subject: The Toolpost Spring Open House Showcases Europes Finest Woodworking Talent [print this page] The last weekend of June 2010 saw the latest of the perennially popular Open House events from The ToolPost (http://www.toolpost.co.uk/). This leading supplier of woodturning, woodcarving and woodworking tools and equipment to woodcraftsmen around the world regularly throws open its doors and hosts a weekend of demonstrations. This years Spring Open House proved that the renown of The ToolPost and its Open House events is spreading: demonstrations from some of Europes finest woodworking talent some never before seen in the UK drew a record number of visitors and contributed to an extremely successful event.
The roaring success of The ToolPosts Spring Open House this year may be attributed to three main factors. Firstly, The ToolPost shop in Didcot, Oxfordshire now stocks an even wider range of products woodturning tools in particular than ever before. The breadth of the range, including regular introductions of the newest products on the market, has come to the attention of woodturners and carvers all over the country, who now realise that as well as carrying a wide range of domestically-produced tools, The ToolPost is the partner of choice for overseas manufacturers seeking representation in the UK and Europe. As one visitor to the Open House commented, the range of products just gets bigger and bigger which means that we will have to keep attending your open days to keep abreast of whats new in woodturning. Open House visitors can marvel at demonstrations from some of the finest woodturners, woodcarvers and woodworkers in Europe and then purchase both the tools they have seen demonstrated, and others, enabling them to recreate what they have seen when they get back to their own workshops. Whereas a tool suppliers stand at a typical trade show might carry 500 products, visitors to The ToolPost Open House have access to the complete and substantial range of thousands of tools and equipment in The ToolPost shop, and can benefit from the advice of both the expert shop staff and visiting demonstrators.
The opportunity to seek advice on a massive range of products from both the knowledgeable shop staff from the attending experts from supplier companies and tool manufacturers and the presence of so many experienced fellow woodworkers is a further factor behind the success of the Open House, as well as the appearance in the audience of many household names from the woodturning world.
Finally, and perhaps most importantly, the success is down to the fact that the Open House showcases Europes finest woodturning and woodcarving talent. This years Spring Open House featured, as principal demonstrators, Jan Hovens, Tracy Owen and Simon Clements. Jan Hovens, from the Netherlands, has never before demonstrated his outstanding woodturning skills in the UK. Specialising in turning miniature screw-threaded items, Jan delighted the crowds by making an acorn box which involved the creation of a screw thread in a genuine acorn cup, upon which he fitted a turned nut lid. Tracy Owen is one of the UKs best known turners and showed Open House guests his expertise in creating carved, coloured and decorated off centre pieces. Tracy also demonstrated his uniquely designed signature shear scraper tools, newly released by Henry Taylor tools and (naturally) sold in the ToolPost shop. Simon Clements is a professional wood carver and expertly demonstrated to the crowds just how he makes his living, practising relief and sculptural carving, using skills which he has honed over a lifetime of professional architectural restoration work on many listed buildings, through teaching and in his artistic endeavours.
Trade demonstrations came from Heinz Wiedemann, Chris Pouncy, Francis Tacq, Ron Van Zaltbommel, and Mark Terherst, Clive Day and Peter Brown. Heinz Wiedermann, hailing from Germany, is another craftsman never before seen in the UK. Heinz had a significant number of visitors using his hook tools under his expert direction despite the trepidation with which most British woodturners view such tools: a view conclusively proven to be mistaken! With Heinzs tips and advice, these tools became easy to use and astonishingly versatile. Chris Pouncy of Robert Sorby demonstrated the companys popular range of tools while Francis Tacq of Belgium was on hand to demonstrate the benefits of the WivaMac range, specifically WivaMac lathes as used by all of the demonstrators at the show - and carving reproduction machines. Ron Van Zaltbommel and his wife Els provided an enlightening demonstration of wood finishing using the UBeaut Shellawax finishes range, while Mark Terherst from OneWay Europa explained the extensive range of OneWay products and gave detailed demonstrations of the Wolverine Sharpening system. Clive Day of BriMarc showed how to use the Tormek Sharpening system as well as demonstrating the operation and features of both the Leigh Dovetail Jigs and the Kreg Pocket Hole Joinery system. He also advised visitors on the range of Veritas tools and Sjberg benches, whilst Peter Brown of General Finishes explained the benefits of using wood finishing products from their range such as milk paints, glazes and gel stains, not otherwise widely available in the UK. Visitors were also treated to a demonstration from local pyrographer Burt Butterfield who entertained the younger visitors and guided their attempts at using pyrography tools.
The runaway success of this years ToolPost Spring Open House has cemented these events as being among the most popular dates in the woodworkers annual calendar. Woodworkers can now look forward to The ToolPosts Autumn Open House, due to take place on November 5th and 6th, as another opportunity to be immersed in the world of woodturning and carving. For further information on The ToolPost, visit http://www.toolpost.co.uk/ or call +44 (0)1235 511101.
Editors Note: The ToolPost (http://www.toolpost.co.uk/) is represented by the digital marketing specialists and SEO provider Jumping Spider Media. Please direct all press queries to Louise Byrne. Email: louise@jumpingspidermedia.co.uk or call: +44 (0)20 3070 1959 / +34 952 783 637.
