There’s nothing like women building useful and beautiful things together. In this class, the sky’s the limit: an end table, a chair or stool, a picture frame, coat rack, or whatever you dream up. No experience with tools needed–experienced builder and longtime LES instructor Erin “Soupy” Campbell is an excited and patient teacher! Bring a friend, a niece or daughter, your mom, your sister. You’ll find your creativity enlivened and your soul fed as you work with branches, stumps and live-edge lumber to create your unique piece. You’ll learn:
How to mindfully and ethically harvest from the forest General safety principles as well as safety related to each tool Technique with basic hand tools (pull saw, hammer, speed square, tape measure, draw knife, carving knife) How wood works: soft vs hard, how the grain runs, what a warped or cupped board looks like Tricks of the trade: how to engage what your body and mind already know about physics, math and common sense to demystify building
By focusing on hand tools, we are able to open our senses more to what the wood is telling us—the smell of different species, the rhythmic sound of a saw, the aliveness in our bodies as we experiment with how to hold tools and branches. If you’re a creative person or want to explore more of that side of yourself, this weekend is the time. Details & Registration
May 30th, 2026
Saturday, 9 am – 5:30 pm Some folks might finish their projects earlier than 5:30 and of course you’re free to leave whenever you’d like!
Ages: All! Women and teen girls 15+ are welcome to sign up on their own. All participants under 15 need to have an adult sign up alongside them who can help them with safely using the tools. Minors who are signing up should be interested and attentive in making things out of wood. Age 15-17: The Parents of unaccompanied minors must be willing to stay until other participants arrive, and arrive 15 mins before the end of the program. If you are not the person dropping and picking up the person, please tell us so we have their contact info.
Living Earth School Base Camp in Afton
Ages 15+: $160 Accompanying youth: $110
Participants need to bring: Weather-appropriate clothes, lunch, and are encouraged to bring what tools they have. Register Now
Skills covered
Prerequisites
No experience with tools needed.
What to bring
Weather-appropriate clothes Lunch Tools they have (encouraged to bring)
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