Ashley Harwood knew all along that she wanted to make a living working with her hands. She tried all kinds of creative media including painting and drawing, photography, and sculpture. She focused on sculpture and installation art in college, exploring glassblowing outside of her schooling. In 2009, after taking a bowl turning class with her father, she decided to pursue a woodturning career. Ashley started this career by selling her works art the Charleston Farmer’s Market from 2009 to 2015 – every Saturday from April until Christmas. In 2010 she had an informal apprenticeship with Stuart Batty during which she would volunteer as a teaching assistant. Ashley found that she had a love for teaching. In 2011, she began teaching turning classes out of her studio in Charleston, SC. Over time, she received invitations to teach at woodturning clubs and symposiums all over the USA, and as far away as Australia, Norway, Spain, and Ireland- to name a few. She did a significant amount of production turning between 2015 and 2020, working for architects, furniture, and lighting companies. Knowing that she wanted a family one day, she made an effort to generate more interest in her classes in Charleston through social media. In 2019, she started her Youtube channel and focused more on growing her Instagram and Facebook audiences. After a peak in demand for turning tools in 2020 and difficulty acquiring them from abroad, she started manufacturing her own USA made tool line. Today, she primarily focuses on teaching in her studio in Charleston, SC, growing her tool business, and being mom to young Ayla.
Push-Cut Bowl Turning
Skill level: beginner/intermediate
Ashley will turn a bowl using the Push-Cut method and will demonstrate how, using the Push-Cut, it is possible to make a complete pass from the bottom to the top of the outside of a bowl in one cut without using a lot of muscle. Ashley will demonstrate free-hand sharpening of a bowl gouge to create the 40/40 grind. She will discuss the bottom bowl gouge and its used across the inside bottom of the bowl.
Easy design elements with Negative Rake Scrapers
Ashley will show various design elements that can be added to the rim and/or foot of a bowl on the lathe using negative rake scrapers and a vortex tool. She will discuss sharpening and technique for these tools. Ashley will also talk about design aesthetics, e.g., bowl shape and curve, proportion of the foot, creating rim and foot designs that work together and what is attractive to potential buyers.
Sea Urchin Ornaments
Skill level: Intermediate
Ashley will demonstrate fine spindle turning in a sea urchin ornament. She uses a bowl gouge, detail spindle gouge, and vortex tool. She will demonstrate how to sharpen all of these tools without the use of a jig, and will talk about cutting techniques and tool control in detail – demonstrating how to combine the basic cuts of spindle turning to create a pleasing design. Assembly as well as preparation of the shell and packaging will be covered.
