Class Catalog

Sam Devlin has been a strong proponent of the Stitch and Glue method of boatbuilding for the past 30 years. In this class students will build a Peeper, a 12’ rowing skiff of his own design. The class will start with basic lofting and setting up and move on to taping the interior with cloth and epoxy. The class will then sheath the exterior of the boat and apply the trim and the finishing hardware. The class will take place at the Devlin Boatshop in Olympia, please call Edel O’Connor at CWB for more information.

Bring your basic painting skills and love of nature to Cama Beach for this three-day Pleine-Aire workshop.  Explore perspective, design, composition, color harmony and impressionist technique with award-winning artist and instructor, Dianna Shyne. She will include demonstrations, lectures, techniques for identifying compositional shapes and values, a three-step guide for color mixing, composition on location and methods for using line, color, brushwork and edges. Students can choose between acrylic and watercolor composition and<br /> should bring their own materials.

Camano Island is full of photographic opportunities. Explore composition and master your digital camera’s  manual controls, such as shutter speed, F-stop and ISO. Learn to think critically about composition and how to use it to help create beautiful photographs. Class will include lectures and demonstration. It’s a hands-on session where everyone takes photographs. Recommended for SLR camera users.

Lofting is a vital tool, typically the first step in building a new boat. It is a fascinating mental exercise in three-dimensional management and layering. Over the weekend, we will loft the lines of a 12’ traditional round bottom dinghy. We will calculate bevels and deductions, add raking stations for transom development and learn how to extract the maximum amount of information from the drawn line. We will discuss construction details, set-up and building molds for the real thing. Newcomers, put on your thinking caps! Veterans may even learn a trick or two. Reading about lofting is not enough; you’ve got to do it!

Traditionally boats were designed from half models. From the carved hull form, lines were drawn and scaled up to create full-size patterns. As you will learn in this two-day class, building half models involves reversing the original process by reading two-dimensional lines from plans of a classic Northwest boat and using these lines to create the half-hull. Time will be spent laminating wood, sharpening hand tools, working with chisels,  gouges, spokeshaves and hand planes to craft your own three-dimensional model. Students will mount their half models on boards, ready for display!

Students will work together to build a traditional 10’ Norwegian pram in this seven-day workshop, which covers classic Nordic lapstrake in its simplest form. Participants will learn the elements of beveled planking, copper  rivets, sawn frames and trunnel fastening. In one week, students also will learn all the other skills and techniques needed to build a small lapstrake boat. The pram will be launched on day seven and may be purchased by one of the students for the additional cost of materials. CAMA CABIN RESERVATIONS AVAILABLE.

Learn how to use all the tools necessary to cast hot metal using sand-casting technology. Sam Johnson will cover the basics of patternmaking, sand molding and bronze casting during this engaging hands-on course.  Students will make patterns of their designs to cast tools, boat hardware and other objects in bronze. Boatbuilders in particular often need special bronze fittings that are not available but can be cast without great expense. Anyone who has ever lost an oarlock will appreciate learning how to make copies of original hardware.  Students also will learn how to build their own inexpensive furnace.

Good oars are hard to find in the market! This two-day workshop provides a hands-on introduction to the craft of oar making. Learn the value of balanced oars, various blade patterns, how to choose suitable wood, how to figure the right length of oars and how to make leather oar collars. Students will lay out and build their own pair of flat-blade oars. Learn how to sharpen and use drawknives, spokeshaves and hand planes and some good techniques for shaping and finishing wood. Take home one finished oar and one partly finished to work on after the class.

Got a boat kicking around in your backyard that you’ve been meaning to get to, but just don’t know where to start? How about a boat you tore into and found more than you bargained for? This class is designed for do-it-yourselfers who need a jump-start on their projects. Bring your trailerable wooden boat (up to 20’) and get valuable time with professional shipwrights. Work as a group, moving from boat to boat, assessing the condition of the vessel, discussing next steps and listing materials needed for the project. It’s the perfect opportunity to ask those nagging questions about suitable wood types, fasteners, bedding compound, marine glues and finishes. You will get advice on how to begin the restoration, make repairs and move your project forward, plus whether or not you should trust your brother-in-law’s steadfast conviction in the latest “wonder-goo”. This class is great for people who want to work on their own boats, but don’t know how to begin or what to do. Participants will come away from this class with a better understanding of boats, marine products and professional restoration techniques. B.Y.O.B. Hell yeah! Great as a gift certificate! Help that special someone get their boat out of your driveway!

Build the T50MOD (Marblehead One Design), a fast, fun, exciting 50” radio controlled model sailboat designed by Tippecanoe Boats, in a sixday course that includes racing on the last day. The T50 is ultra light, ultra fast and combines the classic beauty of a round-bottomed, cedarplanked hull with the strength of modern epoxy and carbon fiber. All of the materials (except batteries) are included in the course fee. The radio control gear is full power rc gear, suitable for sailing on large lakes with a range of up to 300 yards. Students also will learn all of the techniques of working with WEST System Epoxy, including using marine epoxy in composite wood construction and using epoxy with carbon fiber and fiberglass. The T50MOD is a “Marblehead Class” legal hull and can also be raced as a one design class in the Seattle area. It is 8’ feet tall but unrigs easily, so it fits in a small sized car. The total weight of the hull and rig without the keel is just over three pounds, with batteries installed. The keel ballast weight is five pounds for a total sailing weight of just over eight pounds. This very  light weight makes the T50 easy to carry, easy to launch and very fast.

Ladies! Have you always wanted to learn woodworking but never had the time or the encouragement? Join Jennifer Kuhn for four sessions on the wonderful ways of woodworking. In addition to learning how to use hand and power tools safely, this workshop will cover basic joinery, laminating, fastening and finishing techniques. Walk away with the knowledge and confidence to embark on your own woodworking projects. Tell your sisters, girlfriends, mothers and daughters to sign up! Session 2 - 8/17/10; Session 3 - 10/9/10 (Cama Beach).

Ladies! Have you always wanted to learn woodworking but never had the time or the encouragement? Join Jennifer Kuhn for four sessions on the wonderful ways of woodworking. In addition to learning how to use hand and power tools safely, this workshop will cover basic joinery, laminating, fastening and finishing techniques. Walk away with the knowledge and confidence to embark on your own woodworking projects. Tell your sisters, girlfriends, mothers and daughters to sign up! CAMA CABIN RESERVATIONS AVAILABLE.

Ladies! Have you always wanted to learn woodworking but never had the time or the encouragement? Join Jennifer Kuhn for four sessions on the wonderful ways of woodworking. In addition to learning how to use hand and power tools safely, this workshop will cover basic joinery, laminating, fastening and finishing techniques. Walk away with the knowledge and confidence to embark on your own woodworking projects. Tell your sisters, girlfriends, mothers and daughters to sign up! CAMA CABIN RESERVATIONS AVAILABLE.

This class is for all you people with a hankering to make something out of wood. First you’ll learn how to use basic hand and power tools safely as you turn large hunks of wood into usefulsized pieces. With that mastered, you’ll move on to basic joinery, laminating, fastening and finishing. Sam Laher will impart the techniques that will have you ready and able to take on your own woodworking projects and heading for the lumber store.  Session 2 - 4/24/10 (Cama Beach); Session 3 - 10/5/10 (SLU).

This class is for all you people with a hankering to make something out of wood. First you’ll learn how to use basic hand and power tools safely as you turn large hunks of wood into usefulsized pieces. With that mastered, you’ll move on to basic joinery, laminating, fastening and finishing. Sam Laher will impart the techniques that will have you ready and able to take on your own woodworking projects and heading for the lumber store. CAMA CABIN RESERVATIONS AVAILABLE.