furniture restoration courses - Chippendale School of Furniture

Invitation to the Chippendale School’s Student Furniture Exhibition, 9th & 10th June (6-8pm)

It’s the end of another year for the twenty-one furniture design students at the Chippendale International School of Furniture; the college is throwing open its doors for its annual Student Exhibition and Sale of Furniture.

The free Student Exhibition with strawberries and wine runs from 6 – 8 pm on Monday 9th and Tuesday 10th of June 2014 at Chippendale School near Gifford in East Lothian EH41 4JA (no need to RSVP).

You are invited to see (and buy) many stylish pieces of contemporary furniture, all created by the talented students. The Chippendale School was founded in 1985 by Anselm Fraser and is now recognised as one of the UK’s leading furniture making schools.

The school’s intensive furniture making and furniture restoration courses run from October to June each year, and there are still some places on the next course which starts on the 13th of October.

The course is very hands-on with up to 1400 hours of hands-on bench work, but also includes lectures by Anselm Fraser, visiting experts and inspiring field trips. It condenses a 2 to 3 year course into under a year. Most students go on to set up their own woodworking and furniture making businesses. Some stay start up their businesses in the adjoining Chippendale Incubator Workshops and benefit from ongoing support.

The photograph shows the ‘Big Apple’ created by Andrew Adamson, one of last year’s students: “I made the Big Apple as my solid wood piece using sycamore during the second term. I started with the Empire State Building and then another student said ‘why not put an apple on top’, so I created the very tactile two foot wide apple,” says Andrew.

“The stalk is made of walnut – I had to go into Tesco’s to measure apple stalks to get the proportions right!”

Current student, retired doctor Charlie Clark says: “When I started, I didn’t have a clue how to get from a plank of wood to a finished product, neither in terms of design and planning, nor in terms of the practical skills involved.

“The Chippendale School is a very interesting learning environment. It has much in common with the process of building knowledge, skills and experience that I was familiar with as a doctor. You learn from the masters, you learn from those who know a bit more than yourself and you learn from the other students. There’s a minimum of formal teaching, some exercises, but mainly the learning is built around the practical experience of conceiving, designing and making pieces of furniture.

“The furniture course is an enormously fulfilling thing to do in retirement for anyone with the time and energy to learn something new. Learning to work in new ways with your hands is a fabulous experience. I have acquired a whole set of skills that will keep me happily occupied for the rest of my lifetime and in the process have made valuable new friends and had a hugely enjoyable year.”

Reflecting the school’s international appeal, quite a number of the students come from overseas, particularly America, Europe and the Far East. The course appeals to a wide age range and even caters for students with little woodworking experience.

“All students need is a love of wood,” says Anselm Fraser, the School Principal. “We always look forward to showing off all the students’ wonderful pieces of furniture at the exhibition.

Furniture restoration expert visits the Chippendale School of Furniture

This blog based on a conversation with Simon Macintyre, a visiting furniture restoration expert who runs his own restoration business in Sussex near London. Simon works on private furniture restoration and for the antique trade. It’s the ninth year that Simon has been running his course at the Chippendale School of Furniture.

“The furniture school students are always very enthusiastic; they love the learning experience. Usually they’ve not done any furniture restoration before. They maximize the learning opportunities here and many enjoy the furniture restoration week more than they initially expected.

“Each morning we discuss the pieces of furniture being restored. I’ve also given a talk on setting up a furniture restoration business. Several of the students want to go on to do furniture restoration rather than furniture making.

The Chippendale School Adventure

A blog by Chippendale School student Ashley Petersen who loves working with wood.

Ashley was employed by an advertising agency in New York, but always had a passion for furniture and knew she had to make it a part of her life.

“I started working with an antique furniture restorer in Queens in the evenings after work and completed a short woodworking class in Brooklyn. I learned how to French polish, replace missing veneer and how to repair gilding and loved every minute of it!

“I also spent time working at a vintage furniture shop in Manhattan refinishing or adding a ‘shabby-chic’ flair to various pieces.”

Ashley had considered furniture design schools in the US, but found they were too expensive and meant taking 4 years out of the workforce. The intensive Chippendale School course only lasted 9 months and also offered the antique restoration course she was looking for.

“I was encouraged by the small class size which ensured more individual attention, and the amount of hands-on experience the program provided. I really liked that the students were of all ages and nationalities. This furniture course also provided an opportunity for a great adventure!

Some of the Things that Make our Furniture Design Course Stand Out

Do you dream of building a rewarding career in professional furniture design and restoration? There are still some places on our furniture making and furniture restoration course starting this October 2013.

He came He saw He conquered. Chippendale School of Furniture.

Our students learn more than 80 woodworking techniques.

Our feedback suggests that our courses are that little bit different:

1. We teach you up to 80 woodworking techniques in just 9 months (other schools take 2 to 3 years to cover the same ground);
2. We lay on lectures, visiting experts, learning from your colleauges and field trips, as well as spending up to 1,400 hours doing practical benchwork on your own projects;
3. We provide all the tools you need – planes, safety gear, routers, chisels, hammers (worth at least £2,500);
4. Your fees include all the wood required to make 3 pieces of furniture, sourced and dried here from local Scottish hardwoods;