First work on the Lathe...

Oh ok! Here are a couple of pictures of my spindles and mallet. The first picture shows my very first attempts from left to right. A have since done three more spindles, one of which is an Oak leg for my shaving horse, more on that later. Night!

My new Pole Lathe

Well it's been a couple of weeks now since I got my Lathe set up and I have to say I think I've found my new passion. I have just finished my seventh bit of turnery this evening. I want to go into more detail but for now I'll just post a couple of pictures and head off to bed!

Master the Skew, Master  the Lathe!

Up and running...

Well it's been a busy summer. I've been traveling around to various craft/woodworking shows, all blessed with good weather. Most places had people demonstrating their craft which was exactly what I was after. The best events were Arts in Action and (my favorite) Festival of the Tree which was a real eye opener. If you have an interest in woodworking in any way and you've not been make sure you put it on your list!

I'm a great one for amassing books on a subject of my choosing. I've done it before with Photography and I'm doing it again now with my new love, woodworking. But as with photography you can't learn it all from a book, ideally you need to get out and practice. Tuition and expert guidance are also very valuable. If like me you are a complete beginner then shows like Festival of the Tree are great learning tools because you can spend a lot of time watching craftsmen and talking to them for the entry fee alone. This alone is not enough of course but it has helped me enormously, especially in turning. 

What do I mean by essential skills?

• Being able to identify trees, plants and animals, and there uses.
• Lighting fire without the aid of modern technology
• Knowing how to grow your own food. (Sarah's passion)
• Woodworking, specifically being able to creat basic items from felled trees using only hand tools. (my passion!)
• Being able to tie a range of useful knots.
• Using basic cutting tools proficiently (knife, axe, saw, etc...)

There are I'm sure lots of things I've not thought of and will later feel silly about, but that's half the fun of it!

Welcome

So why do this? Why would you want to be self sufficient? Well the cost of living is once again on the sharp increase. We are first time house owners that have been in our two bed semi for a little over two years. Sarah is a teaching assistant at a local school, and I am a land surveyor. So with bills growing and money tight it was only a matter of time before we started adjusting how we live. And I don’t mind doing it, it’s no hardship at all, in fact we both enjoy it. For me this is also about learning essential skills that are today almost forgotten. I’m keen to learn and practise them and hopefully one day pass them on.