Registration has opened for Handworks 2023, which will be held Sept. 1-2 in Amana, Iowa. The event is free – registration helps the organizers determine the approximate attendance.
Handworks is – hands down – the best woodworking show I have ever attended, and I have attended hundreds of shows all over the world. Handworks is a true celebration of the craft, the tools we use and the people who practice it.
Even if you don’t buy a single nail or widget at the event, you will meet amazing people who share your interests. You will learn techniques from the exhibitors. And your faith in the future of woodworking will be restored.
Lost Art Press will be there – all of us. We will bring books, tools and will probably make some special edition something for the event. Check out who else will be there. It’s everyone in the hand tool world. And Roy Underhill is giving the keynote. And did I mention it’s free?
This show is not a money-making event for the organizers. They do it out of the goodness of their hearts. The booth fee for exhibitors is laughably minimal (like 1/20 of what we are usually asked to pay). No one shakes anyone down for money. So Magic Rag salesmen. No Router Bits that Fell off a Truck.
This is the good stuff.
Also, I recommend you make every effort to attend this Handworks because there might not be another. It is an enormous pain in the butt for the organizers to pull off. And every time they put on the show, they say: This might be the last. I believe them.
Why Iowa? Why not your backyard? The Amana Colonies are amazing. They are worth the trip even without Handworks. It’s a gorgeous setting with beer, good food and old buildings.
Bring the family. Bring the neighbors.
— Christopher Schwarz