Learn to build a Dutch Tool Chest from an American in the beautiful city of Munich – in July.
I still have a couple spots open in my tool chest class on July 14-16 at the Dictum store in Munich, Germany. If you are looking for a quick and fun vacation, this could be it. The school is right by the train station and tons of restaurants, biergartens and museums. Bring your family (I’ve done that a couple times – they love Munich).
Details on the class are here. The class is taught in English (Southern High Redneck English). And you don’t even need to bring tools.
If I leave the cat treats behind, I can fit the rest of my ATC into this Nanuk hard-sided case. Right?
I find this difficult to believe…but it must be true. Chris and I have never flown to a place to teach concurrent classes. Or flown concurrently to different places to teach classes. But it is finally happening: Chris and I are both presenting at the London International Woodworking Festival (London, England – not London, Ky.) on Saturday, Nov. 2, and we’re both teaching classes before the festival…which means I had to break down and buy my own hard-sided case in which to pack my tools for the flight. No more borrowing Chris’s Pelican. Or his tools while teaching, as our courses run at the same time.
For more than two weeks, our blog has been hobbled by problems with our Domain Name Servers (DNS). Basically, the majority of our email subscribers weren’t receiving updates when we posted something new.
Also, our RSS feed took a dump. So even fewer people knew we were posting anything.
We still have tickets available for this magical event on June 2 in Berea. Andy Glenn, the author of the book “Backwoods Chairmakers,” is bringing more than a dozen of the chairmakers featured in his book to Berea for a day of live demonstrations, displays of backwoods chairs and discussions about the craft. Tickets are only $33 for the entire day. This is a not-for-profit event we have put together with Berea Student Craft and Andy.
Chairmakers attending include:
Brian Boggs @brianboggschairmakers Terry Ratliff Michael Houston Drew Langsner Randy Ogle Lyle Wheeler Mike & Kelly Angel Tom Lynch Mark Newberry James Cooper Patrick Cecil
An event like this has never taken place, and considering the ages of some of the participants, it might never happen again. If you can make it to Berea on June 2, please do. We will be there with books to sell. Tickets here.
I am teaching two additional stick chair classes here at our storefront. One in August and one in September. Registration for these classes opens on Wednesday. Details here.
Our DNS problems are not completely resolved (it can take a few days for things to sort themselves out). Thanks for your patience and know we are trying to get everything back to the way it was.
We’ve gotten many requests for more stick chair classes this year, so we added two more to the calendar. Both classes will be held at our Covington, Kentucky, storefront and the cost includes all materials and hearty lunches – plus pastries, coffee and tea each day.
Some students have remarked that my classes are equal parts food tour and chair class. You will not leave hungry.
Registration for these classes opens at noon (Eastern) on Wednesday, May 8, through our page at TicketTailor. If you fail to get into a class, I encourage you to get on the waiting list. A couple spots usually open up.
This chair is one of the two most comfortable forms that I build. Based on Irish examples I’ve studied on my travels, this chair is great fun to build and very strong. Though Irish chairs are not traditionally saddled, we will saddle these chairs for extra comfort. You’ll make every component of the chair, cut all the joints and even have time to apply finish to the chair.
This is the most popular chair I make for customers. It is comfortable and versatile, and it can be configured as a dining chair, an office chair or for relaxing. This comb-back design is based on historical examples I’ve measured and studied on my trips to Wales. Students will be encouraged to customize their chairs with different designs for the hands, shoe and comb. Plus you’ll be able to fit the chair for sitters who are short or tall.
— Christopher Schwarz
Editor’s note: The Ticket Tailor page reads “Register Now”…But you can’t do that. As noted above, the ticket link will be live at noon, Eastern, on May 8.
I have two more classes this year that have open spots. One in Germany, and one in Indiana.
I’m teaching people to build the Dutch Tool Chest in Munich July 14-16. You can register and read more about the class here. The class takes place next to Dictum’s lovely Munich showroom and is easy to get to via train. There’s lots of good food and touristy stuff in the area for your family to do while I yell “Schneller! Schneller!” as you dovetail.
The other class is on how to build a peasant cupboard on July 27-28 at the Marc Adams School of Woodworking in Franklin, Indiana. You can read more about the class and register here. This is a fun class because the cabinet construction is the quick part. Then we paint the face frame, learn about spells and engrave them.
I probably will announce two more chair classes for this year in the coming days. One in London and one here. The class here will likely be for an Irish armchair with a saddled seat.
