I'm from Spilsby Lincolnshire UK and started turning in 1989. Bought my first set of tools from Ashley Iles who lived just down the road and took some lessons from the late Reg Slack in Derbyshire. After turning stair spindles and other archtectuasl items work got in the way and woodturning got buried under an increasing pile of "stuff" in the workshop. I was friendly with Tony Iles who kept trying to persuade me to start turning again. I retired and turning once again became a pastime that gradually took up more and more of my time! I joined the Lincolnshire Wolds Woodturning Association and enjoyed the interaction with fellow members and the opportunity to see professional demonstrators who visited the Club. Covid and the Government restrictions meant face to face meeting were out of the question. Rather than "sit it out" until the shut down was over we decided to go online. The Club has gone from strength to strength with members in the US, Canada as well as Europe. We have demonstrators from North America and Europe on a regular basis as well as UK turners who were too far away to make physical visits economically viable. From spindle work my turning has changed direction and I now like turning hollow forms and bowls. In 2021 the Club became a charitable Corporation and education of the public a key objective. We now run five full day teaching session annually and I enjoy teaching others the craft of woodturning. I have been a member of AW for about 4 years and find the resources to members with all the archive material is truly amazing. It is great to have so much information available just a few clicks away.
