Make a Double Bow Windsor Chair with Howard Archbold and Geoff Tonkin
2019 Courses
The first Windsor Chair Making course for 2019 at Molong finished on the 15th April with 8 students successfully completing 8 chairs. Quite a variety of chairs this time with 2 Continuous Arm, 2 Captain’s, 1 rocking, 1 double bow and two side chairs. There are some images below. Names are now being taken for the April 2020 course and as courses fill rapidly with returnees it is suggested you book in early.
The second course for 2019 is scheduled to run from 21st to 30th of September. This course is full with a waiting list so please consider next April’s course to guarantee yourself a unique chair making experience. Over the past seven years 74 chairs, 1 settle and 26 stools have been completed on courses in our workshop here at “Brooklyn” Molong NSW.
The cost of the 10 day course in 2019 is $1450
Make a Windsor Stool with Geoff Tonkin
Three Windsor Stool making courses are planned for 2019. The first one in late April has been booked by a family group. The second course is scheduled to run from Monday 6th to Friday 10th May. There is one vacancy on this course. A third course is scheduled to run from Monday 28th October to Friday 1st November. We already have four names for this course but please inquire if you are interested.
The cost of the stool courses is $550.
For a complete course description of both courses scroll down the page to “course description“.
Chair Makers from the April 2019 Course
Chair Makers from the September 2018 Course
Chair Makers from the April 2018 Course. This was the tenth chair making course run here at our Molong Workshop
Stool Makers from the October 2018 Course
Stool Makers from the March 2018 Course
Chair Makers from the 2017 Courses
Course description
Making a Windsor Chair takes 10 consecutive days whilst making the stool is a five day course. Windsor stool making covers most of the techniques used in making a Windsor chair, except steam bending . Stool making course are now held separately from the chair making courses. Please inquire.
Windsor chair and stool making involves actually birthing your piece from a local green tree. It is a technique that was used in the 18thC English forests and has remained pretty much unchanged ever since. In the Molong courses we use stringybark Eucalyptus macrorhyncha and robinia pseudoacacia. Sometimes called false acacia this is a tree of North American providence which because they are deciduous early settlers planted around sheds and yards to provide summer shade and winter sun. Seats are carved from slabs of camphor laurel and ash is used for the steam bent arm and back bow.
Because the wood is split or riven and not sawn, chairs and stools are light but strong. The green wood tennon of the chair and stool components are dried in warm sand before inserting into a mortise that is still composed of green wood. Over time this shrinks around the tennon locking the joint and thus replicating a centuries old woodworking technique.
Chairmaking students usually start with a Double Bow Windsor Chair but be warned – chairmaking can become addictive. Only hand tools are used in construction including a foot operated pole lathe, a shave horse, draw knife, adze, spoke shaves and hand planes. ( see image below) Components are turned on the pole lathe, bent in a steam box or worked on a shave horse using hand tools. The end result is a beautiful chair to take home, made using the same techniques that evolved in the UK 250 years ago. Using a pole lathe is a great introduction to wood turning and particularly appeals to beginners both male and female. One of the highlights of the course is the chair makers’ dinner to which participants are invited to bring their partners.
Windsor stools have either three or four legs, turned on the pole lathe or drawn on a shave horse, with or without stretchers between them. The seat is shaped and the height of your stool adjusted to your individual requirements.
Brooklyn workshop during the 2015 course
Chair makers and stool makers from the Molong course held during April 2016
Click on this link to watch a short video by Rowan which pretty much captures the essence of the whole course.
Cost: Chair Course: $ 1400
Tools and Materials: everything included except your lunch
Location: ‘Brooklyn’ 10km from Molong in the Central West of NSW, Australia
Accommodation: Please inquire
Chair makers and stool makers from the 2015 Molong course
Chair makers from the 2014 Molong Windsor Chair and Stool Making Courses
Chair makers from the 2013 Molong Windsor Chair and Stool Making Courses
Other courses on offer:
Make and Learn to Play the Irish Bodhran
>> Learn to Play the Didgeridoo
> Make a Cigar Box GuitarBasic Tool Making “There’s a chair in there’
For further information contact Geoff Tonkin
Email: geoff.tonkin4@bigpond.com
Tel: 02-63668174
Mobile: 0427677226
www.geofftonkin.com.au