Malaysian Woodworking Workshops For Children And Adults

Blurb from the author: I remember my days with Kemahiran Hidup very well. It was my first introduction to woodworking and I was afraid of splinters, the blades and the shaky combination of my craft. Although I don't miss it all, I still enjoy watching woodworking videos on YouTube.

Kevin's story couldn't
be different. As far as he remembers, he was at least 5 years old when he started playing
with his grandfather's hand tools before he even knew what woodworking was.

While he was not chasing
a career in carpentry in his early professional life, his passion for woodworking
had such a strong calling that he would come back to it at some point.

In mid-2017, he started Kevin Build to manage woodworking workshops. He started teaching at The Hatchery Place, a common room he co-founded, but had to stop after complaints from neighbors.

Today he works together
with a few maker spaces and schools to run his workshops.

With the hands

"The main intention of me to lead a woodworking workshop is to encourage more people to get in touch with their creativity by hand," Kevin told Vulcan Post.

He directs his workshops to people of all ages, in which children from 5 or 6 years to adults from 80 years participate.

Photo credit: Kevin Build

Children's workshops cost
RM120 and during her time with Kevin they learn the basic skills of
Building and repairing things from scratch, something that – if I dare to do it myself – many
of us missing these days.

A workshop session costs 250 RM for adults, and Kevin welcomes those with little or no woodworking experience.

He leads these workshops personally when fewer than 10 participants are present. He will ask his team for support at larger team building workshops that involve hundreds of participants.

Kevin also works from
This rule: “I have indicated that I will not cancel a class. The class will
Continue anyway, even if only 1 participant is present. "

He does his best to ensure that he sources local materials whenever possible and chooses reputable log yards and suppliers with good track records.

More than just sawing
And hammer

Most days Kevin will coach and prepare for the workshop, including planning, planning and marketing for the purchase of wood, milling and cutting.

Kevin and some of his builds / Image Credit: Kevin Build

He is on weekends
dedicated to public workshops, which are usually only open for about 6
up to 7 participants.

Woodworking isn't just that
about the wood and tools for Kevin. His background in UX helped him
with the efficiency of its woodworking too.

"Have a structural
The type of planning and design has contributed to better results. me too
Include technology and include 3D modeling in the design phase for both
commissioned projects and coaching sessions for woodwork, ”he said.

Woodworking can definitely
to be a useful skill, but I didn't know if there was a lot of demand for it
from the public.

Kevin said however
This woodworking was never out of fashion.

“Working with wood connects
one to nature and teaches people to appreciate natural material
synthetic materials, ”he said.

He also said he was
More and more people have decided to invest in experiences
material goods lately.

Photo credit: Kevin Build

"Many participants
registered their loved ones for workshops as a gift or as a celebration
do something together, ”he said.

"It's a positive thing
to see, and I assume that this will remain so for some time to come. "

Engagement leads to
recognition

Far from being just one
Kevin's work has been recognized by the media and major media
Brands with which he was interviewed by TV2 in 2018 for one of theirs
Galeri Nasional Mandarin episodes.

A shelf by Kevin / Photo credit: Kevin Build

He was also recently featured by WD-40 Malaysia in one of their marketing campaigns as a woodworker who uses his spray to maintain his woodworking tools.

Beyond that he had
a few invitations to talk about his trip, jump from a corporate job
He runs his own woodworking business.

At the moment, one of them is
The biggest challenge for him continues to be finding a suitable place for woodworking
It is also safe and suitable for children.

To solve this, he plans to open a woodworking school for people of all ages.

Here you can not only learn, but also serve as a connection point to get to know other craftsmen.

Bottom line: As someone who spends a lot of time online and on devices, I sometimes want to invest my time in an activity that is more practical, such as embroidery, knitting, floral arrangements, or even painting. Now I have to add woodworking to the ever growing list of things I would like to do instead of staying at home and watching YouTube.

• You can find more Malaysian startups here.

Selected image source: Kevin Build