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SAN DIEGO FINE WOODWORKERS ASSOCIATION (SDFWA) is a non-profit corporation, organized in 1982, to unite people who share a common interest and enthusiasm for working with wood. If you are interested in making things from wood, SDFWA is the place for you. We currently have over 1600 members: men and women, amateurs, hobbyists and professionals, all sharing their ideas, techniques, expertise and love of woodworking.
INTERESTS
Our interests cover all facets of woodworking including:
OBJECTIVES
Objectives of the Association are education, promotion, and public appreciation
of the principles and practices of fine woodworking.
ACTIVITIES
SDFWA sponsors many activities throughout the year including the following:
SHOP TOURS AND BUS TRIPS
Members are encouraged to open their shops to explain interesting layouts or
unique specialties, techniques or skills. We also visit commercial manufacturers,
cabinet shops and even musical instrument makers. Bus trips take members to
places like the Getty Museum, the home of furniture maker Sam Maloof, the Craftsman-era
Green & Green Gamble House in Pasadena and other sites of interest to members.
SEMINARS
Each year SDFWA brings a nationally renowned woodworker to San Diego to conduct
a weekend seminar. Our members receive substantial savings on these seminars that
cover a wide variety of woodworking techniques. Some past seminars have featured:
TOY MAKING AND CUTOUT PROGRAMS
Toy making workshops bring members together to produce wooden toys in members'
shops and at Palomar College. This is a great way for new members to get involved.
Each year we donate over 3000 toys to various charitable organizations serving
needy kids. Members also produce and distribute thousands of scroll saw cutouts
each year to Children's Hospital for young patients to decorate and take home.
VIDEOTAPE AND LIBRARY PROGRAMS
SDFWA maintains a mail order videotape rental library on woodworking techniques
exclusively for members. Additionally, SDFWA annually donates funds (matched
by the City) to the City of San Diego Library System to purchase woodworking
books for the use of our members and the public. The library now has over a
thousand woodworking books in its collection.
SCHOLARSHIPS
SDFWA supports a variety of woodworking education programs in public schools
and provides scholarships to promising woodworkers in San Diego County high
schools and colleges.
DISCOUNTS
SDFWA members enjoy substantial discounts from more than 20 local suppliers
of lumber, tools, woodworking supplies and other services. These fine sponsors
support and donate to many SDFWA programs throughout the year.
DESIGN IN WOOD SHOW
SDFWA produces the Design in Wood Show each year in association with the San
Diego County Fair at Del Mar. This juried exhibition of fine woodworking has
gained national and international recognition as the premiere woodworking show
in the nation. The Design in Wood Show includes 21 different competitive categories
with over $19,000 in prize money. In addition, during the Fair, SDFWA members
demonstrate the use of hand tools by producing 50 children's chairs in a 19th
century cabinet shop setting. SDFWA has donated over 700 children's chairs to
charity organizations over the years. Other demonstrations include carving,
turning, model making and scroll sawing.
MEETINGS
Meetings are on the last Wednesday of odd months, with an extra meeting in April.
Meetings are at the Al BAHR TEMPLE, 5440 KEARNY MESA ROAD (behind the Hampton
Inn). We start promptly at 7:00 PM. Meetings highlight various aspects of woodworking
such as: Tuning a Table Saw, Timber Framing, Finishing Techniques, Making Tambour
Doors, Using Your Router, Dust Collection Systems and Vacuum Veneering.
The NEWSLETTER mailed before each meeting includes announcements of upcoming events, (like the twice a year Old Tool Swap Meet), the next program, the list of raffle items for each meeting, classified ads for members wanting to swap or sell woodworking tools and equipment, listings of sponsors, videos and other items of general interest to woodworkers. It is also available on our website.
COME JOIN US
San Diego Fine Woodworkers Association has something for every woodworker. If
you are interested in woodworking - SDFWA is the place for you.
