Look Forward & A Merry Christmas!

by | Dec 21, 2018 | 44 comments

Next year is set to be very busy for us in terms of video projects, but we’re also going to be starting out with something new, and tailoring our content to suit different skill levels.

We’re putting a more structured educational scheme together. It’s something we’ve had in the pipeline for a while now, and will start to become available early in the New Year.

This will be brought in much the same way as our video projects, and we’ll begin at the beginning, taking you from the very core of setting up a workshop to get functional.

We’re covering the tools, the basic appliances and working through structured beginner’s projects to get you building.
Then the education will progress onwards towards the more advanced stuff.

beginners guide to hand tool woodworking

A beginners guide to hand tool woodworking – Yes, that is an outdoor table! Even the workshop for our education series is a spare room in a wooden hut. The idea here is that everything will be covered, so no tool or item will be brought in without a full explanation and understanding, until we have a fully functioning set up.

Our project builds are going to continue alongside, and running these separate from the core education is going to allow us to go much more advanced with the builds. I’m going to go where my heart’s taking me in choosing what to build, meaning things will be highly varied.

So we’re looking at diversifying on what’s available from us, keeping the projects insightful, inspiring and entertainment focused, with a separate progressive and ongoing series bringing education for the very beginner.

Things will be getting busy here in the New Year, so in the meantime we’d like to wish you a very Happy Christmas and a huge thank you for all your support this past year.


Not familiar with our Videos?

We make online courses that provide tuition on hand tool woodworking.
Each Series provides a detailed step by step build complete with professional instruction on hand tool use and techniques.

The videos can be accessed immediately online.
We charge a one time fee for lifetime access and the content can be both streamed and downloaded.

As a professional hand tool woodworker, the aim is to get you feeling inspired to build and equipped with the knowledge to tackle projects entirely by hand.

View our full Collection of Video Series HERE
Or sign up to our Free Plane Build Mini Series HERE

Related Posts

About Richard Maguire

About Richard Maguire

As a professional hand tool woodworker, Richard found hand tools to be the far more efficient solution for a one man workshop. Richard runs 'The English Woodworker' as an online resource and video education for those looking for a fuss free approach to building fine furniture by hand. Learn More About Richard & The English Woodworker.

44 Comments

  1. Scott

    Suitable post for the Christmas time….leaving me excitedly waiting for the surprise to come.

    Reply
  2. Miikka

    This looks brilliant, I cannot wait!

    Peaceful Christmas to you two as well!

    Reply
  3. robert lacey

    Merry Christmas to you and yours and best wishes for success in 2019.

    Reply
  4. Joe

    Happy Xmas to you both – this is opportune for me as I will be moving in 2019 and although I will bring my planer/thicknesser,band saw etc. I intend to set up my new work shop more for hand working

    Reply
  5. David Hepworth

    Thanks for the greetings Richard and for all that has gone and is to come.

    Have a great Christmas and all the very best for the New Year to you and your good lady.

    Reply
  6. William

    Sounds great, really looking forward to it

    Happy Christmas to you both!

    Reply
  7. John Verreault

    Richard & Helen,
    What an absolutely brilliant end to this year and even more brilliant start to next year.
    Happy Christmas and all the best in the new year to you both!

    Cheers from Canada,
    John

    Reply
  8. Jim Baker

    Merry Christmas! I’d like to think of myself as an intermediate skilled woodworker but I am having trouble getting past that. Seems I skipped the boring basic stuff to just bull my way thru projects. Perhaps it is time to back off and start again…

    Reply
  9. John

    Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!
    I am looking forward to next year, keep up the good work.

    Reply
  10. paul

    Happy Christmas!
    Cannot wait to see your new years offerings.

    Reply
  11. Mac

    Unreal, can’t wait.

    Reply
  12. Ken Haygarth

    Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year Guys. I am looking forward to next year like everyone else, sounds great.

    Reply
  13. Bernard Pearce

    Merry Christmas and a happy New Year to you and your families.
    God bless you.

    Reply
  14. Bernard Pearce

    Wishing you a merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.
    God bless you and your family

    Reply
  15. John

    Good to hear from you. Happy Christmas and a grand New Year to you & yours!

    Reply
  16. Ann Shaw

    Seasons greetings to you both and a big thanks for all the hard work that must go into your fantastic videos. Can’t wait for round two.

    Reply
  17. ivan walker

    For goodness sake Richard, this feels a wee bit like having to wait for the
    January sales but, ok then, if I must then, I’ll wait!
    BUT I CAN’T WAIT! Giz a preview? He! He! C Yiz Soon!

    Reply
    • Twoflower

      Let take it that Richard is just enhancing the anticipation level, but it is pretty much marking.

      Reply
      • pierre

        *marketing

        Reply
  18. Jane

    Looking forward to it all….
    Happy to Christmas!

    Reply
  19. Chris Bailey

    Brilliant …. can’t wait.
    MERRY BLOODY CHRISTMAS to you both and all the best for the New Year.
    Chris Bailey

    Reply
  20. Michael W. O’Brien

    Thank you Richard for that good news about next year and all of your videos to date. No matter what you do, it will be a fun learning experience, as always. And thanks to Helen for her excellent and detailed videography.
    Happy Holidays to you and to Helen.
    Cheers
    Michael W. O’Brien
    USA

    Reply
  21. Byron Servies

    This will be great motivation for me to finish my workbench over my break in preparation.

    Merry Christmas!

    Reply
    • Joe

      Ha! I finished mine! Took me a year to build it – first a weekend commute job, then a new job, plus two little kids. Still: I used it to build a playing kitchen for them, a U-shaped thing that sits on top of a small cupboard in the kids’ room. Dovetailed. In nasty DIY store beech (they sell these nasty glued up panels). Not perfect, but the kids love it.
      Hope you enjoy your bench as much as I enjoy mine!

      Reply
  22. Warren Clendenning

    Thanks Helen and Richard for a great year. Merry Christmas and a Happy New year. I’m looking forward to 2019 with anticipation.
    Cheers

    Reply
  23. Steven

    Happy Christmas and happy new year
    Richard and Helen
    This is the best thing I’ve red on the internet all day can’t wait !
    Sorry if the spellings off , but it’s black eye Friday we’re im from and I’ve had a few
    To many sherbets (pints ) 🍻 anywAy
    All the best and I look forward to watching in the new year thanks Ste 👍

    Reply
  24. Dan Roper

    Merry Christmas to you Richard. I anxiously await the coming year with the new projects.

    Reply
  25. Joseph R. Janutka

    Some basic beginner stuff, like a low sawing bench and a saw horse and a shooting board and a bench hook, etc., and anything else you can think of. Now you’re talking! Happy Christmas too!

    Reply
  26. John

    This is a very exciting idea. Running the two skill levels side by side is inspired.

    As a novice who has only just finished the Workbench project (brilliant by the way), the tips on workshop set up, appliances etc couldn’t be better timed.

    I’m glad you will be continuing the project builds at the same time as well. You guys are the only ones showing how to build something I would actually want to put in my home! Your designs are fantastic! Long may it continue! All the best for xmas and 2019!

    Reply
  27. David Clark

    What a nice Christmas present. Thank you very much.

    Reply
  28. Les

    Merry Christmas to you Richard..thanks for your work and info on a great site.
    Best wishes from Aus !!

    Reply
  29. Cees Tax

    Happy Christmas to team Maguire. Keep up the excellent work in 2019.

    Reply
  30. michael blake

    looking forward to next year with you,
    Merry Christmas and All the best for 2019.

    Reply
  31. Ed

    Great idea. May I make a suggestion? You already have an audience of mixed skill levels. You already have a system of selling instruction piecemeal (which is good). Therefore, please don’t feel like you must start at the beginning and work linearly through the skill levels. Having something end to end is the goal, but you can release beginner, intermediate, and advanced stuff side by side so that the different parts of your community can be served at once. The reason I say this is that there are many avenues of instruction available online and, good as they are, they tend to get stuck at the beginner and intermediate level and never move on to advanced topics involving shaping (like cabriole legs), making and applying mouldings, making multi-part furniture like things with a base, etc. So, please consider that you don’t need to do this linearly. I’ll bet if you put out videos on making and applying mouldings, you’d have buyers right away especially if you cover how applying mouldings affects the planning of joinery at the top and bottom of cabinets (to avoid interfering with doors). Think it over. (ps- If we all buy her chocolate or something, could we convince Hellen to do her paint video? 🙂

    Reply
    • Miikka

      Ed, I will have to disagree with you.

      How I see it, the majority of hand tool woodworking content is pretty varied just in the way you suggest. For the absolute beginner this leaves the problem of choosing the right content and often battling through builds with less than ideal knowledge of the basics. The first part of the problem is about being able to pick a suitable amount of challenge for one’s skill level, which can be difficult. The second part can be summarised by Richard’s own words: You are only going to learn what whoever is teaching you is teaching you. Projects always assume the builder already has numerous skills in his/her pocket. With the announced new content scheme, both problems are eradicated. The beginner can simply follow the series to learn the basics and get going.

      I, for one, could not be happier about the new content, it seems to be exactly what I have wished for.

      Reply
      • Ed

        I was thinking that it didn’t have to be either / or, but could be both, i.e., that the introductory stuff could progress along and that intermediate and advanced stuff could be done in parallel so that both moved along. But, I don’t think I’m considering how much work is involved and it’s just two people doing the production, so you’re probably right. Alas.

        Reply
        • Miikka

          I understood from the post that they are going to do both at the same time, just as you suggest; Continue with the project series but also launch the basic skills program. 🙂

          Reply
          • Ed

            You’re right! I should read more carefully. Sounds great!

  32. Chris Bailey

    Great idea(s) Richard, can’t wait.
    In the meantime have a VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS, and all the bloody best for the New Year.
    Chris Bailey

    Reply
  33. Rob

    As a beginner with limited tool set up this is exactly what attracted me to your video series to begin with. You’re a fantastic educator and I can’t thank you enough. I built the hand plane following the video and it works a treat. Workbench is next on the punch list. Thanks again!!

    Reply
  34. alessandrot

    i thought it was because Helen doesn’t want showing up herself in video. Then I’ve seen the chair building video and now I’d bet it’s because she doesn’t like to share her secret recipe for that beautiful paint…

    Reply
  35. Hamilton Billiards

    Hi Richard, thanks for sharing this blog post. Great content along with clear pictures made this read very insightful. Looking forward to your guide on hand tool woodworking!

    Reply

Submit a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Subscribe to Updates:

Related Posts:

Simple Work Holding For Ploughing Grooves [Without a Tail Vice]

Sometimes the biggest challenge of a project can just be getting the wood to stay put while we try to work on it. I suppose it's why it's so easy for us to get lost in the hunt for a perfect workbench design. And drawn in towards all kinds of vice bling and fancy work...

Prototyping – Part 1 Now Live!

https://youtu.be/U2wiudDPSig 'The Nest of Tables' series is now complete!Find full details & watch the intro HERE. This nest of tables is based on a design where they'll each come together with a lovely sliding fit, so it was certainly the kind of build that benefited...

The Nest of Tables – New Series!

https://youtu.be/_A5hjwKqBp4 This Build is an Exercise in Precision! [A total of over 8 hours of video broken into 11 chapters, which take you step-by-step through the build, including how to build the 'hand plane thicknesser' jig. ]Watch the intro above. The series...