Timber Master Class - a new Bywater Design woodworking workshop

We have been sharing our passion and knowledge of woodworking for well over 15 years in our classes.

Our introduction to Woodworking 2 Day Workshop is a popular option for many budding and experienced woodworkers, with coursed dotted through out the year.

This year we have added another class to our calendar

The Timber Homewares Masterclass

This little gem of a class is a half day event that packs a lot into the morning.

In this half day workshop, students will learn proper use of woodworking hand tools from master craftsman, gain knowledge and confidence in the woodworking workshop as well as hone in shaping skills - crafting their own timber salt and pepper shakers as well as be able to competently identity certain timber species - not bad for a few hours of learning and fun.

Once again we like to keep these classes small ( 6 students maximum) to ensure a productive yet relaxed learning environment.

Our March 23 class has sold out and so we are pleased to add an additional date to the 2024 calendar

Saturday June 22.

If you would like to dip your toes into the woodworking obsession journey, please email us for more information on this fabulous workshop

Hand crafted Salt and Pepper Shakers

there is nothing as wonderful the joy of creating something yourself

Our Students make beautiful furniture ...

Over the last two Saturdays , our budding woodworkers worked diligently to create their beautiful hall tables.

During this time students are taught, the fundamentals of what makes a good design , introducing knowledge of various timber species and their appropriate application.

Then comes the fun part where our students get their hands dirty - and begin the wonderful journey of creativity.

Learning the safe and proper use of the drop saw , biscuit joiner and other associated woodwork machinery is an integral part of the workshop.

These skills will be for life and make the difference between a so so woodworker and a competent safe one.

The importance and proper utilization of adhesives and abrasives is practically taught in these two days also .

The finish of a piece of furniture is as important as the construction and our students discover this for themselves during the construction of their table.

Its a very productive, fun two days that see our students achieve a great deal.

And its the very best feeling leaving with your own custom made piece of furniture

March 2023 Woodworking Legends

Last Saturday, our wonderful students completed their timber tables.

Final glue ups were done, sanding assembly and the all important polish was applied.

The end result was 4 beautifully crafted tables.

A credit to our students for being quick enthusiastic learners and producing beautiful timber work

Autumn Furniture Making Classes

It was a pleasure to be able to welcome our May Furniture Making Students .

Prior to class each student had given careful consideration as to what sort of table they would like to make.

Fitting in with existing furniture and spacing was a priority to enable the piece to be able to be enjoyed and used and not just merely a household item that is forgotten or impractical and destined to live a long life in the garage.

Our students bought their enthusiasm in bucketloads and enjoyed two days of learning, creativity ,making new friends and making a beautiful solid timber hall table .

A well thought out design is the best way to start

Essential measuring prior to cutting , an old saying but an accurate one

Safe and proper machine guidance is all part of the fun

The value of a good glue up , the foundation of any making work

The smiles say it all ! Happy Woodworkers

Congrulations to our Wonderful May Graduates, what a wonderful accomplishment

Our newly minted woodwork graduates have made us proud with their enthusiasm , dedication and wilingness to learn . We cant wait to see what they do next

Our March Furniture Making Workshop

It was with much joy that we welcomed our first students for our March Introduction to Furniture Making Workshop…

Our 6 eager students began by finalising the design on their table, albeit a small coffee table, a sofa table or a minimalist desk.

In our class, students are encouraged to work out exactly what they need/like for their own circumstances ie a smaller table for that tiny nook in the corner, desk for after dinner work, or a coffee table for the centre of the loungeroom. We offer our students choices and encourage them to flex their design muscle so that they can create something that is exactly what they need .

We also offer a variety of available timbers , so that along with the design aspect the hue and ambience of the timber is something that will work in their home and that they will be truly happy with …

The design process, an integral part of the creation journey

So much satisfaction from starting your first project

Learning traditional techniques is the basis of good construction

Satisfaction out of learning a new skill is immense

First part of the journey, its definitely something to smile about

Beautiful finished tables

Our students worked dilegently over the 2 Saturday’s to design, learn , create and be a part of something that they should all be very proud of

Beautiful timber heirlooms for their home.

Our next Introduction to Furniture Making class is on May 7 and 14

Two fun filled Saturdays, if you would like to secure a position, please enquire

We would love to help you discover your inner woodworker

The happiest people are woodworkers ...

The smile says it all !

So much fun to be had in our workshop;

The smile from our Saturday Student says it all !

For the last two weekends we have had the joy of running our Introduction to Furniture Making Workshop.

During the last two Saturdays our wonderful woodworkers have learnt the fundamentals of good furniture making, including design and construction methods, proper use of machinery and power tools, and essential techniques to begin the wonderful journey of timber furniture making.

A fun productive Saturday in the workshop

Woodworking in action

Safe and proper use of machines and power tools is vital and Stuart with over 30 years in the industry is only too happy to impart his knowledge and experience to our eager participants.

A good polish is dependant on proper sanding, Jes doing a fabulous job on her table top

When it all comes together …

The wonderful thing about custom making is the choices you have to make the piece exactly as you want, whats the point if your gorgeous piece of furniture is only going to sit in the shed if its “too big, too small, not the right colour or I dont like that design”

Prior to the class, our eager students chose their timber , finalised their design preference and dutifully measured at home the exact requirements needed for their very own custom made piece of furniture.

Our April class students each chose different styles and sizes to fit in exactly with their own home requirements .

And as the photos reveal, our students have made beautiful timber furniture additons to their home.

Our happy April Furniture Making graduates

It is a joy and a privilage to share our wealth of woodworking knowledge with such enthusiastic woodworkers.

The energy and comraderie they bring to class makes our Furniture Making Workshops truly a wonderful experience for us all

Our Wonderful Woodworking Student Projects

Our Monday and Thursday evening woodwork classes have been going in earnest for well over 15 years and every week we are just blown away by the creativity , craftmanship and dedication that our students continually show.

Each project is unique and the planning, the care that goes into each one is so admirable

Chair excellence from Peter

Monday night Student , Peter has diligently designed and created his exquisite dining chairs and the reading chair above is the perfect spot for Peter to relax and while away the hours. Made from Qld Maple and Jarrah , this stunning chair is testament to Peter’s skill and patience.

Gerry has always wanted to create his own cellar and during his woodworking classes he is doing just that.

Made from Kwila, this custom made cellar is heading in the right direction of perfection

The beginning of something wonderful !

Dining distinction

An extensive journey to source premium camphor laurel Mike has worked with the natural grain to create this magnificent dining table.

Elegant yet sturdy this table works beautifully with the dining chairs and is just ready for a fabulous dining table.
A wonderful example of student skill and tenacity.

Delightful details

Sally designed and made this specia momento box using Lemon Myrtle, Jacaranda and Red Cedar.
A beautiful box for a friend and including beautiful splines on the corners, false bottom and floating top.

Gorgeous detail and craftmanship Sally

A project of skill and thought

Considered detail

For the romantic

Chris from our Thursday night class , has gone above and beyond for this most beautiful present for his sister’s wedding.

A board games console complete with handcrafted markers and including beautiful detailed images this was definitely a labor of love.

A one of a kind wedding present that is now a cherished family heirloom.

We never tire of the amazing work our students create.

Their enthusiasm for their craft never ceases to amaze and delight us.

#lovewhatwedo

Introduction to Furniture Making Workshop - Our June Class

It was with much enthusiasm that we re commenced our Woodworking Classes this month.

We welcomed a very happy group of students to our Boondall Workshop on Saturday Morning June 6.

Stuart began the day with an introductory talk about design , construction methods and the various tools used to construct solid timber furniture.

Prior to class commencement, the students nominated their timber of choice along with their individual dimensions that would enable each student to create the table that would suit their home perfectly.

There is little advantage in offering a cookie cutter project as the joy of woodworking is being able to create something beautiful that suits you, your home , your decor your personal taste…

The first day saw students prepping their table parts, including working out the grain pattern, glueing up the tops and then working on the underframe .

A productive morning on the bandsaw

Shaping is a good arm workout

Graeme enjoying learning new skills

Its all in the construction

Check twice, mark once,

A productive day for our students

The second day, saw our students complete construction on their tables, cutting to the desired length, hand planing to ensure the edges are smooth.

This was then followed by sanding all parts to ensure smooth even grains, route edging if so desired.

The final stage was the application of a polyurethane lacquer to protect and ensure longevity of the tables.

Megan, quite rightly proud of her woodworking skills

Our graduating students of June Introduction to Furniture Making Class

A beautiful table made by Megan , featuring Tasmanian Oak ans Cambia for the legs

Congrulation Graeme on a beautiful coffee table made from Surian Cedar

Cheers Harry, we love your Tasmanian Oak Hall table

It was a wonderful workshop, where we were able to share our love and knowledge of woodworking with such a wonderful bunch of people

To encourage their creativity, and to step away from the day to day and do something wonderful for yourself is a beautiful thing to do.

We can’t wait to welcome our August Intro to Furniture Making Students into our workshop and help them realize their woodworking dream

"I'm Still learning ..."

So said Michelangelo at age 87 and rightly so.

The quest for learning and for challenging oneself we believe should never wane.

That is why we take so much proud in our Woodworking classes.

Whether it is our traditional woodworking classes, learning the art of Surfboard Making or creating a hall table our classes are geared for the absolute beginner and aimed at fuelling the inner woodworker

We dont know who gets more satisfaction out of our classes ; the student who has just created an amazing surfboard, or our team on seeing and feeling the great satisfaction of our students.

That feeling when you’ve just made your very own surfboard !

Keeping our classes small ensures there is lots of time and space for personalised tuition. Being in a relaxed yet professional environment serves as a great base for our students to learn.

A lot of our students have no woodworking experience or have even stepped inside a woodworking workshop , so being able to gently guide and encourage learning in a productive and fun way is paramount to us.

If you think 2020 is the year you want to do something beautiful and creative for yourself, step away from the screens and immerse yourself in something new and challenging we urge you to peruse our Calendar of Learning Page and see what may interest you.

Of course you have questions and we are just an email away to answer any of your queries.

See you in class

Our Introduction to Woodworking Class

We recently had the pleasure of conducting our 2 Day Introduction to Woodworking Class held over Friday and Saturday October 18 and 19 at our Boondall Workshop.

Our students chose various timber and design choices according to their personal preferences and to match their existing decor.

Chris chose American Ash for his hall table

Rolf opted for Tasmanian Oak Top and Rosewood legs

On the first day , our enthusiastic students made the parts for their hall table.

Milling all the timber, cutting to the desired length and jointing the rails to the legs

They then finished their first day with biscuiting the top together and cutting the top to length.

It was an intense productive day, where new systems were learnt and information overload for our enthusiastic team players.

Day two Saturday sees our woodworkers

Check all their measurements of

*legs

*top

*rails (check twice cut once )

Cut all these to desired length

Biscuit the top together

Glue the underframe

Tighten joints if necessary

Clean up

and apply a Lacquer finish for a stunning end result.

Chris setting the hall table top

Rolf inspecting his great work on the hall table top

After these two days , our students have been given a great grounding to continue on their woodworking journey.

They have created a beautiful piece of furniture (heirloom) that they should be so proud of

A ver proud Rolf ( and rightly so) what a beautiful Hall table

Wonderful workmanship from Rolf with his Tasmanian Oak and Rosewood Hall table

Congratulations Chris, beautiful workmanship on your hall table

Beautiful lines in the American Ash Hall table Chris made in our 2 day intro to woodworking

We thoroughly enjoyed teaching our wonderful students the joys and intricacies of woodworking.

We can’t wait for our next class !

Glassing the timber surfboards

Its the icing on the cake, the cherry on top. Whatever you like to call it, the glassing of our timber surfboards is the finishing touch to something wonderful, the final embellishment if you will.

Stuart is in the midst of glassing these rather spectacular boards …

A process he thoroughly enjoys and takes great pride in.

shiny shiny shiny

beauty and depth in the grain

Show pony … precision making and glassing

August Surfboard Making Class ... thats a wrap

Beautiful Winter Sunshiney days provided the perfect backdrop for our August Surfboard Making Class…

An eye for detail

The perfect framework is an essential component

That perfect winterafternoon sunset, casting a wonderful glow

Shaping culminates all the hard work that is done before.

New class member, or new mascot ???

As we begin the latter part of the year, we have only 2 more classes for 2019!

Our September class begins on 26 - 29 and our

final class for the year in November 14 - 17.

If you want to do something amazing for yourself and enjoy the journey of crafting something with your own two hands, please email us and we can make this happen for you!!

A little about our Beautiful Surfboards ...

We design our surfboards with a vision of what us as surfers would like in a board. Its not just the visual , although we do think that our surfboards are ridiculously good looking, its about the performance and how they ride in the water.

The Gould

The Gould is a cleaned up older board with a defnite 70’s vibe.

It single fin with a fuller nose outline and a tight pin tail. A low entry rocker with a flat bottom and and chimed rails.

The end result is a beautiful surfboard for all types of surfers in all types of waves .

The Dawn Surfboard

The Dawn is the total package.

A classic all rounder with a concave throughh the nose , flat through the centre and rolled V in the tail.

Its a sweet reliable daily ride, the perfect workhorse

Will handle all conditions from the dribble wave to the ultimate 6 foot clean wave (and dont we wish for more of those .

With the addition of wonderful timbers such as paulownia, cambia ash and cedar and no foam we are proud of the way our boards ride in the water .

Of course, we could go on for pages of all the finer details of our boards, but if you would like more info about our range we would love to hear from you , so send us an email and we will answer any questions you have !

A gift made from the heart ...

Our woodworking students always give us great joy when it comes to their dedication and persistence.

Bill , a Monday night student has worked tirelessly over the last few months working on a beautiful coffee table for a wonderful surprise birthday present for his wife.

Made from Melaleuca , which is part of the Myrtle tree family this elegant table uses resin as a centre feature to highlight the wonderful warm patina of the grain .

Finished off with light coats of lacquer, this gift made from the heart is one we are sure will be a treasured heirloom for many years to come.

Congratulations to Bill on such a wonderful achievement.

Creating a sideboard for the home

The sideboard or buffet or chiffonier is an integral part of the family home.

Its a place to store our beautiful crockery, silverware, glasses and all the other wonderful pieces we accrue and keep “for good” or theoretically use more often , to make every day special.

It is a really a happy storage unit, as it ideally contains all the things we hold dear and with which we use to celebrate special occasions .

The design , look feel and timber choice of the sideboard is such a personal decision.

But the end result is always stunning, a beautiful blend of craftmanship, design and ambience that

brings all the elements of a heirloom piece of furniture together.

A modern twist on sideboard living. Beautiful clean lines with a crisp white finish.

A traditional theme in this Queenslander is carried through with the use of Queensland Maple for this sideboard with frosted glass

Using the richness of Jarrah this sideboard featuring ample storage is a wonderful addition to this dining room .

Using curved legs for the feature of this Sideboard. Once again Qld Maple is used for its striking detail

What a grant statement this restored red cedar chiffonier makes. With an impressive marble top this show pony certainly has the wow factor.

The Global Surfer and Making a Hollow Wooden Surfboard

We were thrilled to be able to give a global traveller and avid Surfer 'E' the opportunity to make his own hollow wooden surfboard. During the week, E who in his words, has no woodworking experience apart from sharpening a pencil, learnt basic woodworking skills such as sharpening  a hand plane, shaping, sanding of his board and fin placement.  We then went on to fully glass the board.

But don't just take our word for it ... Have a look at our very first YouTube

Working with Wood Show - Brisbane 2015 -

It was all very hands on at the recent Working with Wood Show at the RNA last weekend...  

We had an overwhelming response and interest in not only our Wooden Surfboard and traditional woodworking classes, but also our custom making and furniture restoration services. Thank you to Carbatec for making this possible. Much appreciation to Michael Hoffman and David Wardrop for their invaluable help and enthusiasm over the weekend.

Timber Working with Wood Show RNA Brisbane 2015

Come and see for yourself the ultimate in Wooden surfboards.

Bywater Design in Collaboration with CarbaTec will be demonstrating shaping techniques for hollow wooden surfboards all this weekend at the

Working With Wood Show RNA Brisbane. We will have the ultimate in wooden surfboard collections, with an extensive range of completed student work along with paulownia timber available for purchase on the day. We look forward to seeing you there !