Info, news & debate

Woodworking


Can jobs such as wood-turning return to developed countries?

| 0

We’d like to think / hope so, as climate change, environmental damage and fossil fuel depletion make huge supply chains unviable. Most wood turning, for the European market at least, is done in China and the Far East. But how long can this continue – the transporting of almost everything we need in the West from the other side of the world? It’s too damaging to global ecology, and it involves virtual slave labour.

Read more about Can jobs such as wood-turning return to developed countries?




Interested in building with straw? Don’t miss The Big Straw Bale Gathering!

| 0

It’s not too late to join the biggest straw-bale building event of the year this August in Swansea. Jeffrey Hart of SBUK tells us about how you can get involved, learning all about building with straw from an impressive line-up of speakers to hands-on workshops.

Read more about Interested in building with straw? Don’t miss The Big Straw Bale Gathering!


Part of a collection of natural building books

A natural building bookshelf with Jeffrey the Natural Builder

| 0

In this post, Jeffrey the Natural Builder shares his top reading recommendations based on an original natural building books post on his blog. It’s over to him from here. Please note that this article contains affiliate links to bookshop.org – if you purchase we receive a small percentage. Thanks! 

Read more about A natural building bookshelf with Jeffrey the Natural Builder


Re-enacters Kormak and Mo hard at work using handmade bellows at their forge

How to make a pair of bellows: a step by step guide with Kormak the Carter

| 0

In this post we learn from Cormac Stanton how to construct a pair of working bellows, be they for the fireplace or the forge. A member of the Manaraefan Herred Dark Age and Early Medieval re-enactment group, as Kormak the Carter he works alongside blacksmith Mo Swinhosson. Both are described as highly competent early medieval

Read more about How to make a pair of bellows: a step by step guide with Kormak the Carter




A bench made from pallets features in the Permaculture Book of DIY

The power of doing things ourselves using recycled materials: the Permaculture Book of DIY

| 1

This is a radical new book – not because the ideas within it are going to change the world, but because it contains funky little DIY projects that could make a lot of people think ‘hey, I’ve always wanted one of those, but was put off by the cost – but actually, I could do

Read more about The power of doing things ourselves using recycled materials: the Permaculture Book of DIY

Trees as a renewable resource? It is possible in both the UK and USA

Why do Americans have a different attitude to Brits when it comes to using trees as a renewable resource?

| 0

We’ve noticed from comments on our blogs and on social media that environmentally-conscious Americans have a slightly different attitude to using trees as a renewable resource – whether for firewood or for timber – than that prevalent in the UK.

Read more about Why do Americans have a different attitude to Brits when it comes to using trees as a renewable resource?





tapestry

The future will be handmade? The prospects for craft skills in ‘developing’ countries

| 8

The Future will be handmade? In the information age, the question has an absurd ring. But I ask after listening to Ashoke Chatterjee at the Artisans House in Mumbai. As a long time President of the Crafts Council of India, Chatterjee tells us that ‘The Future will be handmade’. The question mark is mine. 

Read more about The future will be handmade? The prospects for craft skills in ‘developing’ countries