About

In 2005, a woman named Ruth Niles brought her mandrel system and top-quality hardware to the woodturning world, and inadvertently revolutionized the bottle stopper industry for artists and makers around the world! Now woodturning catalogs provide a vast array of hardware for dining accessories and kitchen tools. 
Niles’ system serves as an excellent approach for efficiently turning and assembling project kits. In this class, you’ll select your hardware and then, from a variety of woods, choose what you’d like for the handle.

During the first session, you’ll create a design and learn how to use a Ruth Niles mandrel to mount stock on the lathe. You’ll turn and sand your project, and select a finish. During the second session, you’ll complete the first project, turn and sand your second project, apply finish, buff both, then mount the hardware. If you need more time to complete these steps, the instructor can help you during open studio.

Details

• A materials fee of $35, included in the price of the class, covers up to $30 for wood and hardware, plus $5 for consumables.
• Depending on what you choose for wood and hardware, your cost may be more. You can pay the difference to the instructor during class.

Project

You will choose two of these items to make:

• High-quality pizza cutter
• Sleek, stainless steel bottle opener
• Micro plane zester (fine grater)
• Elegant pie knife
• Cheese slicer
• Bottle stopper (wine, liquor or oil/vinegar)
• Pig-tail food flipper
• Ice cream scoop
• Coffee scoop

Prerequisites

You must have taken:

• Intro to Woodturning
• Orientation to the Woodshop
• Woodshop Tool Safety Checkout 1
• Woodshop Tool Safety Checkout 2 

Class Policies

• Ages 14 and up are welcome.
• You must wear safety glasses (bringing your own is recommended) and closed-toe shoes. Tie back long hair, and avoid loose-fitting clothing and jewelry.