Our Focus

The primary focus of most members, both professional and amateur, is furniture design and construction. The Granite State Woodturners, a subgroup of the Guild, cover both bowl and spindle turning. We also have members who restore old houses and antique furniture, build kitchen cabinets, create small wooden gifts, miniature doll house furniture, and produce wooden boats and canoes. Some members carve ornamentation on panels and doors while others are wood sculptors.

If you are serious about woodworking, this is the place to be.

Publications

The Old Saw is an on-line newsletter published four times each year. The Journal is a printed magazine published three times per year. The Journal includes feature articles aimed at all skill levels. A significant number of advertisers offer discounts to Guild members thru The Old Saw.

General Meetings

The Guild has four (typical) major meetings per year. These may be single or multi-presenter demonstrations or symposiums. Topics have included everything from furniture design to “how-to” presentations on dovetails, compound laminations, sharpening, windsor chair making and more. Officers are elected at our annual meeting in the fall where there is also an auction to benefit the Guild Scholarship Fund.

Small Meetings

As the Guild has grown and attendance at Guild meetings increased, we found it more and more difficult to meet in member shops. Many missed the opportunity of visiting other shops and the more intimate setting. To fill this void, once or twice per year, we organize a day of multiple small meetings each with a different topic.

Video Library

Almost all Guild meetings are recorded with many available through the Guild video library. These DVDs are a rich source of how-to information on many areas of woodworking. Guild DVDs may be borrowed or purchased.

Books & Subscriptions

From time-to-time, we offer special group purchases of books with discounts of 40%-50% from a variety of major publishers. Heavily discounted magazine subscriptions from Taunton Press are also available.

Discounts

Various lumber yards, tool suppliers and woodworking schools offer a 10% discount to members. If you are an active woodworker, it pays to be a member.

Sunapee Fair

The Guild sponsors woodworking demonstrations for the public at the League of NH Craftsmen’s Annual Fair in Sunapee each August. Items are made and sold through a raffle to raise money for scholarships and other activities.

Scholarships

The Guild sponsors both small and large scholarships for educational purposes. These allow our members to enhance their woodworking skills and in some cases, to even change their career path.

Special Interest SubGroups

These groups plan their own meetings and other activities, typically meeting five or six times per year at shops and other facilities around the state. Current subGroups include – Granite State Woodturners (GSWT), Period Furniture Group, Beginner and Intermediate Group (BIG) and Luthiers.

Symposia

The Guild organizes all day symposia from time-to-time on major facets of woodworking. Past event topics have included finishing, joinery, windsor chairmaking and turning.

Summer Trip

Each summer, we take a trip to an interesting and educational site such as a museum, a tool or furniture maker, boat yard, etc. These are family friendly events.