Nailsworth Community Workshop reviews

Mike Hedley-Harper reviewed: Knife making weekend Gloucestershire

" I received this course as a Christmas present and I must admit that it was one of the best presents I have received. Arian is extremely knowledgeable and helpful. As a medieval re-enactor I wanted a knife that was an authentic replica. Arian took this on board and I produced a knife that I am extremely proud of. Being a complete beginner I didn't expect to to have something that looks professionally made. I have been asked where did you buy that? It's the greatest feeling to say " I didn't buy it, I made it". I would recommend this to anyone with an interest. "

Flynn reviewed: Knife making weekend Gloucestershire

"Fantastic experience. Entertaining and enjoyable to learn such a skill. "

Paul Body reviewed: Knife making weekend Gloucestershire

"Arian is a brilliant teacher who patiently guided us through each step of the process of making our knives. I now have a one-of-a-kind knife for the rest of my life. Arian is a warm, clever and talented teacher. After all the years he’s been doing this there was not a whiff of complacency or staleness. He obviously still loves what he does and sharing it with people. It is a packed weekend, but filled with fun. Thank you Arian and everyone at the Nailsworth Community Workshop." "

River reviewed: English longbow making weekend in the heart of Nailsworth Gloucestershire

"I entered this course having had almost no woodworking experience, but the instructors were great and guided me through every step of the process. Not only do you leave with a longbow which you made yourself but also many great tips and a good understanding on how to maintain your longbow and keep it in good shape. On top of it being really fun and good value the money goes towards a good cause as these courses subsidies the workshop which is used to help special needs children during term time. I would 100% recommend."

Jansen reviewed: Knife making weekend Gloucestershire

"Did this course with my Sons (aged 16 and 21) in Feb 2024, and it kept each of us busy/engaged for the whole weekend. Arian is an excellent teacher of this craft, and carefully guides complete beginners through to making a knife with leather pouch. We were all blown away by the end results and now appreciate the never ending filing, sanding and sharpening :-) You also come away learning how to sharpen knives. We are now cherishing our knives, oiling the handles and keeping the blades sharp."

David Graham reviewed: English longbow making weekend in the heart of Nailsworth Gloucestershire

"This was a great course, making a beautiful craft built functioning longbow from scratch over a weekend. And leaving on the Sunday with such a thing of beauty and power in your hands is far more valuable than the cost of the course. We received patient step by step instruction and guidance with full explanation by Gavin and Tom at all stages. And it was a real pleasure to get to know them and the lovely group of people that were my comrades on the course. Thoroughly recommend it."

Nailsworth Community Workshop responded:

"Thank you very much for your kind words and we are delighted you enjoyed the weekend. Happy shooting"

Adam reviewed: English longbow making weekend in the heart of Nailsworth Gloucestershire

"The course was fantastic, for someone who has never even picked up a wood plane before, I managed to create a beautiful long bow from 3 planks of wood. The instructions were clear and easy to follow and Gavin and Tom were always happy to help out and give more detailed guidance when needed. Even if you have never done any wood working before, I would highly recommend the course. "

Phillip Brown reviewed: English longbow making weekend in the heart of Nailsworth Gloucestershire

"Thoroughly enjoyed this course. Both Gav and Tom were very knowledgeable and helpful and kept us all entertained along the journey of making our longbows. Yes you could spend the fee (and more) on purchasing a custom built bow by one of the many suppliers but now I feel confident to have a go making one at home and they’ll be there for you if you need any advice/help with your bow or new skills"

Nailsworth Community Workshop responded:

"Thank you so much for your review and I'm so glad you had a good weekend. Enjoy your bow. Pam"

AJS reviewed: English longbow making weekend in the heart of Nailsworth Gloucestershire

"Great course, even for students with very limited experience of working with wood. Instructors do everything to help you to work smoothly on the longbow - which is a thing of beauty "

Nailsworth Community Workshop responded:

"Thank you for giving a review and I'm so glad you had a good weekend. Enjoy your bow. Pam"

Carl reviewed: Knife making weekend Gloucestershire

"This was a really rewarding course. Arian was a fantastic teacher and for someone like myself who is no way artistic, you get to go home with something that is beautiful, practical and unique looking. If you're thinking of doing this I'd highly recommend it."

Nailsworth Community Workshop responded:

"Kind thanks for this feedback Carl. I hope your knife will serve you well for years to come! Arian"

Tom Price reviewed: English longbow making weekend in the heart of Nailsworth Gloucestershire

"Really good fun - Gavin and Tom are great company and won't let you leave with a bad bow! I couldn't believe the quality of the finished longbow; you don't have to be an expert woodworker to enjoy this course."

Tim Hieghton-Jackson reviewed: English longbow making weekend in the heart of Nailsworth Gloucestershire

"I was thoroughly impressed with the venue, the instructors and the equipment. The venue is charming, likewise the instructors and the tools were of a high quality. I am very pleased with the bow I came away with and the patient manner in which Gavin and Tom imparted their knowledge made the course a real treat. The materials to make a bow are not cheap and the course represents very good value for money. Top marks indeed."

Mark Thompson reviewed: Knife making weekend Gloucestershire

"A really great weekend. Arian is a great teacher and I have a one of a kind knife for the rest of my life. Thoroughly recommend this course. I have no craft skills and made something beautiful. "

Nailsworth Community Workshop responded:

"Hi Mark, and thank you for your feedback. Pleasure to meet you and indeed you made a lovely knife. I’m sure it’ll serve you well on your adventures for years to come! Best wishes and stay in touch."

Stuart Rigg reviewed: English longbow making weekend in the heart of Nailsworth Gloucestershire

"The course was amazing, fun, informative, and well run by Gavin and Tom. Clear instruction throughout and support as you laminate, size, shape and string your bow. Even some tips/tricks for using and storing. Pam was a big help with explaining the course and getting us booked on! Friendly group of people leading and taking the course, could not recommend enough. "

Mo Brown reviewed: Creating automata - weekend course. Explore the combination of movement and materials such as wood, wire, metal tube and sheet, found objects and figures.

"Well that was great - rummaging through collections of old tins, strange bits of machinery and all kinds of oddments for pieces to make our creations individual and fabulous! Fi shared her know-how and demonstrated the mechanisms. She showed us how to use the tools and patiently sorted any glitches. It was a really enjoyable, relaxed weekend in well equipped workshops with friendly people. I am very pleased with what I achieved and my automata will remind me of a happy time."

Nailsworth Community Workshop responded:

"Thank you Mo for your review and Im so glad you had a good weekend. Lovely to hear that you enjoyed making some new . Ive sent a copy of what you said along to Fi too Best wishes Pam "

Ela Myszek reviewed: Creating automata - weekend course. Explore the combination of movement and materials such as wood, wire, metal tube and sheet, found objects and figures.

"Two days spent discovering the absolute joy of creating automata. It was a real pleasure to meet Fi Henshall, our tutor, and the community workshop team were so welcoming. The course itself was detailed enough for people who had some art/ crafting/ automaton making experience, but also allowed complete newbies like myself to learn without feeling over-faced. And Fi was a patient, knowledgeable and friendly presence, problem-solving, teaching, chivvying and encouraging. I came away with my head buzzing with ideas. Thank you to all."

Nailsworth Community Workshop responded:

"Hello there and thank you for taking the time to give us the review. Im so glad you had a good weekend and found it inspiring. Ive shown your review to Fi and she was really touched All the best Pam "

Jenny reviewed: Creating automata - weekend course. Explore the combination of movement and materials such as wood, wire, metal tube and sheet, found objects and figures.

"Writing this on the train home from an amazing weekend, clutching my precious box of automata creations! Fi is a fantastic tutor, super knowledgeable, patient, encouraging and friendly. I have so many ideas for future projects and now feel confident in beginning them. Thank you so much!"

Nailsworth Community Workshop responded:

"So glad you enjoyed the weekend. It was lovely to pop in and see you all so focused and creating some amazing projects. Thank you for talking the time to give us a review and I wish you well in all your future creations. All the best Pam (Ive shown Fi your review and she was really touched)"

Mike reviewed: Knife making weekend Gloucestershire

"This was a great course, we arrived on the Friday and designed our knife, Arian helped to fine tune the designs. I chose a bushcraft knife but there were all sorts of designs and uses. When it came to crafting Arian taught us three crafts, steel work (blade), wood work (handle) and leather work (sheath). Arian created a relaxed atmosphere where you could make your own teas and coffees at anytime and had biscuits on constant supply. I'd really recommend this course to anyone, even if you're not particularly crafty as it was so relaxing and you come away with something you've crafted by yourself. Can't fault anything over the whole weekend and I'll taking this knife with me on many camping trips in the future. All in all 11/10! "

Nailsworth Community Workshop responded:

"Thank you Mike for this feedback. I'm delighted that the way I run the workshop worked for you. Enjoy using your knife as that is the whole idea! Best regards, and if you have any questions over time be free to get in touch. Thanks for your hard work! Arian"

Seán G reviewed: Knife making weekend Gloucestershire

"A busy but very rewarding weekend. Straight into learning about materials and making from the Friday evening onwards. Start with a metal billet and come away with a quality knife in a leather sheath. Brilliant. Arian is a warm, clever and talented teacher. After all the years he’s been doing this there was not s whiff of complacency or staleness. He obviously still loves what he does and sharing it with people. Funny, attentive and talented. Highly recommended. "

Nailsworth Community Workshop responded:

"Kind thanks Sean for this feedback.I'm sure your knife will serve you well for years to come, and become a good friend! Very lovely design, so thank you for your creativity and hard work. Be in touch! Arian"

David reviewed: Knife making weekend Gloucestershire

"What a great weekend course! Tiring but thoroughly enjoyable. Arian is a very knowledgeable and patient instructor. I have never really made anything in my life (well not for 50 years!) and I finished this weekend with an extremely sharp knife with a lovely cherrywood handle all in a lovely leather sheath! I totally recommend Arian's course."

Nailsworth Community Workshop responded:

"Thank you David for your kind words. I'm delighted that you enjoyed working practically in general, as well as constructing a lovely knife in particular. Glad the sharpness test worked as hoped for! Enjoy your new friend and be in touch with any questions etc. Arian"

Tony Laverick reviewed: English longbow making weekend in the heart of Nailsworth Gloucestershire

"Excellent course. Friendly tutors. Good instruction."

Nick Hardy reviewed: Knife making weekend Gloucestershire

"Fantastic weekend with the wonderful Arian. I can’t recommend it enough."

Nailsworth Community Workshop responded:

"Thank you Nick, for this feedback, as well as your work and creativity throughout the weekend. I really enjoyed that in addition to the practical process itself, you also had the chance to use the deer antler (that followed you around for so many years) for the handle. I'm sure there will be many stories to come over the years! Best regards, and thank you again. Arian"

David Hudson reviewed: English longbow making weekend in the heart of Nailsworth Gloucestershire

"Fantastic course! Very knowledgeable tutors, relaxed atmosphere, quality tools, and great instruction. Really pleased with how the bow turned out, and learned a lot in the process. It's a lot of work, but very rewarding. Highly recommended."

Nailsworth Community Workshop responded:

"Thank you David its great to hear you had a good weekend and like your bow. Happy shooting Pam"

Nick Bennett reviewed: English longbow making weekend in the heart of Nailsworth Gloucestershire

"This is a brilliant course led by Gavin and Tom, two fantastic tutors who truly understand their subject and effortlessly create a relaxed atmosphere. The time flew by but by the end everyone, no matter how little experience they had at the start of the weekend, finished with a beautiful bow and string. Highly recommend the experience and sense of achievement. "

Nailsworth Community Workshop responded:

"Thank you Nick - both for the review and taking the time to do it. So glad you enjoyed the weekend and we wish you many happy hours of shooting."

Thomas Woolley reviewed: English longbow making weekend in the heart of Nailsworth Gloucestershire

"A wonderful weekend! The two tutors, Gav and Tom, were clear, helpful, humorous and always watching to ensure that no one was stuck for long. The resources, materials and equipment provided were all plentiful and of good quality. The timing is tight, but achievable and you are never felt rushed beyond your capabilities. I haven't used my bow yet, but even if I never do, the final product is beautiful and lovely to hold."

Nailsworth Community Workshop responded:

"Thank you Thomas. Great that you had a good weekend - so glad you enjoyed the workshop in all its aspects Enjoy your bow. "