Rustic stool making in Leicestershire

Creativity is good for the soul, and especially so when making something useful from a natural product in a peaceful rural environment. One of many ancient skills that our fast paced 21st century lives are endangering is woodland carpentry, something our ancestors would have relied on for much of their daily needs. Some people, however, are working hard to keep the knowledge of this traditional craft alive. One such craftsman is Ian Varley*, the founder of Rustic Carpentry, who has set himself up as a traditional village carpenter creating handcrafted furniture and structures from sustainably managed woodlands on the edge of Charnwood Forest in North West Leicestershire.

Ian offers courses at his workshop in an old brick built barn deep in the Leicestershire countryside so that keen amateurs can taste a few hours of life as a traditional woodworker and (hopefully) end the day with a useful item built from scratch. After a hearty breakfast (the rookie woodsman needs his energy) at a very lovely B&B, my father, brother and I met Ian at his farm based workshop for a day's course in rustic stool making.

Those of us who earn their living sitting in an office starring at a computer will be very envious of Ian's place of work, a turn of the century barn stacked with wooden products in various stages of completion with a resident family of house martins busily bringing up their brood high up amongst the beams. On working benches notched with the history of many projects were laid out rows of sharp vintage carpenters tools, my dad and brother were hooked as they admired the razor sharp edges. Ian gave his eager pupils the necessary safety briefing then we got stuck in on the first job of the day, getting to know the tools by making our very own carpenter's mallet which we would use when assembling the stools later.

Coming from a family of carpenters, my father was considerably more experienced than either of his children and steamed ahead, his finished mallet a thing of beauty. Meanwhile, my brother and I chopped away trying not to let too much sibling rivalry slow things down as we furtively eyed up each other's progress. Mallets finished, we moved on to making the stool itself, splitting a log into three with an axe before using the hilariously named 'shaving horse' and draw knife to shape each leg ready for the seat. We were so engrossed that lunch was forgotten until the sound of rumbling stomachs forced a break. Shaping the oak seat then fixing each leg using only wooden pins was a huge learning curve and immensely satisfying, although surprisingly hard physical work. Through it all, Ian guided us with calm advice and good humour and the stools slowly took shape. Once all three had been assembled and their stability checked, the final task was applying protective oil enhancing the natural colours and patterns in the wood. With a little competitive ribbing, our finished work was proudly lined up for a photo shoot before we packed them carefully into the back of the car for the journey home.

This was a fantastic day and despite the aching wrists and a couple of blisters was hugely rewarding too. You will come away from this day having learnt more about wood than you may think would be possible as well as having a simple and useful item of furniture. Even if its a little wobbly, my stool has pride of place by my sewing table and each notch and indentation will bring back memories of a sunny day surrounded by sawdust and love.

*Ian's Rustic Stool Making workshops are 4-5 hours and cost £95 per head, all materials supplied but bring your own lunch. Courses can be booked via craftcourses.com