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Thanks for coming! 2-Day Intro + Cheek End: September 25-26, 2021 (VT)

On two beautiful late September days, fifteen men and women gathered at the Stone Trust Center in Dummerston, Vermont to learn the five basic rules of dry stone walling. Four others came to apply those principles to building vertical wall ends, also known as cheek ends. You came from near and far–Vermont, Massachusetts, New York,…

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Certifying as a Waller Is No Mean Feat!–Fall Test Days 2021

DSWA Certification Test Day, September 2021

It takes brave souls to test their walling skills against the Dry Stone Walling Association’s Craftsman Certification Scheme. Each of you fit training into busy lives full of work, family, friends, community obligations, celebrations and losses. Some of you drove 2000 miles, others 400. A few of you live relatively close to the Stone Trust…

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Everyone Feels Ready! Test Prep Workshop: Sept. 11, 2021 (VT)

Four people came to Saturday’s Test Prep workshop, taught by Jamie Masefield,  to be sure they are ready to pass the Dry Stone Walling Association of Great Britain Level 1 Initial Waller certification test, coming up next week. This group includes those who engaged in their first walling workshop in 2021 and have been “bitten by…

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Splitting, dressing, bending and more…

“Stones are strong in compression, but weak in tension,” writes Brian Post, DSWA Master Craftsman, in this very informative article on stone shaping which appeared in the Dec/Jan issue of Mother Earth News magazine. In the Basic Techniques for Shaping Stone article, Brian starts by explaining the difference between level bedded and irregular stone. He…

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Beautiful Days for the Intro Workshops! September 11 & 12, 2021 (VT)

“Best darn workshop–beautiful and learned a ton!” Two beautiful late summer days brought two happy groups of people to the Stone Trust Center in Dummerston, Vermont to learn the five basic rules of dry stone walling. Given the weather and the prevalence of the Delta Variant, we chose to teach outside on the social-distance walls…

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A “Lake Woebegone” Workshop: 2-Day Intro, August 6 &7, NH

Pete Ryder, site facilitator of the Stone Trust New Hampshire site, described the weather and the flow of interaction at August’s 2-Day Introduction to Dry Stone Walling this way, “Everything seemed above average.” He said, “It was kind of a Lake Woebegone workshop.” Judging by the photos, you can see what he means! As always,…

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