Training
Learn the craft.
Build your practice.
We offer training for people who want to develop practical craft skills, strengthen their creative practice, or build the knowledge they need to sustain and grow their work.
Furniture weaving
Learn the practical skills behind furniture weaving—including cane, rush, Danish cord, Shaker tape, paper cord, and other textile techniques.
Private sessions and small-group training focuses on learning the technique rather than having us complete a project for you. We provide materials and weaving frames so you can practice the skills yourself and leave with the knowledge to take on your own work.
For longer educational programs, we can also develop project-based courses where participants apply what they’ve learned to a finished piece. We’ve developed multi-day courses such as Weave Your Own Chair Seat through John C. Campbell Folk School and Peters Valley School of Craft.
Professional development for craftspeople
Develop the practical business skills that help turn a craft practice into a sustainable one.
We offer professional development for craftspeople, makers, and furniture professionals on topics such as business planning, pricing, sales, marketing, and the day-to-day realities of running a creative business.
We developed From Passion to Profit: Building a Meaningful, Sustainable Business as a Maker with the Furniture Society, and can adapt existing programs or shape new ones around the needs, experience, and goals of your group.
How training works
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Individual instruction is a good fit when you have a specific technique you want to learn or want to move at your own pace.
We’ll tailor the sessions to your experience and goals, whether you’re starting from scratch or looking to troubleshoot and deepen an existing skill.
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Training is also available for small groups of makers, furniture designers, woodworkers, DIY learners, or others who want to develop the same skill together.
We plan instruction around the group’s interests and experience, with enough hands-on practice and individual attention to make the learning useful.
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We work with craft schools, colleges and universities, vocational and technical programs, professional organizations, and other organizations that want to provide craft education or professional development.
For furniture weaving, this might mean teaching a particular technique, developing a class around a specific furniture project, preparing instructors to teach furniture weaving, or building a longer course around the needs of the program.
For professional development, we develop workshops and courses around the practical business skills craftspeople need to build and sustain their practices. This can include working with an existing program or developing something new around the needs of your organization and audience.
Ready to learn?
Let us know who’s learning, what you’re hoping to do with the skill, and where you’re starting from. Maybe you want to learn how to cane your own chairs, add furniture weaving to your craft practice, troubleshoot a technique you’re already working on, or build the skills to teach others.
We’ll help figure out the right format and focus for the training.