Nihonsan offers a range of classes for beginners to professionals alike, as well as private, custom, individual or group classes.
See what’s available below, and contact us with any questions.
Build Your Toolbox - Intro to Japanese Woodworking
This 2-session, 14-hour class offers participants a deep-dive introduction to the rudiments of hand-tool woodworking with Japanese tools, including saws, chisels, planes, and more. In this class, you will learn how to use, sharpen, and maintain these tools and develop good work methodology. The class will culminate in building your own toolbox for your new tools.
Build Your ‘Workbench’: Planing Beam
Build Your "Workbench": Planing Beam is an intermediate class, designed to help hand-tool woodworkers develop the next set of skills and setup that can further their home woodworking practice. Conceived in a similar vein to 'Build Your Toolbox,' this single-day course is meant to build upon skills and tools learned in the initial class.
With the help of Japanese hand-tools, and borrowing from the Japanese woodworking tradition, together we will make a planing beam—cut and flattened by hand from thick poplar stock—with adjustable friction-fit stops and a pair of bolt-on feet. The project will allow us to cover how to mill a reference face and true a long surface by hand, work that is difficult to practice without the very thing we're building. Each woodworker will also be able to size the beam somewhat to suit their workspace requirements.
On its feet, the beam is worked from the floor, seated or kneeling, in the manner of a traditional Japanese bench. With the feet unbolted, it sits just as readily across a pair of sawhorses, two chairs, on a dining table, or on a countertop. Either way, once completed, you'll have a solid work surface that can be put to use in minutes, and just as easily tucked into a corner or closet.
This class pairs nicely and supports the work done in Build Your "Workbench": Sawhorses to complete the workbench, but the two do not need to be taken together or in any particular order. Depending on your space and how you prefer to work, the beam on its feet may well be all the bench you need.
For the class, students will be required to bring their kit from Build Your 'Toolbox' (240mm ryoba saw, 12mm chisel, 48mm kanna handplane, mallet, hammer, square, folding ruler, sharpening supplies, etc...) On top of this, some additional tools may be recommended, e.g. a larger plane (58-70mm) and a larger chisel (24-30mm).
Cost of materials is included in the registration fee for the class, but a nominal adjustment may be needed depending on shifting market rates and tariffs in the lead-up to the session.
Build Your ‘Workbench’: Sawhorses
Build Your "Workbench": Sawhorses is an intermediate class, designed to help hand-tool woodworkers develop the next set of skills and setup that can further their home woodworking practice. Conceived in a similar vein to 'Build Your Toolbox,' with a balance of in-class learning and at-home work, this two-day course is meant to build upon skills and tools learned in the initial class.
With the help of Japanese hand-tools, and borrowing from the Japanese woodworking tradition, together we will build a pair of lightweight but sturdy sawhorses. The project will allow us to cover how to mill reference faces and lay out structural joinery—two skills that carry over to nearly every piece of furniture you'll go on to build. Each woodworker will also be able to customize the horses somewhat to suit their height and workspace requirements. As with the toolbox, the goal won't be to finish both horses in class, but the remaining work can be completed at home at your own pace, on whatever surface you're currently using.
A pair of sawhorses is the foundation of a knock-down bench, and can be combined with the Build Your "Workbench": Planing Beam class to flesh out a complete setup. (Note: The two classes do not need to be taken together or in any particular order.) Set your beam and a few planks across these horses, add a couple of clamps, and you have a sturdy work surface that can be assembled in minutes and just as easily broken down and tucked into a corner or closet. A pair of horses can also earn its keep on its own—for breaking down stock, for assembly, for holding a wide panel or a door—whether or not a beam ever sits across them. Plan your workspace setup in whatever way works best for you.
For the class, students will be required to bring their kit from Build Your 'Toolbox' (240mm ryoba saw, 12mm chisel, 48mm kanna handplane, mallet, hammer, square, folding ruler, sharpening supplies, etc...) On top of this, some additional tools may be recommended, e.g. a larger plane (58-70mm), larger chisel (24-30mm), and a mortising gauge.
Cost of materials is included in the registration fee for the class, but a nominal adjustment may be needed depending on shifting market rates and tariffs in the lead-up to the session.
Project Design for New Woodworkers
Once you’ve started learning some skills and techniques, it’s natural for new woodworkers to begin to look around an think about all the cool stuff they could make. Unfortunately, designing and building your own pieces does demand some familiarity with wood movement, joinery dynamics, and techniques for prepping and planning a project. This class is meant to answer those needs and help you plan out your next project.
In Project Design for New Woodworkers, we’ll explore all the dynamics a new woodworker should know when designing and planning their next project. We’ll talk about material selection and how/where to buy lumber, the different dynamics of wood and joinery and how to accommodate them for your design, as well as generating a measured drawing from your sketch and planning your project with a cut-list and story stick. Once these steps are complete, you’ll be ready to start the project on your own and put to use the skills you’ve picked up in other classes.
The class will focus on the following general categories, but the techniques and concepts learn can be applied to any project of any size.
Foundations of Carving: Chopsticks and Spreaders - Full Day
This introductory full day course is designed for anyone looking to get started in woodcarving. Focus is placed on understanding wood and grain direction, knife grips and safety, along with the creative and mindful experience of carving wood. Additional emphasis will include discussion on woodworking in an apartment and tools of the trade. We will practice skill building through two projects:
Chopsticks: which provides an exercise in symmetry, tapering, and grain management on a straight line.
Spreaders: introduces curves which add challenge to grain direction, and carving from multiple faces.
No prior experience is necessary.
All materials and tools are provided and there will be an opportunity to purchase tools to continue your journey!
Bowties and Butterflies - Intro to Structural Inlays
Butterfly inlays are a beautiful way to add structure to wood. In this one-and-a-half-day class, students will learn how to chop and fit a butterfly inlay to connect two hinoki boards. You will come away with a beautiful breadboard/tray and extensive practice using a Japanese chisel to pare wood - a skill translatable to fitting all sorts of joints.
1st session: 6hrs
2nd session: 2hrs
This course is meant to be useful for the beginner and experienced alike! All necessary tools will be provided for this class, although you are welcome to bring your own chisels and tools if you are interested. Please contact us for a tool list if you are interested in bringing your own. Tools are also available for purchase before or during the class at Nihonsan Tools where the class is held.
Wood Carving - Hummingbirds
Join us for this two-day course that guides you through turning a found branch into a vibrant, one-of-a-kind hummingbird.Focus is placed on knife technique, reading wood grain, and directional carving to define movement and shape, and design principles for suggesting motion in a static piece.
We will also explore shaping and decorating wings — including painting, veneer, and geometric pattern design — and the assembly of separate carved parts into a single unique hummingbird. This course is designed for all levels of carving experience. All necessary tools and materials will be provided for this class, although you are welcome to bring your own carving knives if you like.
Tools are also available for purchase before or during the class at Nihonsan Tools, where the class is held. Perfect for those seeking to learn wood carving or woodworkers looking for fun things to do in NYC, you'll discover new skills and leave with a wooden hummingbird made by you!
Hinoki Bath Stool
This one day course will introduce you to the basics of Japanese joinery, or sashimono. With an intense focus on cutting accurate joints that are aesthetic and structurally sound, students will build their own Japanese bath stools using wedged wood tenons (don't worry, you will soon know what those are!) and other joints as well. Practice measuring and marking, cutting and chopping, until you are left with a beautiful and 100% usable piece of furniture to take with you.
No tools are needed for this class, although you are welcome to bring your own if you are interested. Feel free to contact us for a tool list.
Kintsugi (Ceramic Repair) Hands-On Workshop
Always wanted to know more about kintsugi - the Japanese art of repairing broken ceramics with lacquer and gold or other metal powders? Here is your chance! This 3 hour workshop will give you a basic knowledge of Kintsugi, including:
An overview of kintsugi materials and tools
A demonstration of each kintsugi procedure
The chance to get your hands dirty actually doing kintsugi, either on a supplied chopstick rest which you keep, or on a piece of your own you can bring
A discussion on appreciating the beauty of impermanence
Kintsugi Part 2 - Filling Chips, Restoring the Missing Parts
This is Part 2 of our new, full kintsugi workshop! It is meant for those who have completed Part 1 - Introduction with us. If you have not taken that class but have other kintsugi experience, please contact us to make sure it is an appropriate class for you.
In this hands-on session, we’ll learn how to restore chipped or missing parts of a ceramic object using traditional Kintsugi materials. You'll be guided through mixing urushi lacquer with a powder base to carefully rebuild small losses and recreate the original shape of the piece. This workshop uses traditional Kintsugi techniques with natural urushi lacquer, a tree-based material that may cause allergic reactions in sensitive individuals (similar to poison ivy). Gloves and protective materials will be provided.
Suitable for students who already have a bonded or chipped ceramic item to work on. All other materials (natural urushi lacquer, filler powders, gloves) will be provided.
Advanced Kanna (Japanese hand plane) Sharpening
Whether you want to put a final finish on wood, compete in a Kezuroukai (Kanna shaving competition), or just want to get better at sharpening your hand plane, this class gives you an opportunity to learn the best practices in getting an incredibly sharp Kanna blade.
In this class we'll go over:
Japanese waterstone selection and the differences between them
Advanced sharpening techniques for getting excellent results
What is sharp? And how to tell.
Hands-on sharpening with troubleshooting any issues you may have
Introduction to Kumiko
Kumiko is a specific subset of Japanese woodworking, and a lot of fun for beginners and professionals alike. It involves creating artistic panels out of smaller stock. The only tool you will need is a Japanese chisel, which will be available if necessary for the class, or students can bring their own. Students will make an asa-no-ha or stylized hemp leaf pattern, one of the more important and common patterns.
4 hour class, single session.
Sharpening Japanese Hand Tools
Join this comprehensive introduction to sharpening Japanese hand tools (planes, chisels, knives). This three hour hands-on course will teach participants how to sharpen and maintain your tools using Japanese water stones. Students should bring at least one tool to sharpen during class.
3 hour class, single session.
Nihonsan Tools & Hardware
300 7th Street BBFL Building, Lower Level, Brooklyn, US
Free Monthly Japanese Woodworking Meetup!
Join us the second Thursday of every month for our free Japanese Woodworking Meetup! Meet other folks interested in Japanese Woodworking, professional woodworkers, hobbyists, our instructors, and more. Feel free to bring pics of your latest projects, tools you want sharpen or need help with, and all your woodworking questions. Open to everyone. No booking is necessary!
Design: Stools & Benches
This single-session 4hr workshop is oriented towards hand-tool woodworkers, looking to design and plan their next project. This session will focus on apartment-sized benches and stools, for sitting or standing.
Basic Dovetail Joinery
This single-session 3hr class introduces the participants to dovetail joinery with Japanese tools, including saws & chisels. In this hands-on class, you will learn how to layout and mark these joints, as well as cut and fit them. This course does require knowledge and experience with basic hand-tool woodworking fundamentals, similar to those learned in the "Build Your Toolbox" course. If you are unsure you meet the requirements, please reach out to classes@makegoodwood.com for guidance before registering.
Some task-specialized tools will be available, but participants will be expected to bring their own basic tools, including chisels, saws, and tools for layout & marking.
Design: Accessory Tables
This single-session 4hr workshop is oriented towards hand-tool woodworkers, looking to design and plan their next project. This session will focus on apartment-sized accessory tables, including side tables, coffee tables, nightstands, etc… For the more advanced or ambitious, this project can also incorporate a drawer component. The class will meet in-person in Brooklyn.
Design: Benches
This single-session 4hr workshop is oriented towards hand-tool woodworkers, looking to design and plan their next project. This session will focus on apartment-sized benches and stools, for sitting or standing. The class will meet in-person in Brooklyn.
Mortise and Tenon Joinery
This single-session 3hr class introduces the participants to mortise and tenon joinery with Japanese tools, including saws & chisels. In this hands-on class, you will learn how to layout and mark these joints, as well as cut and fit them. Classes will meet in-person in Brooklyn. This course does require knowledge and experience with basic hand-tool woodworking fundamentals, similar to those learned in the "Build Your Toolbox" course. If you are unsure you meet the requirements, please reach out to classes@makegoodwood.com for guidance before registering.
Some task-specialized tools will be available, but participants will be expected to bring their own basic tools, including chisels, saws, and tools for layout & marking.
Simple Staked Joinery
This single-session, 4hr class introduces the participants to the concept and practice of round mortise and tenon joinery. In this hands-on class, you will learn how to use hand-braces, augur bits, tapered reamers and tenoning tools to add legs to a simple three-legged stool. Classes will meet in-person in Brooklyn. This course does require knowledge and experience with basic hand-tool woodworking fundamentals, similar to those learned in the "Build Your Toolbox" course. If you are unsure you meet the requirements, please reach out to classes@makegoodwood.com for guidance before registering.
Some task-specialized tools will be available, but participants will be expected to bring their own basic tools, including a handplane, saws, mallet, and tools for layout & marking.
Design: Boxes
This single-session 4hr workshop is oriented towards hand-tool woodworkers, looking to design and plan their next project. This project will focus on small and medium sized boxes of all kinds, made using different of joinery and hardware. The class will meet in-person in Brooklyn.
Design: Bookshelves
This single-session 4hr workshop is oriented towards hand-tool woodworkers, looking to design and plan their next project. The focus of this session will be apartment-sized shelves and bookcases (and similar-type furniture, i.e. shoe racks, etc.) in both free-standing and wall-mounted formats. The class will meet in-person in Brooklyn.
Contact Us
Questions? Comments? Feedback? Complaints? Please let us know, and we will do our best to meet your needs and make things better!