Master Hand Tool Woodworking

This four-week course in London is for anyone who wants to learn fine furniture making with traditional hand tools. Whether you’re a complete beginner or a woodworker looking to strengthen your foundations, you’ll gain the skills to work with precision, sensitivity, and confidence.

Across one month, you’ll move step by step from sharpening and simple joints through to building a finished piece of furniture. By the end, you’ll have completed a dovetailed cabinet incorporating a door and drawer; each element showcasing the knowledge and care you’ve developed along the way.

What You’ll Learn

Sharpening and Tool Care

Good woodworking begins with sharp, reliable tools. You’ll learn how to set up, sharpen, and maintain planes, chisels, and saws so they perform at their best every time you use them.

Essential Hand Skills

From accurate sawing and chisel work to planing surfaces flat and true, you’ll develop the key techniques that underpin all fine furniture making. Efficiency and precision are emphasised, helping you achieve clean results with less effort.

Joinery Techniques

You’ll explore traditional joints that remain essential today: dovetails, mortise and tenons, bridle joints and more. These will be practised in real projects, building both confidence and understanding of when to use each.

Course Structure – Week by Week

The programme follows a clear progression:

• Week 1: Sharpening, sawing, chiselling, and first joints, focussing on accuracy and clean joinery.

• Week 2: Develop hand-cut dovetails and planing techniques through the making of the cabinet carcase

• Week 3: Make and fit the door

• Week 4: Make and fit the drawer

Meet the Makers

Throughout the course, you’ll also be introduced to the work and philosophy of renowned furniture makers such as George Nakashima, James Krenov, and Alan Peters. Their approach to craft and design has inspired generations of woodworkers, and their ideas continue to shape our perspective on furniture today.

Who This Course Is For

This woodworking course is suitable for:

• Beginners with no previous experience.

• Amateurs wanting to improve their hand skills.

• Designers, makers, or aspiring professionals keen to build a foundation in traditional furniture making.

Thinking about making furniture for a living? Our guide to how to become a furniture maker in London compares the routes, what training costs and what furniture makers earn.

Why Learn Woodworking by Hand?

Most woodworkers, whether amateur or professional, rely on machines for speed and efficiency. But hand skills are what give furniture its human quality — the fine details, the subtle edges, the crisp chamfers that draw the eye and invite touch.

Developing your hand-tool woodworking skills not only deepens your understanding of timber, but also makes you more efficient and precise across every project. It’s the difference between work that is merely made and work that shows the maker’s signature details.

Hand tool woodworking doesn’t require much space, perfect for those of us without a spacious garage or shed. A kit of hand tools can easily be contained on shelves or in a dedicated toolbox.

Location – Camden Town

The course takes place at our fully equipped workshop in the heart of Camden Town, within easy reach of public transport and central London. The space is designed as a hand tool–focussed environment.

Course Fees and Materials

The 4-week course costs £3950, which includes tuition and all project materials. Standard timbers, tulipwood and white ash are provided. Students wishing to use more expensive species such as walnut may do so at an additional cost. You can purchase a few special boards for your main project from Fallen & Felled, our next-door neighbours. You will need to arrange this with them a month before the start of the course. We can give you a list of the sizes and quantities you need.

Faqs

Do I need prior experience?
No. The course is designed for both beginners and those with some prior experience.

Are tools provided?
Yes, all tools and equipment are supplied. You are welcome to bring your own if you prefer.

How big are the classes?
Class sizes are limited to just 4 to ensure plenty of individual attention.

What will I take home?
You’ll complete your practice joints and the cabinet.

Is this an accredited course?

No, but we can provide a certificate of attendance on request

Master Handtool Woodworking –Four Weeks Full Time

Location: London School of Furniture Making – Unit 21 Hartland Road Arches, Hartland Road NW1 8HR
Course Fee: £3,950

Secure Your Place with a Deposit

To confirm your booking on this four-week course, we require a 20% deposit (£790). Your place is not guaranteed until the deposit has been received.

Non-Refundable Deposit

The deposit is normally non-refundable. It covers our administrative costs and reserves your place on the course, which may mean we have to turn away other applicants.

Cancellations

• If you cancel your booking with more than 8 weeks’ notice, we will refund your deposit if we can find another person to take your place.

• If you cancel with less than 8 weeks’ notice, we will retain the full deposit.

• If we cancel the course for any reason, your deposit and any other course fees you have paid will be refunded in full.

Example: The latest notification date for a course starting on Monday, 12th April 2027, is 11.59 on Sunday, 15th February 2027.

Balance of Fees

The remaining balance of the course fee must be paid no later than 6 weeks before the course start date. If the balance is not received by this date, we reserve the right to cancel your place and retain the deposit. You will receive an invoice 7 weeks before the start of the course.