Robinson House Studio Competition

1st Prize

Take your making to the next level. Win a one week training course with

Marc Fish at Robinson House Studio.

Situated in the beautiful seaside town of Newhaven in East Sussex, Robinson House Studio is one of the hottest creative talent 'shops in the world. Under the leadership of Marc Fish, the team push the limits of materials and explore new techniques at the absolute cutting edge of modern furniture design. Having won four guild marks and the Claxton Stevens award, Marc now sits on the Guild Mark Committee of the Worshipful Company of Furniture Makers, who decide whether other designer-maker's pieces are up to the coveted guild mark standard.

This course is designed for the improver or beginner who wishes to improve their making skills. You could choose to make a simple piece that will teach you the fundamental skills of hand tool woodworking or perhaps focus on a specific subject like laminating, routing, understanding good design, surface finishing...

To enter, send us a photo of something that you have made which you feel demonstrates:

"an innovative or unusual use of wood"

Please include your name, phone number, email address, and the town or county that you live in with your entry. If you wish to include a couple of lines of descriptive text to explain the entry that's fine too.

Runners Up Prizes

Two runners up will each receive £100 to spend at:

What would you choose?

Dates and Details:

• Send entries to competition@workshopheaven.com
• Entries must be in by noon on the 31st May 2015.
• Photos should be no larger than 1Mb.
• Entries will be judged by Marc and the winners announced on this blog on the 5th of June.
• Entry is free of charge, no purchase necessary.
• Entrants will be automatically added to Robinson House Studio and Workshop Heaven monthly newsletter lists - we don't bombard you with daily deals and won't share or sell your details to anyone else.
• Winners will be announced in the form 'John from Middlesborough' if you prefer to remain anonymous please include this information on your entry.
• We wish all entrants the very best of luck, and trust that the gentlemanly spirit of the competition be upheld by all participants.
• Accommodation not included.

Bespoke Hand Tools: The MiniMac Woodcarving Knife

This is the best woodcarving knife I have ever used - by a very long way.

It is the finished product of a long collaboration between two good friends of mine, both of them wonderfully skilled craftsmen. Creative artist and woodcarver Jon Mac from Dartmoor and custom knifemaker Chris Grant from Arbroath.

The knife began as a bespoke commission for Jon's work carving elegant spoons, bowls and kuksa. When you watch Jon carve you'll quickly grasp the care and consideration with which he approaches all creative tasks, the design of this tool is no exception. There isn't a straight line on it, and every curve has been considered, refined and perfected by hand and eye.

Chris thrives on the creative process, he gets deeply involved in the design of each project, feeding in his rich experience of blade steels and heat treatment processes. Working to the highest standards in metal, wood and leather, he brings everything together to deliver an exquisitely handcrafted product. He only makes knives, but boy does he make knives!

The development since the original commission has been entirely organic, other carvers have tried the knife and been sufficiently blown away by its performance and dexterity that, with Jon's blessing, they have commissioned their own. Jon is a big guy with large hands, so when the stream of people who wanted one showed no sign of abating, the two got together again to work on a smaller version of his original design that would be better suited to people with average sized hands.

The result is the MiniMac, same sweet balance in exactly the same spot as the MaChris, same extraordinary edge strength, but when you compare the two side by side you can see that the subtleties of both the blade and handle shape have all been completely reworked. The MiniMac is a stick tang, which makes it considerably lighter, although in use they both just blend into the hand.

I've had this MiniMac for a few months now, and apart from a couple of very light dressing strokes on 5 micron lapping film I am still using the original shaving sharp edge.

The MiniMac has very quickly become an integral part of how I work; to the extent that trying to carve with anything else just feels wrong. I can work with it for hours with no fatigue and place cuts with a level of precision I had previously not understood. It is no understatement to say that I would now be at a loss without it.

Could you still carve with a lesser knife? Of course you can, absolutely, but at the end of the day I carve for pleasure. There is nothing quite so luxurious as leaning against a tree on a sunny afternoon with a really good knife and a nice piece of wood and relishing every single cut.

Tom Fidgen @ Warwickshire College

The courses run by New English Workshop last summer were a roaring success, both were well oversubscribed and the lucky ones that did get a place had a fantastic time. With the Anarchists Tool Chest built by Chris Schwarz going under David Stanley's auctioneers hammer today (March 28th) it occurred to me that I'd better get my finger out if I want to snaffle a place on one of this years summer schools.

Last year I mentioned to Paul and Derek how amazing it would be if Tom Fidgen could come over from Canada to teach in the UK. Tom is probably the coolest woodworker on the planet, his work is fast, accurate and meticulously well planned, but I'd swear his heart rate never climbs above 60 beats per minute. If you're not already subscribed, take a moment to check out his youtube channel and website.

Anyway, to my surprise, they did ask him. To my even greater surprise he agreed, and then to top it all the course location was changed to Warwickshire College, which is just up the road from Workshop Heaven, talk about the stars coming into alignment!

The project is a sawyers bench - kinda like a 17th century Black and Decker Workmate. Tom has made a few significant tweaks to the traditional design which will make this a fantastic addition to the workshop that will earn its space many times over.

For me the course isn't really about the project though, it's all about sharing and enjoying the creative process with like-minded souls and picking up a few wrinkles of experience from one another.

From that perspective, a huge extra bonus is that another woodworking legend Peter Folansbee will also be teaching at Warwickshire College the same week, so with any luck I might get to enjoy a brew and a natter with him and the people attending that course as well.

The New English Workshop Summer School offering has grown from two woodworking courses last year to ten available this summer, spread across Kent, Sussex, Warwickshire and Somerset. All of the courses are led by world class woodworking instructors and hosted at well equipped workshops.

If you'd like to book a place, I'd recommend getting your deposit in fairly sharpish. Spaces are limited and opportunities to share time at the bench with woodworkers of this calibre are few and far between.

Here's Tom with some more details about the course, for more info about the other woodworking courses available, visit the New English Workshop.

Waters & Acland Furniture School

Cumbrian furniture makers WATERS and ACLAND are well known for creating exceptionally elegant modern handcrafted furniture. Their furniture has drawn the attention of the Royal family, the bespoke guild mark committee of the Worshipful Company of Furniture Makers and graces well appointed homes up and down the country.

When I visited their light and airy workshops in the village of Staveley last October, I was surprised to find something even more impressive than the covetable furniture in their showroom.

Waters and Acland don't just make commercial handmade furniture and commissions, they also deliver some of the best furniture making training courses available. The thing that really struck me was the astonishing rate at which students in the adjoining training workshop acquire the skills of fine furniture making and the standards that they achieve right from the word go.

After a week, students are able to complete an immaculate pair of matching dovetailed and mitred oak bookends. By the end of week two, they will have finished a stool with double wedged through tenons.

With those two test pieces perfected, it's straight into their first box - a dovetailed and mitred wall cabinet with morticed panel doors, made in the student's choice of materials.

Chris (left cabinet), who also made the two pieces above, had done a bit of making before but was looking to up his game. Keira (right cabinet) achieved this standard in 9 weeks flat from a cold start. I have seen both cabinets up close and the details reward even the closest inspection.

You could be forgiven for thinking that making this much headway in a few short weeks must involve compromise, but you only need to look at the standard of Waters and Acland furniture to see that they are not really the compromising type. In fact the opposite is true. This astonishing progress is the result of being uncompromising, very high staff ratios, beautifully maintained high quality tools, and lots of one on one tuition with professional makers.

The Waters and Acland team believe fervently in getting it right first time and checking their work at every stage. The same standards are applied to the job of training as they are to the job of making furniture, with layers of perfection locked in at every stage.

Both Chris and Keira have since gone on to make progressively more complex pieces and worked with progressively greater autonomy as they completed their 24 week course of training. I would like to wish both of these calm, confident and competent new makers every success in their future careers. For the last word, I'll leave you in Keira's capable hands:

If you would like to receive further information about training as a furniture maker with Waters and Acland please visit their website.

You can also get some free tuition by subscribing to the Waters and Acland You Tube channel

Customer Profile: Tasos Vardopoulos - Master Stairmaker

As a child I remember walking downstairs in my aunt and uncle's Victorian house in the north of England and marvelling at the way the profile of the handrail (then at my eye level) flowed around the return between one flight and another. I could see how the straight bits might be made, but that seamlessly integrated return was really, really clever.

Who would have thought that 35 years later I would be sitting here writing for you about the most celebrated stairmaker in Europe.

In the careful hands of Athenian Tasos Vardopoulos, the craft of the stairmaker is elevated to a sculptural art form. His ability to make a staircase flow like a waterfall, twist like a serpent, or spread into a room like the train of a wedding dress is legendary among the top flite of European architects. To them, his exceptional skills provide a whole extra palette of sculptural forms with which they can express their vision for a space. Each of his architectural confections is completely unique, tailored to enhance the space and the building.

Like so many elite craftsmen, Tasos works entirely with hand tools. This isn't a faded romantic notion, despite all the technological advancements of the last century, hand and eye is still the most efficient way to make unique and geometrically complex one off pieces like the progressively curved stringer below:

Apprenticeship is the process of supercharging a lifetime of hands on experience with the enriched wisdom of previous generations, it is at the very core of what the crafts do. There are many notable exceptions, but the process of training and apprenticeship often tends to be particularly potent when the individuals involved are related.

Tasos was trained by his father Yiannis Vardopoulos and his grandfather Anastasios, who brought his helicoidal stairmaking skills to Athens from the city of Smyrnos over a century ago. I am sure Anastasios would be immensely proud to see both the depth of his grandson's mastery of the craft, the artistry with which he employs it, and the pleasure that his elegant creations bring to his clients and their successors.

Perhaps one day, many years from now, another small boy will walk down one of Mr Vardopoulos' staircases and pause for a moment to reflect upon the skills of the man who made it. I hope that he too will be able to find a living contemporary in whom those skills not only live on, but thrive and grow.

Pegas Saw Blades: Chris Schwarz was right!

Back at the beginning of December Christopher Schwarz posted this recommendation to hoard Pegas saw blades in his gift guide series.

"Buy Pégas coping saw blades. Hoard them. I do – and I’m not generally a hoarder. I have about 150 stashed away in case Pegas doubles the price or stops making them this well."

Now I'm pretty sure Chris didn't have an inside line on this particular turn of events, but his advice has once again been proven very wise indeed.

Last Thursday the Swiss central bank decided to break the peg between the Swiss Franc and the Euro, causing the Swiss currency to rocket in value by 30% in a single day.

Normally we get some notice of price alterations and can do a little hoarding of our own, but when currencies change, the effect is instantaneous, anything that hasn't already been paid - just went up.

With a change this big, the effect will filter through to prices quickly; so if you do want to heed his advice and snaffle up a few packs of Chris Schwarz's favourite 90.550 skip tooth coping saw blades, our specially made No.5 Dovetail Progressive Reverse dovetailing blades for Jewellers saws, or any of the other 83 flavours of wonderful Pegas saw blades at the old prices... grab 'em now!

Pegas Saw Blades for Metal

Pegas Saw Blades for Wood

Pegas Saw Multi-Material Blades

Pegas Pinned Saw Blades

Bespoke Hand Tools: Skelton Saws

I am extremely privileged to be among the first people in nearly 200 years to hold in my hand a brand new, genuine, handmade, English, Georgian dovetail saw.

Without wishing to overstate anything, this is one of the most important hand tools I have encountered in ten years. You only need to google Georgian furniture to see what the effect was the last time woodworkers enjoyed this experience.

As well as being a functionally flawless precision instrument the Skelton dovetail saw is both a gorgeous object in its own right and an exquisite demonstration of the deep levels of perfection that can be achieved by a skilled person working entirely with hand tools.

Consider the elegant lines of the hand rasped handle, the way that they flow gracefully from one radius to another throughout the sweep of the handle before blending into a crisp ridge that continues all the way around the teardrop to the spine.

At the handle transition, the flat surface blends into a deeply concave one whilst also turning through a 90 degree corner, the transition subtly echoed by the stopped chamfers on the brass back (which is shaped from solid brass bar entirely with hand files).

This saw is the physical embodiement of everything that our society has sacraficed on the alter of mechanised volume production. We routinely see the best British and Irish craftsmen working to this level of quality in handmade furniture, gunsmithing, and instrument making, but to find it in toolmaking is something quite rare and very special indeed.

I love the way that Shane has proudly used his family crest for the medallion. He has clearly put 100% of himself into these saws and while his acquired experience as both a gunsmith and a cabinetmaker shine through, the family crest gives a respectful nod both to the standards and skills he has inherited and to his family's support.

So what's it like to use?

The handle fits my hand precisely, the hang is perfect for accurate work, and it is the only saw I have ever used where the transition from the 'scalpel' grip (with thumb and forefinger to place the kerf) to the 'milking' grip (squeezing gently with the little finger to minimise influencing the saw while it follows the kerf) involves no movement whatsoever - just a slight, barely noticeable transfer of pressure.

The best way I can describe the difference that all this makes, is to say that this saw returns your handshake - rather like the difference between shaking hands with a mannequin and a real person. Through that richly informative connection comes a crystal clear live feed of all the subtle nuances that the saw is experiencing at the toothline.

I had always believed that the slight cant of the blade was there to allow you to cut down to the line on the seen side with the reassurance that you have a little touch of safety margin on the unseen reverse face of the timber. Talking with Shane I have now learned that it is included to provide a faster, smoother cut for a given pitch, each tooth 'seeing' a small measure more of the timber than the preceding one and acting as a limiter to feed the next tooth. What I had thought to be the purpose turns out to be a fringe benefit - we never stop learning.

The bottom line?

I managed to last three hours before I gave in and called Shane to order one for myself. After a wonderful chat and some emailed photos, I am now the proud and delighted first custodian of saw number 9, which I will covet and treasure.

Skelton Saws

Workshop Heaven one in a million sale!

On the first of December, workshopheaven.com broke into the top one million websites on the internet globally and at the time of writing is now ranked 925,780th. To put that into perspective, if the entire internet were a metre rule, it would be less than a mm from the top.

For our small team of dedicated people this is quite a milestone, and I am immensely proud of Adrienne, Susannah, Herby, Tilly, Graham, Kate and Ginny.

In celebration and as a special thank you to all those that continue to support us and help us to grow, we have temporarily increased the number of items on special offer from the usual 15 to over 150.

There wasn't enough room on the normal specials page to fit them all on, so we have created a new Special Offers section:

Open Me!

Japanese White Paper Steel and Blue Paper Steel

My good friend professional bladesmith Chris Grant has very kindly sent me a link to this informative video to follow up from a conversation we had some months ago about Japanese steels.

It is a wonderfully eloquent explanation by master smith Murray Carter (who served a full Japanese apprenticeship and then made knives in Japan for another 12 years) of the difference between Hitachi white paper steel (as used in Mr Fujikawa's chisels) and blue paper steel.

Chris knows more about steel than I ever will, he has worked extensively with a range of high grade steels, including blue and white, and his heat treatments are just out of this world. I'm in the process of getting to know one of his remarkable MaChris woodcarving knives at the moment - more on that shortly, but it is certainly stretching my perceptions of what is possible.

I find it completely fascinating that really good smiths, through technique alone, can exceed the innate properties of the materials they work with. I have experienced the benefit of it, had it explained to me both from a craft perspective and a scientific / metallurgical one, and yet it still feels like total witchcraft.

A tool kit for fine woodworking

Putting together a beginners tool kit for people who want to get into fine woodworking isn't as straightforward as you might first imagine. Lots of people have asked for one though, so I've had a read through several tutor's recommended tool lists, scratched my head and put together a Workshop Heaven Fine Woodworking Starter Set.

I have intentionally avoided setting a budget and trying to work within it, as this can often lead to poor decision making. Instead I have prioritised that every pound should be invested as wisely as possible in high quality, versatile tools that won't need replacing.

There needs to be enough in the kit that you can complete some basic woodworking projects and practice pieces: getting boards flat and square, dovetailing two boards together, constructing a simple box, lap joints, finger joints, mitred joints and so on.

I have also considered that people may be working either in a college environment, or at home, or both. Of all the fine woodworking schools that we work with, I can't think of any tutors who would be disappointed to see you walking through the door with this standard of kit.

Here's a list of the tools that made the cut and why:

Narex 8116 Cabinetmakers Chisels - Boxed Set of 6

These are the most affordable proper cabinetmakers chisels on the market, if they were twice the price they would still be a sensible purchase. The steel is good, the backs are flat, the bevels are ground close to the back giving good sightlines and access. Ours have smaller handles than standard on the 26mm and below, so they are comfortable and well balanced. The boxed set is easily transportable for those attending college or evening classes.

Pentel Sharplet-2 Propelling Pencil 0.7mm

A cheap item but an important one to get right, so I am throwing caution to the wind and being prescriptive. Most clutch pencils are 0.5mm, which is too thin for writing on wood, a normal wooden pencil will make a line of variable thickness depending upon when it was last sharpened. This 0.7mm Pentel functions reliably, the leads are less prone to breakage and it produces a consistent line. You will probably want to add a proper marking knife at some stage, but will continue to use pencil to note face side and edge, grain direction, saw balance marks etc.

Gyokucho 651 Blue Hard Japanese Ryoba Saw

I've gone for a Japanese saw because you'd need to spend three times as much to get a western one with similar performance. The ryoba saw gives you more versatility than any other, with the rip side you can resaw a small board, make cheek cuts for tenons and bridle joints etc while the crosscut side will take care of sawing accurately to length and cutting shoulders. The crosscut side is just fine enough to bridge the gap until you can get a dedicated dovetail saw. A dovetail saw should be high on the list of things to get next, but since you can't do stock preparation very effectively with a dozuki, the ryoba made a better first choice.

Quangsheng Marking Gauge

You need to be able to cut a gauge line with reference to a prepared edge in order to lay out joints. The wheel marking gauge produces a crisp line, whether across or with the grain can also be used as a depth gauge. This isn't the cheapest gauge in the world, but it is rock solid, easy to use and deadly accurate. Most makers end up with three or four, so the settings can be maintained throughout the project. Until you reach that stage, marking an accurately planed block of scrap each time you make a setting will enable you to revert to your previous settings.

Starrett Student Combination Square

A small square of some kind is on everyone's kit list. I've plumped for the small Starrett because it is remarkably accurate (to two thou!) versatile and affordable. The blade can be seperated and used as a rule / mini straightedge and the ends of the rule are adequately square to mark out from. The stock can be sat on the workpiece and used as a reference for chopping cuts, as well as functioning as an external 45, 90 and 135 degree square. Reassembled, the sliding square is ideal for checking joinery because you can move the unused portion of the blade out of the way. For around £40 and given the number of situations it can get you out of, it's a no brainer.

King 1200/8000 Japanese Waterstone

Sharpening is very subjective, the reason I have gone for a combination waterstone is twofold. A combination waterstone will give you a properly sharp edge at a reasonable price, and using a waterstone teaches you more about honing than any other medium. This is a honing stone, both sides are used to prepare the small honed bevel at the tip of the chisel and polish the underside of the cutting edge. If you need to reshape a blade I would recommend using 100 micron microfinishing film stuck to a piece of float glass.

General Purpose Workshop Leather

You could get by without this, but it has so many uses that I just had to pop one in. You can use it as a strop, a vice liner, a working surface, protection for the workpiece, cut pieces off to line the jaws of clamps or holdfasts for extra grip...

Quangsheng Low Angle Block Plane (single iron)

A block plane is regarded as an essential for almost all forms of woodworking, so I have included our most popular model. Additional cutting irons are available to increase the versatility of this plane, but for the mild timbers like beech, poplar, or reclaimed mahogany that beginners should ideally be using, the single iron is sufficient to begin with.

Choosing your Bench Plane

I have intentionally avoided prescribing a bench plane in the kit, although you will need at least one. Choosing the right plane is an important individual investment decision and deserves a little bit of consideration.

A No. 5-1/2 (pictured above) is the traditional recommendation, and in most cases it is a wise choice, assuming that you are of average build and have access to some half decent machinery or pre-prepared stock.

People of slighter stature may prefer to start with the narrower, lighter No.5 jack plane. Those that like the idea of bevel-up planes might choose a No.62 low angle jack plane. Some will prefer to go for a longer No.6 fore plane and a smoothing plane - perhaps a better combination if your boards have more than a mm or two of cup, wind or twist.

Whichever planes you choose, we have included a Workshop Heaven discount code in the kit that gives you the same discount on any other items (not just planes) that you purchase in the same transaction.

Suggested Additions

The following is a non-exhaustive list of other tools that might make logical additions to your tool kit.

Knew Concepts 5" Screw Tension Jeweller's Saw

For sawing the waste out of through dovetails rather than chopping it. For dovetailing I recommend either the Pegas Dovetail Progressive Reverse blades No.5 for thinner material and the Pegas Dovetail Progressive Reverse blades No.9 for thicker stock. Stretching to reach the bottom rung of the Knew Concepts ladder is a better investment than the steel framed saws. If you can get the lever tension version, so much the better.

Ashley Iles Marking Knives

Marking out with a knife defines a clean shoulder that is then preserved as you chisel back to it. If your intact knifed layout line IS the end of the finished component, there can have been no loss of accuracy in the making process. The left and right bevelled knives are to allow you to work comfortably off a reference surface to the left or right, not whether you are left or right handed.

Richard Kell No.2 Honing Guide

A honing guide allows you to repeat the exact position of the blade and re-polish the existing secondary bevel in a few light strokes. They save time, steel, stone and frustration. Richard's guides are designed with respect for the relevant engineering concepts (referencing off the back of the blade only, wheels outboard of the blade so the guide dictates square to the edge) and manufactured with great precision. The No.2 guide is easy to get on with and can accommodate all parallel sided blades you are likely to encounter.

Gyokucho 303 Tatebiki Dovetail Saw

Japanese saws are easy to learn with and produce accurate results with very little effort. If you are used to using a western saw they may take a few cuts to get used to. The scalpel-like precision of a dozuki makes it possible to saw within a couple of shavings of a knife line. The 303 is optimised for 12mm stock (+/- 6mm), if your material is typically thinner than that, then the 311 Sun Child might be a better option.

Brass Chisel Hammer

A small hammer or mallet for making chopping cuts. For fine work the most aggressive we tend to get is pinching the neck of the chisel between finger and thumb and lightly tapping the top. A medium weight round carvers mallet or chisel hammer are the ideal tools for the job.

K-MET (formerly Kinex) Absoute Zero Digital Caliper

If you want to work to a tenth of a mm, it is important to be able to measure to a hundredth. Cheap calipers are awful - you are honestly better off with a good rule and a bright light. The one I'd recommend without a moment's hesitation is the Kinex Absolute Zero, this instrument is about twice the price of the really cheap inaccurate ones, but it has the reliability and performance that you'd normally only find on calipers at twice the price.

I'm already thinking that we should offer a choice of the metric or imperial versions of the Starrett square, but if anyone can think of any additions to the list of supplementary tools, or other options that we could add to switch out items within the kit itself, please let me know.