Short Courses

Phoebe Everill’s Furniture Making School holds a range of woodworking and furniture making courses and classes suitable for everyone.

Short Courses

The following woodworking short courses will be running this year. Click through for more details and to register.
INTENSIVE & FORTNIGHTLY CLASSES Phoebe also runs regular classes at her Furniture Making School – for details, check the main furniture making school page here.
 

Tool Sharpening Workshop

The Art of Sharpening

Keeping chisels and plane blades really sharp is absolutely essential for achieving excellent results in your work.

Woodworking is also far more enjoyable and easier when your tools are really sharp.

The workshop will provide you with a very comprehensive sharpening class.
You will learn the fundamentals of tuning and sharpening a hand plane, sharpening chisels and using a variety of sharpening methods.

Bring along your own plane blade and at least one chisel.

There will be 6 people in the class

The course runs from 9am – 4pm.

There will be a half hour lunch break from 12:30 – 1pm.
Please bring your own lunch.
Morning and afternoon tea provided.

Level:
All levels

Please bring with you:
Bring your own PPE (dust mask, eye and ear protection, closed shoes)
A notebook, pencil and eraser
Lunch

Cost:
$220 inc. GST

Dates:
Saturday 10th June 2023
Saturday 12th August 2023

Bookings:
Please register your interest here to attend this course.
REGISTER INTEREST »

tool sharpening course

Spoon carving with Emily Dellios

1 Day Course

You will design and carve your own wooden spoon, which you can take home and use with pride.

Your instructor for this class, Emily Dellios, will begin with a discussion on types of wood, a guide for the tools you will be using during class, and a general overview of various wooden spoon carving techniques.

You will get the chance to practice the correct usage of hand tools and feel confident in making your very own spoon. No previous experience is necessary for this class, as you will be guided every step of the way. We will focus on safe use of hand tools.

Allow 7 hours including an hour break for lunch.

All tools and materials supplied on the day (though we recommend bringing your own tools if you have them). We will help you get them really sharp!

Please wear covered shoes to class, all tools and materials are provided.

Please bring with you:

  • Bring your own PPE (dust mask, eye and ear protection, closed shoes)
  • A notebook, pencil and eraser
  • Your lunch

The workshop is suitable for adults (16+). All skill levels are welcome, no experience needed

There will be 8 people in the class.

Cost:
$180 inc. GST

Dates:
6th of March 2023

Bookings:
Please register your interest here to attend this course.
REGISTER INTEREST »

spoon carving
spoon carving

Carving a Huon Pine Boat Sculpture with Carol Russell

Boats are symbolic of many things, freedom and adventure among them. Their lines are beautiful and inherently sculptural.

Huon Pine is a renowned boat building timber, In this 3 day course you will carve your own little Huon Pine boat sculpture.

It isn’t so much a model, as a sculpture that captures the essence of what boats mean to you and how they make you feel. You can create a small row boat or a sailing boat with a billowing sail.

It’s enormously rewarding to sit and drink a cup of tea or coffee from a vessel you’ve carved yourself. In this 2-day class you’ll design and carve a small handled cup from white beech using hand tools only.

Carving small objects is a very meditate process, the slower process of using hand tools allows you the time to really understand the relationship between the timber, the tools and the form.

  • Timber and tool selection
  • Design
  • Safety
  • Creating a blank
  • Carving techniques
  • Finishing – sanding, texturing, painting and charring (shou sugi ban)
  • Tool maintenance and sharpening
  • Mounting work

Please wear covered shoes to class, all tools and materials are provided.

Please bring with you:

  • Bring your own PPE (dust mask, eye and ear protection, closed shoes)
  • A notebook, pencil and eraser
  • Your lunch

The course runs each day from 9am – 4pm over 3 days.

There will be 8 people in the class.

Cost:
$990 inc. GST

Dates:
18th, 19th and 20th of April 2023

Bookings:
We have previously had amazing demand for these carving courses, so please register quickly!
REGISTER »

carol russell huon boat 3
carol russell huon boat 2
carol russell huon boat

Carving Small Animal Forms from a solid block of wood with Carol Russell

This two-day class will focus on carving small animal forms from a solid block of wood, not a pre-cut blank. We will use only hand tools so you are in control of the whole process and need very little in the way of tools to continue after the class.

The emphasis is less on anatomical correctness and more on the features that bring out the characteristics of the subject and those aspects that make animals so endearing to us. The tilt of a head, the position of the ears, the way light falls on their features. Timber choice plays an important role too, form can be highly influenced by grain and colour.

We’ll be working with a range of Australian timbers. The level of detail, hardness of the material and finish will determine how many little sculptures you will complete during the course.

The course will cover:

  • Timber and tool selection
  • Design
  • Safety
  • Creating a blank
  • Carving techniques
  • Finishing – sanding, texturing, painting and charring (shou sugi ban)
  • Tool maintenance and sharpening
  • Mounting work

Please wear covered shoes to class, all tools and materials are provided.

Please bring with you:

  • Bring your own PPE (dust mask, eye and ear protection, closed shoes)
  • A notebook, paper, pencil and eraser
  • Your lunch

The course runs each day from 9am – 4pm over 2 days.

There will be 8 people in the class

Cost:
$660 inc. GST

Dates:
15th and 16th of April 2023

Bookings:
We have previously had amazing demand for these carving courses, so please register quickly!
REGISTER »

carving animals
carving animals
carving animals

Mastering Joinery Series – Mortise and Tenon
Krenov Sawhorse

This two day course is a great opportunity to construct a pair of these classic sawhorses, light, strong and stackable, every woodworker has a use for these.

You will learn how to accurately mark up, cut and fit 3 types of mortice and tenon joinery (blind, through wedged and draw bore pinned). With these skills you can tackle more complex furniture projects.

Kim Winton and Phoebe Everill provide a learning environment where plenty of time is available to progress your skills.

Please bring with you:

  • Your own hand tools if you have them (handsaw, chisels and block plane) or you can use ours.
  • Dust mask
  • Closed shoes
  • A notebook, paper, pencil and eraser
  • Your lunch

The workshop is suitable for adults (16+). All skill levels are welcome, no experience needed

There will be 8 people in the class

Cost:
$475 inc. GST

Dates:
26th and 27th of August 2023 

Bookings:
SORRY, THIS COURSE IS FULLY BOOKED, but you can register your interest to be added to our waitlist should a vacancy open up.

sawhorse course
sawhorse course