Last weekend, I traveled to Dresden, the capital of Saxony in Germany, to learn woodturning (Drechseln in German). Why woodturning? With my partner, I’m working on a project to create a robot designed to be a chat buddy for elderly people. We want to make it friendly with wood. The idea is to create something reminiscent of a western version of Japanese Kokeshi doll. Here is an image I made with ChatGPT.
The initial plan my partner made was to collaborate with students from a crafts university in Saxony involved since it's state funded project. However, building that connection proved challenging, so I ended up taking the role. It felt serendipitous since I had seen a woodturning machine once this summer at a friend’s place. Although I grumbled about being a programmer, actually I was excited to attend the course 😁
The two-day course started with a few hours of basic training on the first evening. On the second day, each participant shared their project idea with the instructor, and we spent the day working on our individual pieces.
The hard wood in the photo above was my chosen material. Shaping it was a meditative process, even though any lapse in concentration could cause the wood to push back forcefully. Facing this natural material head-on and feeling gratitude for the wood as I practiced felt deeply meaningful and aligned with my interests.
Once the rough shape was achieved, I smoothed the surface and the piece was cut to make room inside.
Unfortunately, the wood I selected was much harder than expected, so the instructor ended up doing most of the work 😅
Despite the challenges, I made good progress thanks to the friendly instructor with full of love to wood and craftsmanship. However, due to time constraints (I had a train to catch), I couldn’t finish. Still, I learned enough to feel confident about using the woodturning machine at a DIY space in my city.
While I wait for my membership at the DIY space to be finalized, I’ll continue refining the hollowed section with tools at home and start designing the robot’s face. That’s my homework for this week.
Inspired by my woodworking adventures, I also decided to assemble a birdhouse kit I bought years ago. My daughter wanted to join in and got to use a drill for the first time—successfully! We finished the birdhouse and installed it on our micro balcony. I’ll share more about this in my garden journal for the week next Sunday.
As winter approaches in Germany, birdhouses and bird feed become a common sight in stores. I’m relieved to finally complete ours after years of procrastination.
I love the shared spirit of craftsmanship that exists in both Germany and Japan, as well as the use of natural materials in traditional crafts. It makes me feel like I’m living in just the right place.
I had a very satisfying DIY weekend. Have a nice week, everyone!
先週末は、ドイツ・ザクセン州の州都ドレスデンにDrechsel（Woodturning、木工旋盤加工)を習いに行ってきました。なぜ突然木工旋盤加工なのかというと、今進めているおじいちゃん・おばあちゃんの話し相手になるロボットの外側を木で作ろうとしているからです。洋風こけしがイメージです。
相方の計画では、当初、プロジェクトを助成するザクセン州の工芸大学の学生さんとコラボレーションできたらいいな・・・ということだったのですが、なかなかつながりを作れず、私に白羽の矢が立ちました。この機械は以前、友人の旦那さんのものを見せてもらったことがあり、何かのご縁かもしれません。私の仕事はプログラミングなんですけど・・・とぶつぶつ言いつつ、内心ありがたくコースに参加してきました。
2日間のコースで、1日目は夕方から数時間、機械の基本的な使い方を学びました。2日目はそれぞれ何を作りたいか先生に希望を伝えて、個人のプロジェクトに取り組みました。
冒頭の写真の硬い木を削っていきます。気が緩むとガンガン跳ね返されて、木という自然からのいただきものと対峙して、私の練習につきあってくれる木に感謝しながら削っていく作業は瞑想のようでもあり、ものすごく好みの作業でした。
大体の形を作ったら表面をきれいにして、切り分けました。
部品が入るように内部に空洞を作っていきます。硬い木を選んだようで、先生にほとんど掘ってもらいました 😅
思いのほか木が硬くて、帰りの電車があったので作業はここまで。
まだまだ作業は続きますが、今回コースを受けて、機械の基本的な使い方を学んだので、これで近所のDIYスペースの木工旋盤を使えます。DIYスペースの契約処理を待ちつつ、手持ちの機械で中の空洞部分を整えて、顔を作るのが今週の宿題です。
私が木工づいていて、かなり昔に購入した鳥の巣のキットを組み立て始めたら、子供がドリルを使いたいと言い始め、無事ドリルデビューしました。完成した鳥の巣というか餌場はバルコニーにもう設置してあるので、今週のガーデンジャーナルをお楽しみに。
ドイツでは寒くなるとバードハウスや鳥の餌が売られ始めます。数年越しでようやく作れてほっと一息です。
日独に共通する職人文化やものづくり魂、自然素材を使った工芸が大好きです。そう思うとぴったりの国に住めているんですよね。
そんなこんなのDIYな週末を満喫したのでした。
Cool project that brings old crafts and modern technology together. Wood can be tricky to work with, but can look great.
That’s right. It’s a combination of old and new. And wood has a fine texture. I touch it and it makes me smile 😊
This is interesting
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