27 Oct 2020 – Cindy Drozda Online Demo

On Tuesday evening we were pleased to welcome to our Club, Cindy Drozda from across the pond in Boulder, Colorado, USA to your screen in the comfort of your home.  We had the best attendance yet from our members and attracted several guests and potential new members from various places within the UK.  The beauty of the online meetings is that you can still join in from anywhere you are that has a good internet connection.

For those that attended and those that missed it, here is a short montage of the evening and the Fabulous Finial Box that she produced for us on the night.  The following photos are screen grabs from the actual meeting.  At the beginning of the demo Cindy talked us through the project that she had planned, from best types of wood for the job, which tools to use, how to sharpen them, what angle to use and then tool presentation to achieve best results.

This was a very slick masterclass in presenting an online demonstration, so on to the project itself. The box was made in just two parts from the same piece of timber measuring 2” x 2” x 4”, the box from one half and the lid including the finial were turned together from the other.  A small stained insert to support the lid and then the centre of that insert was not wasted as it was used as a foot for the piece, making the foot match the inlay.

The camera work was really professional, and the techy geeks amongst us were promised a tour of the studio setup at the end.  We had a question and answer session when the box was completed signed and finished with Cindy promising to send it to the Club to be raffled or auctioned off as necessary.  Cindy was more than happy to share her vast knowledge and hints including her four guidelines for turning finials.

When the turning questions were over, the reactions at the end from the members  were brilliant so a big thank you Cindy Drozda for a great evening, probably the best one yet.  The Club is really showing the way forward with online demos and meetings and if you missed it then there’s always time to join in readiness for our next Workshop Activity night on the 10 Nov 20.

This Saturday, 31 Oct 20, from 10am to midday, Mick will be opening up the Club Shop and Martin Pidgen will hopefully be there selling his native and exotic timbers.  Please support these guys by coming along and making it worth their while.

Don’t forget your mask and please remember you need to be staying 2 metres apart at all times.  It has been noticed that whilst talking with each other, the distance between us gradually reduces.  It’s for everyones protection, so please keep your distance. 

We are currently in the process of arranging the collection of a lot of tools, all sorts of large and small machinery, timber etc from three seperate workshops, where unfortunately, the owner’s have either become unable to use them or have sadly passed away.  The intention is to put together a list with some photos and publish on the website but also have some on display on the days the shop is opening.  If you are in the market for anything specific, get in early and have a chat with Mick Close who will be able to provide you with more details.

This month, we received an email from AWGB regarding a Discretionary Grant Fund that had been setup. Reacting quickly, we decided that as we had already been successful in holding on to a proportion of our membership and had even signed up new ones since the lockdown, maybe it was worth applying for.  An application was made, and we are incredibly grateful to say that it was granted to help us purchase the equipment we need. This would enable the Club to be able to record and present on the Workshop Activity nights other members of the Club who are happy to do demostrations who do not have the technology or the know how.  The equipment has now been received and initially setup in one of our members bigger workshops, as it is large enough enabling us to socially distance whilst recording. A very big thank you to the AWGB for the money and Alan Buckle, Chris Fisher, Zak and Mick for their time and efforts to get it ready to use. In future, this also could be used back in the hall to either record or stream out live (subject to getting a good broadband connection within the hall) our meetings to those members who could not make it or live too far away.  Watch this space for further developments.  Here some photos of the guys setting it up and the first test recordings.

Recently, we have been increasing the Club’s social media presence on Facebook (303 likes), Instagram (506 followers) and Youtube (480 subscribers with 121,359 views of our videos in the last 28 days).  These are all great resources to be able to promote the Club not just in Lincolnshire, but to the world. We are showing that Covid will not beat us and in fact its made us bigger and better and thriving.  Through social media channels, we can also provide extra facilities to our members in the form of videos, places to show off your work, share those disasters so we all learn, get advice on projects, or just have a chat etc. We also understand that social media its not necessarily everyones cup of tea, however we would still love to see what you have been making and if you can provide some photos that you are happy for us to share, we could post them for you to keep our accounts busy and interesting.  Use the contact form to get in contact with Martin, selecting Website Enquiry.