Matt Whittaker
Bowl making, blacksmithing timber frame building and band saw milling.
I have been working with wood and steel for over twenty years now. What first attracted me to these materials and the crafts of the Greenwood and Forge was their immediacy, the need for a very few tools in order to be able to create practical, everyday objects. Alongside this work I also operate a mobile sawmill that is used to cut both Farm and woodland trees into useful planks and beams. This feeds into another aspect of my work, building timber frames, from sheds to Barns!
Matt’s Offerings
Woodworking
I have been green woodworking for twenty five years now. I work on a foot powered lathe, the design of which hasn’t changed since at least the Roman times. The raw material for the bowls and plates I make comes from onsite here at Abundant Earth, trees are coppiced on a rotation and the wood processed for making. Have a peep at the shop to see the things I make.
Teaching has always been a mainstay of what I do with wood. I delight in giving people the chance to rediscover the ability to make with their own two hands. Get in touch with me if you’d like to learn.
Blacksmithing
Blacksmithing is the perfect counterpoint to woodworking, Many of the devices and tools used in my green woodworking are made at the blacksmiths forge onsite.
Tools are often made with recycled steel on a charcoal hand cranked forge onsite. Again teaching to children and adults alike is often going on here at Abundant Earth.
Want to book a private course/workshop for up to three people? Get in touch.
Mobile Sawmilling
Mobile bandsaw milling in County Durham. It is surprising how much wood in modern forestry is left to waste. The odd ton here and there does not make sense in the world of large lorries and machines.
I started off with a chainsaw milling rig and over the years have progressed to a fully mobile bandsaw mill that along with our land rover can go most places on a farm or woodland to mill the log where it fell.
This makes a lot of sense for the small woodland owner or the farmer for a small amount of timber.
Priced by the hour, no job is too small. Fill in the form / get in touch with me for a quote: matt.abundantearth@gmail.com, 07821920131
Northern Bowl
A gathering devoted to the sharing and teaching of the making of wooden treen. Northern Bowl is a small and intimate affair based just outside of the city of Durham on an organic smallholding. Keeping the skills alive and kicking is at the heart of it all.
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