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“My path to finding woodworking has been very zigzag and like most things in my life, I kind of just started doing it on a whim,” Hanneke Lourens, a 2020 graduate of The Krenov School, explained. “I was born and raised in South Africa, but have enjoyed living and working in other places most of my adult life. Along the way it became clear that I’m happiest when making. I have been lucky enough to explore this passion at The Krenov School.” Read more about Hanneke’s journey in this Woodworking Adventures blog. 

One woodworking class at his local Woodcraft store was all it took to get Brad Rodriguez hooked on building things. That was nearly 20 years ago. Today, he is a respected content creator, maker and woodworker with a huge online following, recently racing past one million subscribers on his YouTube channel Fix This Build That. Read more about Brad’s journey in this Woodworking Adventures blog. 

When Tamar Hannah sees a need, she meets it head-on. The mother of three school-age children took to woodworking five years ago when even an exhaustive internet search didn’t yield the piece of household furniture she was seeking—a bench with built-in firewood storage. 

The founding of New York Heartwoods in 2011 was the culmination of Megan Offner’s inherited maker/woodworking talents and a youth spent embracing the outdoors, but she had no idea what was ahead while growing up in Missoula, Montana. Read more about Megan’s journey here. 

Colorado cabinetmaker Mike Farrington began our conversation by telling me he wasn’t comfortable around people. Despite this introversion, the hour that followed was filled with friendly conversation, woodworking insights, and philosophical tidbits often cloaked in his distinctive dry wit. 

If anyone lives by the motto “No white flags,” it’s Dave Clarke from Sandy, Oregon. A retired firefighter and mountain rescue volunteer, Dave was diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS, also referred to as Lou Gehrig’s disease) in 2018. Once an avid skier and cyclist, Dave said his balance, gait and speech have mostly been affected by the disease so far. But every cloud has a silver lining and Dave’s was the push to revisit a long-postponed hobby: woodworking. Read more about this inspiring woodworker in this Woodworking Adventures blog. 

Kailee Bosch’s natural desire to be a maker was nurtured in the environment created by her well-known father Trent’s woodturning and toolmaking professions. When she graduated in May 2020 from Colorado State University (CSU) with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree, Kailee, only a few weeks away from turning 23, had already created noteworthy pieces of art, earned several awards, studied and assisted with classes at prestigious woodturning institutions, taught young turners, and played a major role in her family’s business. Read more about Kailee in this Woodworking Adventures blog...

On June 1, 2020, the woodworking world lost a grand master when Robert Whitley passed away. Whitley was the consummate Renaissance man, fluent in history, the arts and just about any other subject that you might engage him in if you were lucky enough to catch him relaxing. But his primary passion was woodworking, and his palette spanned centuries. 

From flipping flea market finds to building furniture, guitars, woodworking jigs, and pretty much anything that interests her, Tamar Hannah has come a long way in her four-year journey to perfect her building skills without formal training. On her website, 3x3custom.com, Tamar writes, “3x3 Custom started by accident. I was searching for an outdoor storage bench and couldn’t find anything I liked. So I had a crazy idea to build it myself! Instantly, I fell in love with power tools, hand tools and everything in between.” Read more in this Woodworking Adventures blog. 

“For me, woodwork has always been motivated far more by relationships than by finished projects. I’ve found the best way to get to know people deeply is by joining them doing something they truly love,” Anne Briggs, also known as Anne of All Trades, explains. Learn more about Anne, her path to award-winning blogger and woodworker, and her “just say yes” philosophy in this Woodworking Adventures blog.