National Seminar 2022
The IWG annual national seminar will be on 8th & 9th October 2022 at the Hillgrove Hotel, Monaghan. We have negotiated special discount rate available to attendees of the seminar at a rate of €120 for a single room B&B per night, and €140 for a double room B&B per night. This is only available by contacting the Hillgrove hotel directly on 04781288 - the rate is not available online!! Please quote the “Irish Woodturners Guild” Seminar rather than “IWG”. You may be asked if you would like to have dinner on Friday night at a cost of €28, which will be added to your hotel bill.
Scroll down for more information on this years Demonstrators.
This Years Demonstrators
Emma Cook
At the age of 37, Emma Cook is one of the youngest members of the Register of Professional Turners, and one of the few professional female woodturners working within the UK.
Emma began turning over 20 years ago and immediately fell in love with the craft. Around ten years or so after beginning her journey into woodturning, she was introduced to wood carving and now enjoys creating work which incorporates both disciplines together.
Yann Marot
I have always been attracted to wood and all the creative possibilities it offers. During long studies without conviction, I took evening classes in sculpture. As a result, I came to lathes and decided to learn the trade of woodturning (with passion this time). Above all, I discovered the different facets of turning: traditional, production of utilitarian parts, creation.
This diversity immediately appealed to me.
I created my workshop in 2002. I am an artisan woodturner sharing my activity between turning for cabinetmaking and creating parts. A job that requires great technical rigor and another that, in addition, allows you to let yourself go towards a more personal imagination.
Finally, trainer since 2003 in various training centres, I opened my workshop to anyone wishing to discover or deepen the technique of woodturning that I have been practicing with passion since 1999.
Stewart Furini
Stewart Furini took up turning over ten years ago as a hobby to relieve some of the stress of working as an English teacher in a large comprehensive school in the south of England. It didn't take long for the woodturning bug to bite, and for the last four years he has been producing YouTube videos on a regular basis showing some of his approaches to using colour and texture alongside his turning. This led to him starting club demonstrations in 2018, that have covered clubs from Sussex to Yorkshire. He has also written a detailed series of articles on adding colour to woodturning that were published in Woodturning magazine in 2020 and 2021.
Stewart uses stains and paints to colour wood in a wide variety of ways, using some very low-tech approaches with paper towels to airbrushing with stencils, templates and masks. Texture is added to some pieces with a grinder or a rotary tool. Sometimes he doesn't know when to stop - which is seen in some of his more outlandish YouTube offerings! It's this creative aspect that enthuses him most and he enjoys sharing this on social media and even more with real-life woodturners. Expect colour or texture to feature in all of his demonstrations - he's been known to tempt others into colouring woodturning who had never had any inclination to do so before. Watch out, you might never do 'round and brown' again!
You can see examples of his work and videos at www.stewartfuriniwoodturning.co.uk
Jim Stevens
Jim Stevens is a hobby woodturner, taking up woodturning 15 years ago after retirement as an agricultural chemist. He developed the basic skills by attending night classes and then short courses by several professional woodturners. He enjoys making gifts for family and friends, for example, a smokers bow chair, mini-chairs, stools, wedding goblets, bowls and tooth boxes. Recently he has focused on making multi-faceted spheres based on the 13 Archimedean solids, culminating in one of the dodecahedrons with 62 segments. He joined IWG in 2009 and firmly believes in the potential of participating in hand crafts such as woodturning for improving mental well-being.
Robert O’Connor
Robert is a keen craftsman and have previously been in the carpentry industry for a number of years, specialising in kitchen and cabinet making. Initially Robert’s woodturning was for use in his furniture business. In 2011 due to the economic climate with the Kitchen business Robert decided to open up The Woodturning Studio and teach a craft which Robert has a great passion for. Teaching has become a big part of his everyday life
