One for the practically challenged

Craft courses for the not so crafty (and the talented too of course) Submitted by David North

Not surprisingly the kind of courses you can take at The Potters Barn in East Cheshire include pottery but less likely are knife making, felt making, photography, stone carving, glass fusing, coracle building and longbow and arrow making to name a handful.

I did a one-day longbow making course which was brilliant. The teacher, Mark Cooper, is a master bowyer with a lifetime’s experience of making the traditional and legendary English longbow, that dreadful leveller of men, aristocrats and horses.  

Mark is also a lifelong archer and longstanding member of the British Longbow Society, Society of Archers and the Society for the Preservation of Traditional Archery, so he understands the bow through and through. Coupled with the kind of enthusiasm you expect from a beginner and the patience of a wise old teacher Mark took the 8 of us from blind fools to bowyers in just 7 hours.

Personally I was stunned by the results. The last woodworking I had done was 25 years ago at school and I was rubbish at it then so, to find myself at the end of the day holding a near completed English longbow – truly a thing of beauty in it’s own right – was simply fantastic.

All my fellow novice bowyers were finished, but for a few finishing touches, though one had succeeded in his impatience in snapping his – ouch! Yet the day wasn’t rushed. We started around 10 and broke off for over an hour’s lunch down at the Romping Donkey – a fantastic country pub serving great food and great ale (all included in the course fee) – then got back to work until the evening – regularly supplied with refreshments by Steve and Andy who run The Potters Barn.

At the end of the day I took a great deal away with me aside from a longbow worth £200. After all, it’s not just one bow I was taught to make. Now that I have the knowledge I can make as many as I like!

Perhaps more importantly, I found a new confidence in my ability to actually make something – something beautiful and functional – that doesn’t involve sitting in front of a computer. Since the course I have applied this new found confidence to tasks that I otherwise wouldn’t have considered doing. For example, I recently restored an old and, apparently, ruined hatchet of my father’s. In the process I discovered that it is actually quite an unusual carpenter’s axe – a type that one might use for roughing out longbows! Well, well.

So, whether like me you are ‘practically challenged’ or a skilful artisan, or whether you have an interest in longbows, pottery, metal work, stone work, glass fusing or the like, I can highly recommend The Potters Barn as a place to learn something new for it’s atmosphere, comfortable size, location (including the Romping Donkey), it’s standard of service and the genuine friendliness of Steve and Andy.  Long may it continue.

Further Information
Telephone The Potters Barn - 01270 884080
Visit The Potters Barn website
View all the courses
Read about the longbow course
See photos of the longbow course
Mark Cooper's website