About Us
Our passion is to create memorable items from the wide range of both native and exotic timbers available in New Zealand, and to share our skills with others such as yourself.The Monthly Guild Meeting
We meet in the Woodworkers Hall at 8 Storey Avenue on the third Tuesday of the month from 7.00 pm to approx 9.00 pm. After the meeting there is time for coffee and a chat. An exhibition table is open to all to display their latest work and for it to be critiqued and judged. Items are then photographed and placed in the Gallery as an on-going record. At each meeting the President issues a challenge to members to make an item for a competition. Recently it has been a birdcage to be followed in the next month by a fish donger.
After a short session to cover the general business of the Guild we welcome a guest speaker or demonstrator who is generally the highlight of the evening. These guests are experts at some aspect of working with wood whether it be using tools, using a lathe or finishing the end product
The Weekly Workshops
The weekly workshops are comprised of 3 hour sessions of up to 5 persons which are held in the mornings, afternoons and evenings of most days, whenever there is sufficient demand. Tuition and general support from the other members is offered. There are five modern lathes and associated chisels, chucks and safety gear, along with a bandsaw, drill press and the Woodcut TruGrind sharpening system.
Each workshop has a supervisor who is responsible for safety procedures and workshop security. They will also instruct members in the use of the bandsaw and other equipment, and certify those who wish to use such equipment.
Any member wishing to join a workshop should speak to a committee member in the first instance. (see Contacts).
The Carvers Group
This group of master craftsmen meet on Thursday from 9.00 am to 12.00pm. They would welcome new members keen to learn an old craft.
Carving is the act of using tools to shape something from a material by scraping away portions of that material. The technique can be applied to any material that is solid enough to hold a form even when pieces have been removed from it, and yet soft enough for portions to be scraped away with available tools. Carving, as a means for making sculpture is distinct from methods using soft and malleable materials like clay, fruit and melted glass which may be shaped into the desired forms while soft and then harden into that form. Carving tends to require much more work than methods using malleable materials.
Club Visits and Conventions
There are frequent opportunities for members of the Guild, as a group, to visit other clubs, Guild members’ workshops or other places of interest to woodworkers.
Show and Tell
A group of enthusiastic members of the Guild meets on the 2nd and 4th Tuesday of the month from 1 pm to 2.30 in the Woodworkers’ Hall. They bring their own work to be examined and discussed, and to share their knowledge of the craft of turning. The group provides an unparalleled opportunity to listen to and learn from experienced turners.
This group is kept to a limit of 10 members as this is the most helpful size for sharing experience but others may join if vacancies arise. Additional groups can be formed at any members request.
If you are interested then please contact the Secretary in the first instance.
Chat and Turn
Members meet on the morning of the 4th Saturday of the month in the workshop to participate in a hands-on session of workshop practice. It is an older practice revived in 2018 for an informal get together under the title “Chat & Turn”. This is an opportunity to gain specialised skills from master craftsmen. The aim of these occasions is to promote fellowship and provide informal information-sharing amongst our members.
Sometimes we have a demonstration from one of our own members and sometimes there are more formal activities. For example, we have had demonstrations on the use of the skew chisel and the use of routers in woodturning . We have also had demonstrations on different types of sharpening systems and toy making.
A regular and significant community project is our wigstand making days when all members are encouraged to bring in their lathes (if practical). On these occasions though the primary activity is to make wigstands for cancer sufferers it is also the opportunity to exchange ideas on the best ways of doing the same task and therefore to improve our skills..
Once a year we arrange for members to visit other members home workshops. Everyone has a slightly different set up for carrying out common tasks and new ideas can easily be spotted during these visits.
The woodturning community exists in many different places. We have visited the Putaruru Woodturners Group and in turn have hosted the Hauraki Woodturners Group. Each group has different practices and wisdom to share.
Chat and Turn sessions are open to all members and prospective members. Anyone who has a suggestion that could be a topic for a future Saturday morning’s activity should contact a committee member and share your ideas.
The Woodshed
Suitable wood is available from the woodshed for turning in the weekly workshops. This is intended particularly for new members who have not yet built up their own supply.
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NAW Magazine
The Club encourages you to take out membership of the National Association of Woodturners, NAW at a fee of $50.00 pa. As well as offering its members a discount on woodturning events, and products, NAW produces an excellent magazine “Creative Wood NZ” that is produced quarterly and is free to its members.
The Guild Library
There is an extensive library in the Hall which is open every meeting and is accessible at other times by the key kept in the workshop. It comprises a wide range of books on turning, carving, toy making and woodcrafts in general.
The Guild subscribes to “Woodturning” and “Creative Wood” magazines and holds back copies available on loan.
To access the Library on line, simply follow the link: https://wgwlibrary.libib.com, take note of the call number and fill the details on the sheet provided when you remove the item. On return, insert the date alongside your name and replace your book back on the shelf in the order of the call number.
Community Involvement
The Guild owns the hall and makes it available to other community groups who can hire the facilities. We also manufacture wig stands for cancer sufferers and have done so for many years. Members are regularly asked to help in this way.