Woodworking Classes and Workshops
My goal is to help you have a meaningful relationship with woodworking, speed the learning curve up and take the frustration away.
All classes are listed on the home page, please contact me to sign up
Classes are generally three days 8:30 am to 4 pm with a break for lunch. Week days. The classes are designed to be completed in their time frame. We can focus on things you want to get a better understanding so you're sure to get the answers you need. Safety is top priority and their will be a demonstration on how to use the tools prior to use. These classes benefit all from the novice to experienced . I can jump start your woodworking journey and help the experienced branch out.
Please bring a pencil, safety glasses and safety mask along with ear protection.
Bring a lunch or there are some sandwich shops 5-20 minutes away.
There are hotels option within 30 minutes away. Hunt Valley MD to the south and Belair MD to the east and Shrewsbury and York PA to the north. These are the closet options with dining and conveniences. Airbnb and other options can be closer.
Sign Up For A Class
Interested in taking a class? email me at sunwoodworking@gmail.com and let me know which class you would like to take then we can talk through emails or over the phone and make a plan for the direction you want to go in. Classes are Monday through Friday 8:30 am to 4 pm. Please contact me for availability outside those days. Classes and workshops are in White Hall Maryland, in a rural inspiring setting.
I have been teaching woodworking classes from my shop for the last seven years and before that I taught “at risk youth” woodworking in Baltimore City. Before that I assisted and helped out teaching green woodworking and chairmaking at Country Workshops with Drew Langsner and also with John/Jennie Alexander in Baltimore going back as far as 1998.
Seven years is not that long and I am still working hard to fill classes. The goal is to be a reliable resource for woodworking instruction and have a class schedule that is set, and fills months out. I have put sheduals together, steam bending this month, three leg stool the month after and so on, more often than not no one signs up for the scheduled class but does reach out and asks “when is the next chair class” for example. So we end up shedualling the class they want. This may seem unorthodox but please bear with me until things get going, as any small business does, I need you. As classes fill up and time frames shorten I will post availability and openings here and eventually a proper schedule.
Introducing your Host
Master the art of woodworking with our dynamic instructor, whose unmatched precision and decades of experience will unlock your potential. Sign up now to carve out a future defined by skill and craftsmanship.
My name is Mike Clarkson, in 1994 I met Baltimore's John Alexander author of "Make a chair From a tree" from then on I immersed myself in green woodworking and established the woodworking style I needed to express myself. It is important to me that these techniques and resulting forms are environmentally friendly, user friendly and a bit of a walk back in time to gather the unique and efficient use of wood from pre industrial revolution time.
I was the summer intern at Country Workshops in 1998. Learning and spending time with Drew Langsner and John Alexander left an indelible impression on me. I continued through 2012 working with them, assisted in teaching and more so with preparing for classes.
I was the woodworking instructor at Living Classrooms in Baltimore MD helping the at risk youth learn a trade and job placement.
I had been teaching classes out of my home shop before 2017 but that year we were ready to move and found a fixer upper with a barn perfect for teaching woodworking. This space is allowing me the opportunity to be an instructor and a maker.
I ran a sawmill for over 12 years and still mill and select my own wood from local resources. This way I can get the specific cut or grain orientation for the task. Steam bending need straight grained green or wet wood, counter stools should have visually appealing grain in their seats and the other parts can be carefully taken as the log, slab or board see fit.
It is nice having wooden things in our lives that we use and want to use. There’s something warm and familiar about a piece of furniture that you appreciate. It's a pleasure to touch and to look at when the eye catches it, inviting to sit on or use.
Instagram Feed, this is the best online place to see what’s currently going on in the shop!
