. About the Tutor: Chris Matthews has been working with trees and woodland for 20 years. He is a qualified arborist and has managed woodland to create timber products and for biodiversity. He has been making greenwood chairs for 7 years, having been taught by Mike Abbott. For the past 3 years he has been running courses teaching green woodworking skills and chair making. He finds green woodworking so appealing because of its simplicity. It is an activity that can be done in any garden or backyard with very simple tools, using very low value/ waste wood.