Experience the satisfaction of making your own chair at the Goose Island Workshop using 200 year old skills. We offer an exciting range of courses in greenwood working at the workshop to suit all levels and abilities. We cater for all, from the holiday maker to the wood working enthusiast!
All dates and times for all the courses are arranged to suit the student. Chair courses may be completed within the one week or dates may be spread out to suit the work schedule of the student.
The ‘Greenwood’ stool course
Difficulty Level: Introductory level
Duration: 2 x half days
Price: €160
We offer this course at a starting point and introduction to the making process. No previous experience or specific skills are needed for this course. It is hugely popular with holiday makers who visit the area. You will experience log splitting, turning on a lathe, hand carving and finishing. All this and you get to take home your own greenwood stool!
This course is run over 2 sessions.
Each session takes 5/6 hours approx.
The ‘Bow-back’ chair course
Difficulty Level:Standard
Duration: 4 days
Price: €600
Here you will learn skills such as hand carving & finishing, spindle shaping and making the characteristic bow back shape. Typically students partaking in this course would arrive Monday morning and would begin the course working through Monday and Tuesday. They would take Wednesday off to explore the Dingle peninsula and then complete the course Thursday and Friday.
This course will take 4 days to complete.
The ‘Sack back’ chair course
Difficulty Level:Advanced
Duration: 5 days
Price: €700
You will need some previous experience to attempt this level of course. This chair is a more elaborate chair than the ‘bow back’ Here you will experience all aspects of chair making including log splitting, spindle shaping, turning on a lathe, hand carving, joining wood, laminating and hand finishing.
This course will take 5 days to complete.
Master chair maker course
Difficulty Level: Advanced
Duration: 8 days
Price: €950
During this course the student will be given the opportunity to express their creativity and produce a unique chair using the Windsor techniques that they have mastered during previous courses to create a chair or rocking chair to suit their needs. Only those who have attended two or more courses at Goose Island should participate. Experience is necessary.