Ardingly Microbodge, 10-11 December 2011

Every now and then, a few interested parties gather local here and there in Mid Sussex to bodge, with the aim of practising their green woodworking skills and other associated skills such as drinking tea and eating nice baked things!

This was all started by the lovely Nick and Nancy a while ago who invited as many as they could fit into their garden to bodge and eat, since then a few other venues have cropped up and last week it was my turn to host.

The main aim of the Microbodge is to lend support and enthusiasm as we can get on green woodwork projects, without complications getting in the way.  This weekend saw some forging going on with the aid of my homemade forge and work-made charcoal fines for the heat.  Fionn wanted to start forging tools for himself so he got on with work and started wisely making a bottoming knife.

He didn’t finish the knife as darkness came in too soon but the initial forging was ready to accept some of the 1^st stage of sharpening, leaving the secondary forging of the bottoming curve for next time.  This next stage will then require the heat treatment part and final sharpening.  This project will give Fionn a good base to make his first hook tool later down the line.

Nick got on with some bowl turning on his lathe and even talked Tim through some bowl turning who I believe made his first green bowl.

Nick’s work has come on a great deal and the improvement in his work can clearly be seen and the finish on his bowls is excellent.  Through the day I noticed he was returning to the sharpening stone to “tickle” his tool (bowl hook!) which is essential to the good finish of a good looking bowl.

It was great to see Steve was concentrating on his poppits to finish his beautifully crafted pole lathe, and Vanessa was turning candlesticks in time for Christmas on Fionn’s lathe, showing her eye for detail, and we look forward to seeing the finished article.

 

Others joined us just for the social, you can normally tell who they are from the workman’s hands (or not)!

Becky and Tim were here, as well as Em and Gaz who started their next spoon which they took home to finish off in their front room as instructed.  We will be inspecting their work at the next micobodge!

We obviously had to eat over the weekend, so we took the opportunity to spark up the fire pit and cook stew and dumplings in the Balkans Kotlich we were bought for Christmas last year by Char and Dave (thanks!).

I personally loved it and it was very filling, the herby cheesy dumplings were a hit and everyone was suitably fuelled to carry on in the afternoon.

Mike Gordon brought his tart which everyone enjoyed, it appears he has other talents other than his bodging skills, including his next fabulous spoon.  So we’re looking forward to the next treat Mike!

For those who stayed with us for the whole weekend, we rounded off Saturday evening with a quick visit to see the famous Wakehurst lights and then piled down the Ardingly Inn.  Happy days.  So, a great weekend had by all, and can’t wait for the next winter bodge!

A brief history of how my bowlturning came about

Hello readers

This is my first attempt at blogging, so apologies if it all feels a bit rough round the edges, but I hope you enjoy this insight into the life of a green woodworker!

So, first things first, a brief account of my history and what this blog’s all about.

I'm a tree surgeon based in a small Sussex village called Ardingly, working for the country's leading arboretum, Kew Gardens, at Wakehurst Place.  Not only do I lead on the gardens' tree work, but I carry out all sorts of woodland conservation and forestry work too.

But perhaps the most exciting development in my career so far has been entering the world of heritage green woodwork, my passion in life (well, perhaps second to my wife to be!).  I've been pole lathe turning since the mid '90s, and have always had an ambition to make bowls on a pole lathe after seeing a picture of Stephen de Brett doing this in Mike Abbott’s ‘Green Woodwork’ book, but somehow never got round to making it happen due my lack of knowledge of this complicated skill at the time.

However, this all changed when I had the opportunity to build a timber frame oak building at Wakehurst.  I enjoyed this so much, it was the realisation that I should delay no longer in pursuing my ambition to turn green wooden bowls.

Now I have got to a stage where I consider myself a fledged competent bowl turner, and I would like to write this blog to record how I have developed my skills and where they’re taking me now.

2011 Bodgers Ball, Lower Brockhampton (the 'half hour challenge')

I’d also like to take the opportunity here to pay a tribute to my grandparents, who inspired me as a child to respect nature and enjoy the countryside from a young age.  I stayed with them every weekend after school and during school holidays, and they would take me out to local woodland and wildlife sites like Woods Mill and the South Downs.  They also taught me basic field skills like using a sheath knife, collecting firewood, axework and lighting a fire, well before I was 10.  This is what drove me in the end to have a career in conservation and treework.