Box turning For Beginners
The Art of Precision
£180 per person | Fridays or Saturdays | Maximum 5 students
Boxes are brilliant fun to turn. They're intimate objects — meant to be handled, opened, and kept close to you. Perhaps on a dresser, perhaps given as a gift. Perhaps just entirely decorative.
But when you turn a box, it becomes more than a container. It's a challenge of proportion, precision, and finish. Every cut and joint plays a part in whether the finished piece feels satisfying in the hand — or clumsy and awkward to the eye.
This full-day class is where you learn to make the lid fit properly and understand why the proportions matter. Where you discover the techniques that separate a box that works from one that delights..
Who is this Class for?
This class requires a little woodturning experience. You should be comfortable working at the lathe independently and familiar with basic cuts. If you've turned a bowl or two and want to try something more involved, this will suit you well.
If you're coming from bowl turning, boxes offer a different conversation with the wood. The precision is tighter. The tolerances are smaller. The satisfaction of a lid that seats with a gentle sigh of air? That's what we're working toward.
If you've been turning for a while but your boxes always feel slightly disappointing — lids that wobble, proportions that look awkward — this class will help you understand what's been missing.
If you're simply curious about adding another skill to your turning repertoire, boxes are a wonderful next step. They teach patience, precision, and an eye for detail that improves everything else you make.
Your Tutor - Martin Saban-Smith RPT
Martin has been teaching turning wood since 2018, bringing a photographer's eye for proportion and form to the lathe. Martin’s teaching approach is patient, with room for questions, the understanding that mistakes are steps towards skill, and that learning is more process over perfection, community over competition.
What's Included?
Everything you need for the day: all timber, tools, consumables, safety equipment, lunch, refreshments, and your pen and platter to take home. Just bring yourself and comfortable clothes you don't mind getting a bit dusty.
Tools Used
-Spindle Roughing Gouge - 3/8″ Bowl Gouge - 3/8″ Spindle Gouge -
- Diamond Parting Tool - French Curve Scraper - Les Thorne Multi Purpose Tool - Abrasives -
- Sanding Sealer - Finishing Wax - Finishing Oils
What You'll Learn
You’ll learn a bit about the proportions of boxes, shapes, decoration, and the all-important lid fit. We'll spend real time on fitting the lid. Not rushing. Not hoping for the best, but learning about how to creep up on a perfect fit, how to test and adjust, how to leave yourself room for refinement.
Then of course, there is hollowing the box out. We’ll examine back hollowing with a spindle gouge and the use of scrapers for a super-smooth interior surface. And jam-chucking to reverse mount the piece to clean the bottom.
These aren't skills you can learn from a YouTube video. You need to feel them, fail at them, and try again with guidance.
What To Expect On the Day of Your Lesson at The Woodturning School
If you have queries, please check the FAQs
Book Your Place
Booking your place is simple. The calendar shows the next available date.
Click the date, then click the time. Then fill in some details and pay the deposit. We’ll look after the rest for you.
The day
9am: Meet at the Garden Centre Coffeeshop
9.30am: Workshop begins
12.30pm: Lunch at the Coffeeshop (included)
1.00pm: Back to it.
2.30pm: Coffee break
4pm: Finish and tidy.
Included: All timber, tools, consumables, safety equipment, lunch, refreshments, your pen and platter to take home.
Payments
A deposit of 30% is required to secure your booking. This deposit is non-refundable in the event of cancellation by the client. It covers, buying materials and advertising your space in the event of cancellation. Amendments can be made up to 14 days before date for £10 admin fee. Cancelling within 14 days will forfeit all monies paid. Click HERE for full terms and conditions.
Queries?
Before contacting us, please take a moment to check our FAQs. You'll often find the answer you're looking for is already there.