Hand Tools Fundamentals
A five-day deep dive into the fundamentals of fine furniture making.
If you only want to take one woodworking or furniture making class, this is the one.
Over five days you will work through the fundamental skills of fine furniture making, using a simple table as the vehicle. The table may or may not be finished by the end of the week, depending on your learning style and approach to material work. The product is not the point. What matters is that you leave with the material understanding, the hand skills, and the judgement to make it, and to keep making, with a simple palette of hand tools.
You will surprise yourself with what you can do with careful tuition.
What the week covers
The week is structured around making the table, not around a list of techniques. Skills are introduced when they are needed, in the context of real work with real wood.
You will develop an understanding of timber as a material, how to read it, how it moves, and how to work with it rather than against it. You will learn to cut, fit and refine joints by hand to a high standard. You will sharpen, set and use hand planes, chisels, saws and marking tools with increasing confidence and accuracy.
Workshop details
Duration: 5 days (Wednesday to Sunday)
Location: Mount Egerton VIC 3352
Group size: Maximum 4 participants
Experience: No prior experience required, open to all levels
Price: $1,400 per person (materials included)
Dates: Dates announced to the EOI list first, register your interest below
Mount Egerton is located on Wadawurrung Country in Central Victoria, approximately 90 minutes from Melbourne and 30 minutes from Ballarat. The studio is easily reached from Melbourne's west and from Geelong, Daylesford and regional Victoria.
Where this takes you
The skills developed in this workshop are yours to keep. You can take them back to your own workshop and begin making furniture with a minimal palette of hand tools, or use them as the basis for developing machine skills, higher level joinery, design practice, or bent form work.
This course, or an equivalent, is a prerequisite for our advanced workshops and courses.
Who this workshop suits
This workshop is designed for anyone who wants to make furniture properly and understand what they are doing. It suits complete beginners, people who have dabbled but never had formal instruction, and makers from other disciplines who want to develop a serious woodworking practice.
If you have been thinking about it for a while, this is the week to stop thinking and start making.
About the teaching
Ross Annels has been making furniture for over 25 years. He has taught at the Center for Furniture Craftsmanship in Maine, Sturt School for Wood, the JamFactory, and the Queensland College of Art.
The week is taught in a working studio, not a classroom. The pace is steady, the group is small, and there is time to understand what you are doing and why.
What past participants say
"Great course that covered all the basics of hand tool joinery. Didn't think that I could do this accurate timber work without machines beforehand, but learning well-taught processes and techniques meant I've now caught the hand tool woodworking bug, thanks to Ross. Highly recommended." — Shaun Rudd
Express your interest
Dates for this workshop are announced to the interest list first. If you would like to be notified when bookings open, contact Ross directly.
Continue your practice
Participants who complete Hand Tools Fundamentals are well placed to move into:
Introduction to Wood Bending, a 2-day comparative introduction to steam, kerf, laminated and coopered bending
Many participants choose to combine Hand Tools Fundamentals with Safe Machine Practice or Machine Tools Fundamentals to build a complete foundation. Together the two workshops cover the full range of tools you will reach for in the workshop, and give you the judgement to know when to use each one.
Moonlite Studios is a working furniture making and creative practice based in Mount Egerton, on Wadawurrung Country in Central Victoria. Courses and mentoring are offered year-round in small groups within a studio environment.
View all courses and workshops · Mentoring with Ross · Contact