2025 EGW WOODTURNING NEWS & EVENTS
2024 EGW WOODTURNING NEWS & EVENTS
2023 EGW WOODTURNING NEWS & EVENTS
Art in Wood Christmas Fair 2022
2022 EGW WOODTURNING NEWS & EVENTS
All day demo by Emma Cook -The Tiny Turner 29 October 2022
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In-House Evening - October 2019
Our Programme Secretary, Mary, put together a wonderfully interesting and informative in-house evening this month.
Members were able to see various demonstrations and participate in a range of activities that included sharpening clinics, how to turn “gadgets & gizmos”, a chance to have a go at pyrography,
really useful talks about our EGW lathe & how to set up the TV & videoing equipment that we use each month, a demonstration on how to make a hanging Christmas decoration,
a “bring & buy” table, an area where members could display some of their recent makes, and of course refreshments, our monthly competition and the ever-popular raffle!
It was encouraging to see everyone getting to know each other better, sharing expertise and really benefitting from each other’s woodturning wisdom.
Art in Wood 2019
This year's “Art in Wood” exhibition & sale was held in August at the Cathedral Centre in Ely and was a real success.
Councillor Mike Rouse officially opened our event on the first day, with what is becoming the traditional sawing through a piece of wood as opposed to cutting a ribbon. He also gave a lovely speech about the wooden toys that his father and uncles made for him when he was a child.
We received some encouraging comments from the public about our daily woodturning demonstrations. Various EGW members volunteered to offer free demonstrations outside the Cathedral Centre - they proved to be very popular!
Our members submitted lots of their pieces and gave the public a chance to see the versatility of our craft. It was lovely to chat with people and provide information about the Ely Guild of Woodturners or woodturning in general - and it was great to hear such positive feedback from those who had visited our exhibition and gallery sale.
The EGW has been exhibiting since 2004.
For the first three years, the EGW held the event together with the Art Society, but started hosting its own independent exhibition thereafter.
The name of the exhibition was brought to the table by Brian Wallace after a holiday in France where he came upon an exhibition called “L’art du bois”. The exhibition was full of turned and carved woodwork created by just one man.
So, "Art in Wood" was formed in 2007, with the aim of presenting a high-class exhibition and sale that would be more sophisticated than a standard craft fair.
Art in Wood has continued in the same format ever since, with the addition of live woodturning demonstrations too.
We hope you enjoyed viewing our members’ work.
If you have any queries regarding Art in Wood, feel free to e-mail Clive, our Art in Wood Co-ordinator.
Check out our little video clip here!
Fun was had by all at our Hands-On Day 2019
We enjoyed another very successful hands-on day on Saturday 13 April at The Little Thetford Village Hall.
Following on from the success of last year's event, this year was just as interesting and appreciated by members and the public alike.
It was fantastic to see such a broad age range of participants (from little Joseph who is just 8 years old through to pensioners). The hall was equipped with six lathes (four teaching & two demonstrating), a pyrography table and a great selection of members’ work for people to see.
Members of the public made spinning tops, dibbers, little vases and mushrooms; they were most impressed at then being able to pop over to the pyrography table and pyrograph their names onto their pieces themselves.
We received some really positive feedback, both on the day "Everyone was so friendly", "Friendly, well organised. Thank you!", "Wonderful", "Very enjoyable", "Very interesting, will be back", and also in subsequent e-mails, such as this one
"Hi,
I went to the open day at Little Thetford on Saturday and had a really nice time. I had no idea I would be able to make something to take home. It was a great event and the members were so friendly and welcoming. Thank you for organising such an inclusive event which complete beginners could have a go at wood turning and pyrography.
Regards,
Niall Pearcey"
Well done to our Secretary, Simon Taggart, for organising the day, and to all those EGW members who helped to make the day run super smoothly. We hope this event has encouraged some of the visitors to take up the craft, and maybe join our Ely Guild of Woodturners too.
If anyone is interested in seeing more of our work, then do come along to our annual Art in Wood exhibition, which this year is being held between 17 – 25 August at the Cathedral Centre in Ely. Don't forget to follow us on Twitter!
Hands-On Day 2019
Following on from an extremely successful Hands-On Day in 2018, the Guild is hosting this year's event on Saturday 13 April from 10 am until 4 pm at the usual venue - the Little Thetford Village Hall.
We're hoping for a good turnout, as the event has been promoted widely throughout the region and on all our social media platforms.
Clive, our Chairperson, has also been invited to have a chat with Jeremy Sallis on his radio show on Monday 8 April at 2 pm. Clive will be promoting the Hands-On Day and providing listeners with information about the Ely Guild of Woodturners.
As in previous years, members of the public will be able to see a number of skilled woodturners demonstrating this highly addictive craft; and anyone is welcome to have a go themselves, under the expert guidance of one of our senior, expert turners.
The hall will be equipped with numerous lathes, a pyrography table and a large selection of members’ work for people to see.
Woodturning is a craft that can be enjoyed by young and old alike, and it's great to see the surprised and happy looks on the faces of those who have had a go and come away with something that they have made all by themselves (under the expert eye of the tutor).
Last year's event inspired some people to come along and join the EGW. This is encouraging to see, and we hope that this year's Hands-On Day will be equally inspirational.
National Village Halls Week
We were pleased to be involved in the National Village Halls Week, which took place between 22 and 28 January this year.
The first Village Halls Week was held in 2018, and this year the Little Thetford Village Hall was chosen to host the launch event.
We were invited to have a stand at the kick-off day, so a few of our members went along to represent the Guild.
We put on a fairly good show, with our club lathe out for people to look at, members on hand to answer quetsions about woodturning, a stand highlighting some of the members' work, and some general information about the Guild.
A good day was had by all, and it was lovely to be invited to participate!
2020 NATIONAL & INTERNATIONAL WOODTURNING NEWS & EVENTS
Chris Fisher lost his sight to a rare virus 10 years ago. As a skilled engineer and automotive body repair specialist, Chris had always worked with his hands but had never done any woodturning before going blind.
It took four years, but Chris found his way to woodturning and is now a highly regarded maker and demonstrator with a growing following as he travels the country to share his story.
Recently married to Nicola and now with guide dog Bamber very much part of the family, Chris – trading as The Blind Woodturner – is an inspiration not only to newcomers to woodturning, but to a wider audience of people facing difficult life challenges.
Chris recently committed to a tour of all the Axminster stores, starting in Warrington on January 26th.
Check out this inspirational interview on this link
(Text & link taken from the Axminster website)
Chestnut Products Woodturning Weekender Springfields Event Centre, Spalding, Lincolnshire
3 - 4 August 2019
Rocky Mountain Woodturning Symposium
The Ranch, Larimer County Fairgrounds, 5280 Arena Cir, Loveland, CO 80538, USA
14 - 16 September 2019
Irish Woodturners Guild Seminar
Radisson Blu Hotel, Ennis Road, Burtonhill, Limerick, Ireland
19 - 20 October 2019
2018 EGW NEWS & EVENTS
Andy Coates
All-Day Demo
We really enjoyed the all-day demonstration by Andy Coates last weekend.
The demo was interesting and fun, and he managed to demo four pieces during his time with us. The first, a round-bottomed bowl with feet, the second, a beautiful winged bowl with a lidded inset, the third, a lovely-shaped vase, and the fourth, a beautifully-figured bowl which he left behind for one of our members to finish off.
To discover more about Andy Coates, check out his website, but here's some general info.
Andy started turning in 2003 after having five minutes on his Father-In-Law's lathe in Suffolk. A lathe was purchased in a sale and taken back to London where he then lived, and Andy spent a few months chasing it around the patio clamped to a workmate.
A move from London to Suffolk three months later led to a temporary new 6ft by 8ft shed, a new lathe and 12 months of making decorative firewood. Andy was bitten by the bug.
By 2006, Andy had started selling work at craft events and was turning full time when he was recommended for the RPT. In the same year, Andy was also co-opted onto the committee of the AWGB where he stayed for ten years, ending his time there as Chairman.
Andy's passion is for decorative speculative work, but as a full-time turner he has to do a bit of everything from replica cabinet knobs, spindles and newels, architectural components, antique restorations, to making a ducking chair for Professor Alice Roberts' Channel 4 series on Tudor Towns.
Andy writes for Woodturning Magazine, demonstrates and teaches.
Clive's Slot on "Over To You"
Our Chair, Clive, represented the Guild on Friday 10 August on the Huntingdon Community Radio's "Over to You" community access programme, which is broadcast between 7pm and 8pm.
The show is designed for clubs, societies and charities to present their local organisation to the public - so it was a great platform for the EGW!
Clive talked about the EGW and his passion for woodturning, and was able to get in a plug about our "Art in Wood" exhibition and gallery sale which took place in August 2018.
If you missed the radio show, you can click here to listen to it.
Art in Wood 2018
We hosted our annual “Art in Wood” exhibition & sale from 18 - 27 August (10 am - 5 pm) at the Cathedral Centre (opposite the beautiful Ely Cathedral).
The event was officially opened by Councillor Charles Roberts using the inspired idea of sawing through a piece of wood as opposed to cutting a ribbon - genius!
Our members submitted lots of their pieces and gave the public a chance to see the versatility of our craft.
Each day, a member of the Guild also demonstrated woodturning on a lathe located outside the venue.
In addition to the enthusiasm we received for the pieces in the exhibit and on sale, we think we may have inspired a few people to take up the craft and come along to our next session and see what we're all about.
The EGW has been exhibiting since 2004.
For the first three years, the EGW held the event together with the Art Society, but started hosting its own independent exhibition thereafter.
The name of the exhibition was brought to the table by Brian Wallace after a holiday in France where he came upon an exhibition called “L’art du bois”. The exhibition was full of turned and carved woodwork created by just one man.
So, "Art in Wood" was formed in 2007, with the aim of presenting a high-class exhibition and sale that would be more sophisticated than a standard craft fair.
Art in Wood has continued in the same format ever since, with the addition of live woodturning demonstrations on some days.
We hope you enjoyed viewing our members’ work.
If you have any queries regarding Art in Wood, feel free to e-mail Mike, our Art in Wood Co-ordinator.
Check out our little video clip here!
Little Thetford Feast
We enjoyed being involved again in the Little Thetford Feast on 14 July. It was a very hot summer's day, and it was evident that all the visitors had a great time.
We set up just outside the Little Thetford Village Hall, which also plays host to our monthly EGW meetings.
We held demonstrations throughout the afternoon, and also had various items for sale.
A number of people watched the demos, took our leaflets and showed an interest in the craft.
The Feast managed to raise a wonderful £1600 to go towards its "Speed Awareness" campaign for the village.
Hands-On Day 2018
The Guild enjoyed an incredibly successful hands-on day on Saturday 21 April at The Little Thetford Village Hall.
The event has been held for a number of years, but this year saw a record number of attendees including young and old alike.
Members of the public were able to have a go at woodturning under the expert eye and guidance of some of our senior, expert turners. The hall was equipped with numerous lathes, a pyrography table and a large selection of members’ work for people to see.
One of the highlights of the day was a visit from the Mayor of Ely, Cllr Richard Hobbs. He even had a “turn” himself, although we made sure he removed his Chain of Office first!
It was great to see quite a few young people under the age of fourteen trying their hand at the craft, and one lady who had a go actually completed a bowl and took it away with her – smiling faces all round.
Well done to our Treasurer, Malcolm Arter, for organising the day, and to all those EGW members who helped to make the day run smoothly. We hope this event has encouraged some of the visitors to take up the craft, and maybe join our Ely Guild of Woodturners too.
If anyone is interested in seeing more of our work, then do come along to our annual Art in Wood exhibition, which this year is being held between 18 – 27 August at the Cathedral Centre in Ely. Don't forget to follow us on Twitter!
Photographs provided courtesy of Michael Rouse / Ely Standard.
Clive's Interview with Jeremy Sallis
Our Chair, Clive Baker, was invited to BBC Radio Cambridgeshire to chat to presenter, Jeremy Sallis, on his live show on 26 March 2018.
Clive talked about the EGW and his passion for woodturning. He was also able to mention our annual Woodturning Hands-On Day which is being held on Saturday 21 April at the Little Thetford Village Hall from 10am until 4pm.
If you missed the Jeremy Sallis Show, click here to listen to it. The interview starts at 2 hours, 25 mins.
Simon's Interview with Sue Marchant
One of our members, Simon Taggart, played host to BBC Radio Cambridgeshire's Sue Marchant on 26 March 2018. He showed Sue around his workshop and spoke about woodturning, what being a member of the Ely Guild of Woodturners is all about, and the various events we are holding this year.
If you missed the Sue Marchant Show, click here to listen to it. The interview starts at 31 mins, 40 seconds.
2017 EGW HIGHLIGHTS
Art in Wood
Our summer exhibition and sale, 'Art In Wood', took place between 19 and 28 August 2017 at the usual venue opposite Ely Cathedral.
Once again it proved a very successful event, with visitors coming from far and wide to view and buy the excellent range of items on display.
Thanks to the many members who gave their time to carry out steward duties or to demonstrate woodturning to the public.
This year's 'Art In Wood' will be held at the same venue (opposite the magnificent Ely Cathedral) from 18 through to 27 August 2018. We hope our members will be submitting lots of their pieces and giving the public a chance to see the versatility of our craft. If members have any queries, feel free to e-mail Mike, our Art in Wood Co-ordinator.
Hands-On Day
Last year's Hands-On Day took place on Saturday 22 April and was warmly received.
Members of the public, novice turners and established members were able to try woodturning under the expert eye and guidance of some of our senior and expert members.
We're sure this year's Hands-On Day will be fun too, and we're really looking forward to meeting members of the public
who are keen to see what we do, and maybe even have a go themselves.
Little Thetford Feast Day
The Ely Guild of Woodturners had a stand at the Little Thetford Feast Day on 8 July 2017.
Great fun was had by all, and the Guild donated 10% of its proceeds to the worthy cause of providing a village defibrillator, which is now in place.
It was great to be part of this fun and very worthwhile event!
