Past Classes
By Jason Forster
April 18, May 02 & 16, 2021
11am - 1pm PST / 2 - 4pm EST
$200 non-members
$160 members (use Coupon Code from newsletter)
Class recordings will be available to all participants for 2 weeks.
Links to zoom class will be emailed the day before class is scheduled.
15 person limit.
Sawhorse Series
Designing and constructing a set of sawhorses is an excellent project for woodworkers that is not only an opportunity to practice cutting joinery, but also increases their capacity to do more and better work once the project is done.
In this series of three classes Jason will demonstrate every stage of the construction of a pair of sawhorses built with Japanese joinery techniques and hand tools. Students are encouraged to build their own set of sawhorses and utilize this opportunity to work alongside an experienced carpenter. Topics to be covered include material selection, stock preparation, joinery selection, layout, cutout, and assembly. An emphasis will be placed on optimizing saw horse design for Japanese woodworking.
If you plan to work alongside Jason during this class, please procure the wood for your sawhorses as soon as possible to allow the wood to acclimate to your working environment and be the most stable in the long run. Kiln dried material is ideal if it is available at your lumber yard. Feel free to make sawhorses of your own design, but Jason will be making a set of sawhorses based on this article.
In addition to wood, students will need at least two chisels (3/8" and 3/4" would be a good set), a hammer, a 240 mm ryoba, a handplane, and a square.
By Andrew Hunter
February 13, 2021
11am - 1pm PST / 2 - 4pm EST
$50 non-members
$35 members (use discount code from newsletter)
Class recordings will be available to all participants for 2 weeks.
Links to zoom class will be emailed the day before class is scheduled.
15 person limit.
Classical Chinese Furniture
Classical Chinese furniture is one of my favorite topics. I could talk Chinese furniture for hours, so please join me in this interactive zoom class where I'll be doing exactly that.
Furniture in China reached a pinnacle of craftsmanship and style in the late Ming and early Qing Dynasties. Graceful design, superlative material and fine craftsmanship are defining elements of this style. This lecture-based class will begin with an introduction to furniture making in China and the history that led to this refinement. We will also investigate the influence classical Chinese furniture has had on modern furniture designs. But most importantly, we will study together the intricate joinery that held it together for all these years!
By Douglas Brooks
February 20, 2021
11am - 1pm PST / 2 - 4pm EST
$50 non-members
$40 members (use discount code from newsletter)
Limited to 20 people.
Class recordings will be available to all participants for 2 weeks.
Links to zoom class will be emailed the day before class is scheduled.
An Apprentice Boatbuilder in Japan
In this two-hour talk Douglas Brooks, a boatbuilder, writer and researcher and author of five books on traditional Japanese boatbuilding, will give an overview of the craft, drawn from his nine apprenticeships with Japanese boatbuilders. He will begin with a slide talk discussing the design and construction of a wide variety of Japanese boats, and then discuss the unique pedagogy of the apprentice system which has sustained the craft for generations. He will end by talking about his efforts to maintain the craft in the face of enormous social changes in Japan, which has seen a steady loss of traditional craftspeople.
Douglas Brooks lives in Vergennes, Vermont and is the author of Japanese Wooden Boatbuilding, which describes his first five apprenticeships in Japan and is the only survey of the craft published. He has been building boats professionally for over thirty years and has been studying Japanese boatbuilding since 1996, working alongside craftspeople in order to document their design secrets and techniques. He teaches workshops on Japanese boatbuilding and is a regular contributor to magazines in the US, UK, and Japan.
By Brian Holcombe
January 30
11-1pm PST / 2-4 EST
$75 non-members
$50 members (use discount code from newsletter)
Limited to 15 persons
2-day hands-on class
Learn to set up Japanese chisels; includes preparation of the blade, handle and hoop.
By Andrew Hunter & Sayuri Suzuki-Schrieber
January 23, 2021
11am - 1pm PST / 2 - 4pm EST
$35 non-members
$20 members (use discount code from newsletter)
No limit to number of participants
Class recordings will be available to all participants for 2 weeks.
Links to zoom class will be emailed the day before class is scheduled.
Not sure how to get started in Japanese woodworking? Having trouble with your Kanna? Want to talk sharpening stones? Well, ask the experts! Andrew Hunter and Sayuri Suzuki will team up to host a live zoom Question and Answer class. So, whatever your questions, Japanese woodworking related of course, join us for an informative conversation. Even if you don't have specific questions yourself there will be much to learn just by listening in..
Suzuki, owner of Suzuki-ya, has been selling Japanese tools and building relationships with craftspeople in America for the past 24 years. There are few people with her level of expertise. And with her close relationships to tool makers in Japan, she has a unique perspective on how the tools should be used.
Andrew is a professional furniture maker and educator living in New York's Hudson Valley. He has been using Japanese hand tools to create heirloom furniture for over 20 year and is very enthusiastic to share his knowledge
By Jay Van Arsdale
Feb 7 & 21, Mar 7 & 21, Apr 11 & 25, 2021
11-1pm PST / 2-4 EST
$350 non-members
$300 members (use discount code from newsletter)
Limited to 15 persons
Class recordings will be available to all participants for 2 weeks. Links to zoom class will be emailed the day before class is scheduled.
Situational Joinery
These web workshops will explore some of the adaptations of basic joinery elements which can be made in specific situations - structural and aesthetic.
- discussion, demos, and examples will show the wide diversity in more creative solutions.
- home work will be assigned from each session's examples, these should be completed before next session. Your work will be evaluated so positive progress of work can proceed.
- all sessions are to be taken as a complete series.
February 7 & 21: mortise & tenon / bridle corner door joinery / corner structural joinery
March 7 & 21: unusual dovetails
April 11 & 25: splicing joinery - simple to complex - decorative and structural
By Scott Wynn
September 26th, 2020
11-1pm PST / 2-4 EST
$75 non-members
$60 members (use discount code from newsletter)
Limited to 15 persons..
Class recordings will be available to all participants for 2 weeks. Links to zoom class will be emailed the day before class is scheduled.
Personal Thoughts on Hands-On Practice
Making Japanese Planes
How to make the traditional miniature planes used by Japanese shokunin for shaping and smoothing.
In this class I will demonstrate how to make the small Japanese-style finger planes, sometimes called chibbi-kanna. Relatively quick to make they are invaluable for shaping, fairing, and smoothing both curved and small restricted flat surfaces found on furniture, musical instruments, carvings, architectural details, spoons and bowls. While the information is also useful for making full size planes as the techniques are similar, I will cover some lesser known techniques involved in making the small planes."
The class will cover selection of materials for the dai, blade selection and cutting, laying out and cutting the dai, fitting the blade, and tuning the plane. The particular plane made will be one with a slightly convex blade with a straight sole for producing broadly sweeping concave surfaces.
By Jay Van Arsdale
June 13th, 2020
11-1pm PST / 2-4 EST
$50 non-members
$40 members (use discount code from newsletter)
Limited to 20 persons. Lecture.
Class recordings will be available to all participants for 2 weeks. Links to zoom class will be emailed the day before class is scheduled.
Personal Thoughts on Hands-On Practice
BRIEFING ON THE RECEDING HORIZON...simple ideas to give your multi-source learning a more positive, practical structure: showing personal aspects of hands-on practice, organizing principles of work flow, and some new tricks from an old dog.
By Douglas Brooks
May 30th, 2020
11am - 1pm PST / 2 - 4pm EST
$50 non-members
$40 members (use discount code from newsletter)
Limited to 20 people.
Class recordings will be available to all participants for 2 weeks.
Links to zoom class will be emailed the day before class is scheduled.
By Andrew Hunter
June 27th, 2020
11am - 1pm PST / 2 - 4pm EST
$75 non-members
$50 members (use discount code from newsletter)
Limited to 12 people. Hands on class.
Class recordings will be available to all participants for 2 weeks.
Links to zoom class will be emailed the day before class is scheduled.
Fundamentals of Cutting Wood with a Japanese Plane
In this interactive class Andrew will discuss in detail the fundamentals of cutting wood with a Japanese plane.
Together, you will investigate the many varying properties of wood and how best to tune your plane for a controlled cut.
The effect of bedding angles, bevel angles and chip breakers will be covered in detail, as well as many of the other principles involved in creating a beautiful handplane finish.
By Andrew Hunter
June 27th, 2020
11am - 1pm PST / 2 - 4pm EST
$75 non-members
$50 members (use discount code from newsletter)
Limited to 12 people. Hands on class.
Class recordings will be available to all participants for 2 weeks.
Links to zoom class will be emailed the day before class is scheduled.
Techniques for Fine Tuning Your Plane
This interactive class is for students who already use Japanese planes, but want to take their understanding to the next level. Andrew will discuss and demonstrate the techniques for getting the most out of your plane in any wood.
By Jay Van Arsdale
July 18th, 2020
11-1pm PST / 2-4 EST
$75 non-members
$50 members (use discount code from newsletter)
Limited to 12 persons. Hands on class
Class recordings will be available to all participants for 2 weeks. Links to zoom class will be emailed the day before class is scheduled.
Traditional Japanese Hand Tools
FOUNDATIONS OF JOINERY CULTURE ...tapping into the enduring value of traditional Japanese hand tools... tools designed and used to make wood into more than it is: sashigane, sumitsubo, sumisashi, toishi, hammer and chisels, ryoba.
Just the basics--discuss use, cost, metal types and production methods, efficient layout strategies. Demonstration and discussion.
By Brian Holcombe
July 11 - 12
11-1pm PST / 2-4 EST
$150 non-members
$100 members (use discount code from newsletter)
Limited to 12 persons
2-day hands-on class
Day 1: Focuses on preparing the blade and chip breaker utilizing the technique of ura-dashi. Ura-dashi, also known as tapping out, allows us to form the back of the plane and chip breaker flat. This is followed by detailed step by step of sharpening by hand, without fixtures, using water stones.
Day 2: Covers the process of bedding the blade followed by installing the chip breaker and tuning the dai sole for finish planing.
Have your own plane and tools ready--you can ask questions during the class.
By Brian Holcombe
March 28th, 2021
11-1pm PST / 2-4 EST
$75 non-members
$60 members (use discount code from newsletter)
Limited to 15 persons
Class recordings will be available to all participants for 2 weeks.
Links to zoom class will be emailed the day before class is scheduled.
Advanced Sharpening
Discussion and practice of sharpening techniques, in addition to natural and synthetic sharpening stones.
Please bring course, medium, and fine sharpening stones and a tool to sharpen.
By Josh Villegas
March 20th, 2021
11-1pm PST / 2-4 EST
$75 non-members
$60 members (use discount code from newsletter)
Limited to 15 persons
Class recordings will be available to all participants for 2 weeks.
Links to zoom class will be emailed the day before class is scheduled.
Dai Cutting
In this class Josh will demonstrate how to cut a dai, the wooden block of a kanna. Along with a full demo, Josh will describe all the considerations one should make when going down the road of cutting your own dai. All students should walk away with the necessary knowledge and practical techniques to cut a dai, including specialty dai, like nakin-ganna, shi-ho-zori, along with many others.
By Dale Brotherton
March 6th, 2021
11-1pm PST / 2-4 EST
$75 non-members
$50 members (use discount code from newsletter)
Limited to 15 persons. Hands on class.
Class recordings will be available to all participants for 2 weeks.
Links to zoom class will be emailed the day before class is scheduled.
Basic Construction Joinery Techniques
In this class Dale will lead students through layout and cutting of Japanese post and beam construction joints, starting with basic square-pinned Mortise and Tenon. Both entirely hand cutting and pre-drilling methods will be covered. Students are welcome to follow along with their own tools and wood stock:
- Two short pieces of (minimum 2.5" up to 6") square material are recommended
- At least one chisel (1/2" size for small stock, 3/4" for 3 1/2" stock, or 1" size for 4 1/2" and larger stock). Also, other sizes will be useful, if available
- A 240mm to 300mm rip or ryoba saw and a 210mm to 240mm dozuki, crosscut or ryoba saw
The knowledge gained from this course will be readily adaptable to any scale of project. Please join us for two hours of working with wood as it's done in Japan.
Note: This class is a repeat of the one presented last October and is planned as part 1 of a 3-part series on construction joinery. Each class is priced separately and not as a bundle. The next two, spaced at roughly 2-month intervals, will cover dovetail and splice joints. Each can be taken separately or better yet, plan on attending all three!
By Wilbur Pan
September 12th, 2020
11-1pm PST / 2-4 EST
$75 non-members
$60 members (use discount code from newsletter)
Limited to 15 persons. Hands on class.
Class recordings will be available to all participants for 2 weeks.
Links to zoom class will be emailed the day before class is scheduled.
Using Japanese saws in your workshop
Interested in using a Japanese saw, but don’t know where to start? This class is for you. In this class, you’ll learn why Japanese saws are a great option for hand saws, what makes them work so well, the types of Japanese saws, and practical ways to use them in your workshop.
This class is intended for any woodworker interested in Japanese saws. You don’t have to use Japanese tools, and you don’t have to be a hand tool woodworker to benefit from this class. There will be many demonstrations, and plenty of opportunity for questions and answers.
By Jay Van Arsdale
September 13th, 20th, 27th and October 4th, 2020
11-1pm PST / 2-4 EST
$250 non-members
$200 members (use discount code from newsletter)
Limited to 15 persons
Class recordings will be available to all participants for 2 weeks. Links to zoom class will be emailed the day before class is scheduled.
Sunday Shop
- Basics of getting started in the space you have
- Ongoing discussions of selected topics and demos helpful for seeing how little is really needed for work to begin
- Prepping tools
- setting chisel hoops
- sharpening set ups
- lay out procedures
- resawing (your own) lumber with ryoba expanding the use of 5 reductive processes in joinery work
Classes will be interactive
- selective topics
- demonstrations
- homework is given thru each demo each class
- homework is inspected at start of next class
- time for questions, corrections, and encouragement
Classes given by Jay van Arsdale assisted by Jason Forster
By Brian Holcombe
August 29th, 2020
11-1pm PST / 2-4 EST
$75 non-members
$60 members (use discount code from newsletter)
Limited to 15 persons
Class recordings will be available to all participants for 2 weeks.
Links to zoom class will be emailed the day before class is scheduled.
Learn to setup Japanese chisels; includes preparation of the blade, handle and hoop.
By Andrew Hunter
November 7, 2020
11am - 1pm PST / 2 - 4pm EST
$35 non-members
$20 members (use discount code from newsletter)
No limit to number of participants
Class recordings will be available to all participants for 2 weeks.
Links to zoom class will be emailed the day before class is scheduled.
This online lecture is intended for students who are new to the world of Japanese handplanes (Kanna).
Maybe you've been thinking about buying a Japanese plane or maybe you already have one and need a little help getting it in full working order. Well, this is the class for you! From buying and setting up a new plane to using it to create a mirror smooth surface, Andrew will cover all the basics.
He will introduce students to a wide variety of different planes with many uses, from rough work to smoothing and joinery. He will also discuss and demonstrate the many ways he uses Kanna in his own shop as a furniture maker.
So, if you have been thinking about diving into the magical world of Japanese planes, wait no longer, this reduced price class is the perfect opportunity to jump in!