Woodsy in a whole new way with woodworking. I’ve been interested in spreading my wings and trying new things lately and I knew one of the first things I wanted to try would be woodworking. I wanted to try this for a lot of reasons but the main ones were that it is COMPLETELY out of my wheelhouse and it’s a skill where you get something out of it at the end. As I know absolutely nothing about how to use power tools to build anything I thought it would be best to take a class and learn from some professionals instead of chopping off a limb or two.
Through my online digging I found the I Made It Workshop located on 22nd and Welton. They promote a “forest to table” mentality and mill all of their wood locally. They offer several introductory courses to help you make resin items like: coasters, a cheeseboard, a cutting board, a charcuterie cutting board, and even a resin river coffee table. The workshop even has a bar and is popular for date nights, if you’re into that kind of thing 🧐. They also offer open woodshop hours for those who already have the knowledge and skillset to craft their own work.
I was down to one coaster after various coaster mishaps, so I quite naturally signed up for the coaster workshop. Online registration was super easy and can be done at imadeitworkshops.com. After a $10 discount the class came to be about $60 which seems like a lot but given the personal attention and knowledge I gained (along with them providing all the materials) I felt it was well worth it.
The class is broken up into two parts. The first part is done in a class format and the second portion is completed during and open workshop.
The first class was an instructor led session where everyone was making coasters. I believe there were around 12 people taking the class. There were three staffmembers there helping, so as people would finish up with one stop they would move them along onto the next in smaller groups. I can’t say enough how helpful and patient the staff is. I had absolutely no background in working with any of these tools and they were very good at explaining what everything was and making sure that we were safe while using them. On the first day I learned how to use various saws and the planer to cut and trim down my coasters. My favorite part of the day was mixing my custom resin color which was a lot of fun. Epoxy resin is super cool to work with and the workshop has projects everywhere so you can see all the creative ways people have incorporated it into their woodwork. Once you mix your resin and pour it you even get to blow torch the coasters to make sure there aren’t any bubbles. Art and fire, always a winning combination in my book.
The second day was a few weeks after the first class. I scheduled it through their website and came during the open workshop hours. To finish up the coasters I once again had to use thelaner, saws, and got to use the sanders for the first time. The open workshop is very busy as there are people working on a variety of projects in different stages. Once again the staff proved to be more than helpful as everyone there was asking questions and they were diligently providing answers. You can really tell they love what they do. After a whole lot of sanding I put the topcoat on and officially completed my very first woodworking project.
Were they perfect? No, far from it. But I learned a lot and it’s pretty cool to try something completely new and get something out of it afterwards that I’ll actually use. And, if I’m being completely honest, power tools kind of scared me which I hated because I felt that was boxing me into my own gender stereotype. Sure, they can hurt you, but it’s just like hiking or anything else, if you’re smart, careful, and prepared you’ll be fine even if you‘re a complete novice like me. If you’ve thought about trying woodworking, I’d definitely recommend trying one of these classes out. I know I’ll be back because, let’s be real, one day I’ll probably need a cutting board I can use, too 😉.
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