•Burning and carving tools will be required so participants are encouraged to bring their own micro carvers, burners, and any burs/tips they have. G&M will help participants to get the most out of their tools. G&M's preferred 'entry level' tools are listed in the class 'to bring' list. If anyone isn’t ready to buy these tools G&M will have a few available for shared class use and all the burs/tips needed. Graeme will also be bringing his custom burner handpieces for use and for sale.
Graeme’s Description of the Course:
•Instead of providing a fixed curriculum, we will begin with a brief “show and tell” of our numerous offerings so that students can prioritize skills they want to learn and develop. We start the mornings and afternoons with group demonstrations covering techniques of interest to all. We then shift to hands-on practice for everyone while we circulate, observe, answer questions and coach individuals. When appropriate we give impromptu demos “in the moment” for individuals on additional ideas and techniques; we announce these brief interjections and invite everyone to come and watch. Those interested can watch – those not interested can simply carry on with what they are doing. The class tends to be self-paced, allowing everyone to practice techniques aligned with their personal interests and passions.
•Students can branch off into the many variations of the major categories of surface embellishment including burning, carving, coloring, etc. Creating wave patterns, feathers and scales, curls and swirls, just to mention a few. The techniques are time-consuming and require practice. We recommend you try as many techniques on test boards as possible. You can then take your test boards home and continue perfecting your techniques.
•It’s best to start with the test boards before going to a 3-dimensional piece. Your club is providing test boards that are madrone, which is our favorite. Please bring a few small turned practice pieces (e.g., bowls, vessels, spheres, eggs.) No pieces with finish. You will see that just a simple decorative band or detail on piece can create contrast and enhance a nice turning. Since we want embellishment to be the focus, we advise using plain, closed grain woods like Madrone, Cherry, Maple, Poplar, Holly. Strong grained woods such as Oak, Ash or conifer species are not ideal.
•With our “on the fly” support and coaching we hope you will experience an explosion of creative ideas over the course of this three-day class. Please attend the Thursday evening demo so we don’t have to repeat the information at the beginning of the Hands-On course.