Things to do · Arts and crafts
Try green woodworking on a pole lathe
A friend has invited you to do this with them.
A pole lathe runs on your own leg power; as North House Folk School puts it, you "press the pedal to engage the natural elasticity of a small diameter pole". Green woodworking pairs it with freshly felled wood, axes, drawknives and the shaving horse, and a one-day taster can send you home with a rolling pin or a small mallet.
Moderate£100 to £500 / $130 to $650An afternoonIndoors or outWith othersUK and US
What it's really like
Green wood is freshly felled and unseasoned. On North House Folk School's Fireside Stool course, students shape legs from white ash with drawknives on shaving horses and carve a pine seat. On the pole lathe you rough out with one chisel and smooth with another; Colin Wells at Amberley Museum in West Sussex teaches with a roughing-out and a smoothing chisel.
First projects are small. A taster day in Wiltshire lists honey drizzlers, rolling pins and small mallets, and Colin Wells's foundation day makes a garden dibber, a spurtle or a rolling pin. Longer courses go further. Surrey's adult learning service has run a beginners' course of five weekly sessions in which you assemble a pole lathe and take it home.
It is physical. North House calls its three-day pole lathe bowl course physically demanding, needing stamina, coordination and hand strength and long spells standing on one leg. This is different from carving a spoon with knives or turning at a club on a powered lathe; here your foot drives the work and the wood comes straight from the log.
Ways in and what they cost
| Where | Course | Cost (as last listed) |
|---|---|---|
| Explore The Great Outdoors, Sutton Veny, Wiltshire | Pole lathing taster day, 9.30am to 4.30pm, all materials and tools included (next listed 4 April 2027) | £85 |
| Colin Wells, Amberley Museum, West Sussex | Pole-lathe taster of about four hours, or a full foundation day; wood prepared for you (page last updated about 2023, so prices may have changed) | £75 taster; £85 foundation day |
| Surrey adult learning, Molesey Centre | Green Woodworking - Beginners: five weekly sessions, assemble a pole lathe, use a hatchet and drawknife (May 2025 term, now past) | £266 |
| North House Folk School, Grand Marais, Minnesota | Fireside Stool, 9 to 11 March 2027; drawknives and shaving horses, no pole lathe; no experience needed | $335 tuition plus $160 materials |
| Deep River Folk School, North Carolina | Spring-pole lathe workshop of under three hours (May 2025, now past) | $50 |
In the US we found no pole lathe course with a date ahead. North House's Pole Lathe Turning course was last offered in October 2026 and had no sessions scheduled when we checked, so watch its page.
How to start
- Look for a group near you on the Local Groups map of the Association of Pole-lathe Turners and Green Woodworkers, known as the Bodgers.
- Book a one-day taster where the tools and wood are supplied, such as the pole lathing day in Wiltshire listed below.
- Wear closed shoes and an apron, and tell the tutor about any injuries, as lathe work can mean standing on one leg for long spells.
Where to go
- Association of Pole-lathe Turners and Green Woodworkers: Local Groups Map UK
- Explore The Great Outdoors: Pole Lathing Taster Day (Wiltshire) UK
- North House Folk School: Fireside Stool, a green woodworking course (Minnesota) US
- North House Folk School: Pole Lathe: Turning (Minnesota) US
We opened these links on 14 November 2026 and found them to be what we say. Dates, places and prices are on the official page, where they stay up to date.
Plan this
Two ways to plan it.
Plan it yourself Free
The links you need to book it, get there, find somewhere to stay and eat, and see what else there is to do nearby. They are searches for you to run; nothing is saved.
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Plan it with dates
Pick a day, or a month, and we will set out how to get ready, step by step, with a date and a reason for each. Courses and classes have start dates and can fill up, so the plan begins with finding and booking one. Kit comes after the first session, once you know what you need.
Questions people ask
What is a pole lathe?
A foot-powered lathe. You press a pedal and the spring of a thin pole turns the wood, which you shape with chisels.
What can you make on a pole lathe in a day?
Small pieces such as rolling pins, garden dibbers, spurtles, honey drizzlers and small mallets, according to UK one-day courses.
Is green woodworking hard work?
It can be. North House calls its pole lathe course physically demanding, and its stool course needs moderate hand and grip strength.
Do I need woodworking experience?
Not for a taster. The Wiltshire taster day is for beginners and North House's Fireside Stool needs no prior experience, but Surrey's five-session course asked for a basic understanding of woodwork.
Where this comes from: The Association of Pole-Lathe Turners and Green Woodworkers, home page; The Association of Pole-Lathe Turners and Green Woodworkers, Local Groups Map; Explore The Great Outdoors, Pole Lathing Taster Day (Craft Courses); Green Wood Worker, Tuition; Surrey County Council adult learning, Green Woodworking - Beginners; North House Folk School, Spindle Turning on the Spring Pole Lathe; North House Folk School, Pole Lathe: Turning; North House Folk School, Fireside Stool; Deep River Folk School, Green Woodworking & Timber Crops. Opened 14 November 2026.
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