Bowyer’s Workshops

These workshops are designed sequentially in order for students to gain the skills, techniques and knowledge to create bows, having the opportunity to learn from their mistakes on less advanced billets/staves. We recommend that students with little or no experience working with wood or wood tools should start with the Introduction to Bowyery or Beginners Bowyers Workshop.

The Beginner, Intermediate and Advanced Bowyers Workshops will be 6-8 weeks, depending on the Applicable Skill Level of the students. Due to the nature of these workshops, we cannot guarantee that students will come away with a working/perfect bow.

Safety equipment will be provided, however we ask that participants purchase their own well-fitting leather gloves.

Introduction to Bowyery (I2B)

This workshop is specifically designed to introduce while familiarizing the Novice Bowyer to the tools, materials and knowledge to build a beginner bow. Students will start with a hardwood pre-cut stave to get hands-on experience with the tools and their techniques from pencil to hatchet. Each student will be guided through an interactive process, learning where to remove and shape the wood to create a D-shaped longbow. This theory and practical interaction from blank stave to self bow will provide the student with a base knowledge of the crafting skills to create a bow of their choice in the future. This workshop will be 4-8 weeks long.

Beginner Bowyers Workshop (BBW)

The BBW will take the skills learnt from the I2B and apply them to a hardwood board while also learning how to prep and glue a grip. Students will be assisted in choosing the tools to shape their grip and remove material to the tillering stage. From here our novice bowyers will be introduced to the skills of floor, long, and short string tillering and the use of a tillering jig to create a laminate American long-flat bow. At this level of skill participants will now have access to “options” (also know as level up skills) In the BBW options available are: reinforced nocks, Flemish twist string, exotic wood handle, leather grip, dyeing/staining their bow, shellac/tinted shellac application. Each of these options have additional cost.

Intermediate Bowyers Workshop

Beginning with a hardwood stave, Intermediate Bowyers will find and reveal their bow, with the addition of learning to process and work with animal products to increase the tensile strength of their bow. The opportunity will also be available to explore techniques to add artistic decoration to bring a more personal touch to their bow. Bows crafted during this workshop will have the potential to be of BC legal hunting draw weight (#40+).

Advanced Bowyers Workshop

A Pacific Yew (Taxus brevifolia) stave is the wood of choice for the Advanced Bowyer. These students will learn to find and tiller their bow in this most unique and extraordinary wood. The resulting bows will be of #40+ draw weight (BC legal hunting draw weight). Bowyers will make their bows personally distinct through subsequent use of natural products and pigments, also increasing tensile strength to #60+ draw weight.

Schedule 2024:
-Introduction to Bowyery: Oct. 26, Nov. 2, 9, 16, 23, 30 Dec. 7, 14, 21, 28 - Beginner Bowyery: Jul. 6, 13, 27, Aug. 10, 17, 31, Sept. 7, 14 -Advance Bowyery: Oct. 26, Nov. 2, 9, 16, 23, 30 Dec. 7, 14, 21, 28
Pricing:
- Introduction to Bowery: $282, + material cost (dependent on materials selected)
- Beginner Workshop: $335, + material cost (dependent on materials selected)
- Intermediate Workshop: TBD
- Advanced Workshop: $626, + material cost (dependent on materials selected)