Instructor: Craig Stevens

• June 23 - 26, 2025 9am - 4pm (4 days, Monday - Thursday)

Explore the essential fundamentals of working with hand tools while creating a beautiful 3-leg stool with a free-form seat. The stool, echoing the fluid style of Wharton Esherick’s famous design, is a satisfying project that covers several fundamental handtool techniques that will be discussed in detail. The splayed legs and hand-shaped seat create a light, strong, and comfortable stool.

In the past, PFW has offered this project class as a woodturning class. We’re now offering the class as a hand tool project instead. Students will use simple workbench jigs for holding the legs and rungs while shaping and sizing using cutting tools, such as spokeshaves and hand planes. The legs and rungs will be hand-planed round or nearly round with subtle facets; this is a challenging but achievable alternative to the lathe. The free-form seat will be shaped by hand with travishers and spokeshaves.

While this is a hand-tool-focused class, they will not be used exclusively. We’ll use the bandsaw to cut the seat, tenon cutters and cordless drills to cut the tenons, and the drill press for the mortises.

Cost includes all materials. The stool measures approximately 24” tall, but it can be made shorter as well.