The shop, 2022
I teach Windsor and ladder back chair making classes out of my shop in Charlotte, Vermont - I share the shop with Jolynn Santiago, who teaches jewelry and enameling workshops. My classes are a week long, or a little longer and you build a chair start to finish. The daily schedule is 9AM - 5PM. Classes are open to all skill levels and no previous experience is required.
All classes cover the basics of green wood chair making:
joinery - moisture content and grain orientation
steam bending
kiln use
material selection - from the log and sawn stock
drawknives
sharpening - drawknives, spokeshaves, drill bits,
A $300 deposit will confirm your spot, and is refundable up to 60 days before the start of class.
2024 CLASSES
Boggs Ladder Back Chair (7 days)
March 17 -23 — Charlotte, VT — Tuition: Side Chair $1450, Arm Chair $1650
FULL CLASS - Send an email to join the waitlist
Build an iconic ladder back chair designed by Brian Boggs. Routed slat mortises and drill press mortising, combined with lots of hand shaped parts. Included in the tuition is a copy of Jeff Lefkowitz’s manual on building Boggs ladder backs, detailing every step of the process. Note: Students will purchase their own seating material and bring it with them to class, see my resources page. For a side chair you will need 32 yards of 1”material, for an arm chair you will need 42 yards of 1” material, see my resources page.
Two-Slat Side Chair (6 days)
April 21st - 26th — Florida School of Woodwork, Tampa, FL
Information and how to sign up can be found on the Florida School of Woodwork website:.
Democratic Windsor Side Chair (7 days)
May 12-18 — Charlotte, VT — Tuition: $1500
A Curtis Buchanan design, this chair is all hand work and a deep dive into the drawknife. The class starts with four days of splitting parts out from a log and shaping them on the shaving horse with the drawknife. Mortises will be drilled and reamed by eye and seats will be carved with the drawknife and scorp. This class is a lot of work and a lot of fun, it offers a unique opportunity to build skills with a few core tools. Resources on painting and finishing will be provided for students to do at home.
Greenwood Week with Elia Bizzari and Eric Cannizzaro! (5 days)
June 10-14, 2024 - Charlotte, VT - Tuition: $1000
Spend a week working wood as nature intended. We’ll begin with a walk in the woods and learn how to identify several useful tree species and how to pick a good tree for green woodworking projects. Then we will return to the shop to split and rive parts from an ash log to start our first project. A variety of projects will teach us how to exploit wood’s strengths and weaknesses for our benefit. Emphasis will be placed on learning fundamentals that can be applied to a variety of projects, green or dry. Project options include: spoons, pitch forks, brooms, firewood carriers, tool handles, fan birds sharpening and other projects useful and otherwise. A pole lathe will be on hand for fun and turning.
The class takes place at Eric Cannizzaro’s shop in Charlotte, Vermont. There are 8 slots available. On-site camping is available for a small fee. We will also offer a work-study position to someone for whom money is a barrier – email Elia or Eric for more details.
A $150 deposit is required to register. If written cancellation is received up to two months before the class start date, a 50% refund will be provided. Within two months no refund is offered.
Pitch Fork Making (Two 3-hour Sessions)
June 29 - 30 — Sloyd Skills Gathering - Standard, VT
FULL CLASS
In this workshop you will use simple tools to make a pitch fork from a single piece of wood. Starting with blanks fresh out of the log, we will cover fundamental green woodworking principles and techniques like shaping with the drawknife, finding the plane of the long wood fibers, bending with steam, and drying material. After two 3-hour sessions everyone will leave with a shaped and bent pitch fork, held in a drying form. In a couple weeks the fork will dry and can be taken out of the form - and used! You can keep the form, or return it to the instructor for a $25 refund.
Final details and registration coming soon.
Windsor Chairmaking w/ Andy Glenn
August 12th - 16th — Center for Furniture Craftsmanship, Rockport, ME
I’m co-teaching this 5-day class with Andy Glenn.. More information and how to sign up can be found on the Center for Furniture Craftsmanship website:.
Reflection Side Chair (7 days)
September 15-21 — Charlotte, VT — Tuition: $1600
This class covers a wide range of processes relevant to Windsor and ladder back chair making. Much of the week will be spent on the shaving horse shaping parts with the drawknife and spokeshave. Steam bending with and without compression straps will be covered in detail. Mortises will be drilled with the brace and bit, cordless drill, and the drill press. Note: Students will purchase their own seating material and bring it with them to class - 25 yards of 1” material, or 40 yards of 5/8” material, see my resources page.
Black Ash Baskets: Log to Back! (3.5 days)
Instructors: Penny Hewitt, Eric Cannizzaro
September 26 -29 — Charlotte, VT — Tuition: $400
Make your own pack basket and in the process learn one of the oldest crafts in human history. For thousands of years baskets served as indispensable objects in every culture. Carry on the tradition and take home a beautiful, durable and useful basket crafted from local and responsibly harvested, hand pounded black ash logs.
Midday on Thursday, we will start with a discussion outlining the process of selecting, harvesting and processing a tree. Following will be an afternoon of pounding black ash logs to prepare material to use in the workshop. It is an essential and large part of the making of ash baskets and we are excited for you to experience it. Folks will have varying degrees of capability around this skill, as it takes a fair amount of physical strength and stamina. No worries! We will all work together to produce what we need as a group.
Friday, we will spend the day carving a handle and rim. The material will be riven out of a white ash log and carved with the drawknife and spokeshave. After carving, steam will be used to bend them into shape, and a small light bulb kiln to set the bends.
Saturday and Sunday will be full days of weaving an, approximately 18" tall, Adirondack style, pack basket with cedar runners and base and an adjustable webbing or leather harness. This basket is made to last and be used!
Democratic Windsor Settee (8 days)
October 5-12— Charlotte, VT — Tuition: $1800
FULL CLASS - Send an email to join the waitlist
A Curtis Buchanan design, this chair is all hand work and a deep dive into the drawknife. The class starts with four days of splitting parts out from a log and shaping them on the shaving horse with the drawknife. Mortises will be drilled and reamed by eye and seats will be carved with the drawknife and scorp. This class is a lot of work and a lot of fun, it offers a unique opportunity to build skills with a few core tools. Resources on painting and finishing will be provided for students to do at home.
Broom Making (1 day)
Instructor: Heather Ashworth
October 13 - 9AM - 3PM — Charlotte, VT — Tuition: $130
Get swept away in the charm of traditional hearth broom making. This elegant craft brings function and beauty together for a unique utilitarian object. Students will leave with a completed broom for use or display. All levels welcome; moderate hand and upper-body strength is needed. Materials provided in cost. Light refreshments provided, bring a bag lunch.
Heather Ashworth is an artist and educator living in Knoxville, Tennessee. She’s the shop manager and an administrator at Able Trade Knoxville, and a past resident at Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts where she also ran the woodshop for more than a decade. Heather teaches woodworking and broom making in her personal studio and at schools across the country. More of her work can be found here.
Boggs Ladder Back Rocker (7 days)
Instructors: Eric Cannizzaro, Dawson Moore
Oct 27 -Nov 2 — Greg Pennington’s Shop, Hendersonville, TN — Tuition: $2100
FULL CLASS - Send an email to join the waitlist
Build an iconic ladder back rocking chair designed by Brian Boggs. Routed slat mortises and drill press mortising, combined with lots of hand shaped parts. Included in the tuition is a copy of Jeff Lefkowitz’s manual on building Boggs ladder backs, detailing every step of the process. Seats will be woven with Danish cord. . Note: This class takes place in Greg Pennington’s wood shop in Hendersonville, Tennessee.
Dawson Moore lives and works on a 6th generation family farm in Harbor Springs, MI. He has spent the last several years learning traditional methods of working with the local trees, from log to finished everyday household items like spoons, cups, stools and chairs.
Two-Slat Side Chair or Arm Chair (7 days)
December 1-7 — Charlotte, VT — Tuition: $1600
A great introduction to ladder back chair making, with an emphasis on design principals. Much of the week will be spent on the shaving horse shaping parts with the drawknife and spokeshave. Steam bending with and without compression straps will be covered in detail. Mortises will be drilled on the drill press. Note: Students will purchase their own seating material and bring it with them to class. For a side chair you will need: 40 yards of 5/8” shaker tape. For an arm chair you will need 60 yards of 5/8'“ material. See my resources page.