DIY Activities in Costa Mesa

Sign up online at: Urbanworkshop.net/trackwoodbowl

Step up to the wood lathe and discover the fundamentals of bowl turning. In this course, you’ll transform a rough square block of wood into a beautifully finished bowl while learning the essential skills of woodturning.

We’ll begin with wood lathe basics—how to safely set up and operate the lathe, prepare raw stock, and confidently use turning tools such as chisels, gouges, and scrapers, along with faceplates and chucks.

Once you’ve built a solid foundation, the next two classes dive into the creative process. You’ll design, turn, and finish your own wooden bowl, learning techniques that bring form, balance, and craftsmanship together from start to finish.

Students who complete this course are signed off to use the wood lathe whenever they like as members. This course meets once a week for 3 weeks.

Attire: Pants, closed toe shoes, shirt that covers shoulders. If you have long hair, please tie it up!

Member Price: $530
Non-member Price: $742
Ages: 18+
Prerequisite: None

This course includes:
WOD201 – Wood Lathe Basics
WOD202 – Green Bowl Turning (2 Sessions)

**Sign up online: urbanworkshop.net/TrackCNCR**
The CNC router is one of the most powerful tools in our shop—and once you know how to use it, it changes what’s possible.

From scaling up production and taking on professional client work to pushing the boundaries of woodworking and plastics, a CNC router lets you create with a level of precision, complexity, and repeatability that simply isn’t achievable by hand. Every cut is accurate. Every part comes out the same. On purpose.

That said, CNC routing can feel intimidating at first. Between software, tooling, machine setup, and material choices, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed if you’re new. This immersive 9-hour course is designed to take you from zero to confident on our 4′ × 8′ Laguna CNC router.

Over three consecutive days, you’ll learn how the machine works and how to actually use it—from design considerations and router bits to CAD modeling, CAM, toolpaths, and dialing in feeds and speeds. You’ll design your own part, generate your own toolpaths, and run the machine yourself. You press the buttons. We’re there to guide, troubleshoot, and make sure it all clicks.

Students who complete the course are signed off to independently use the Laguna CNC router as members, giving you ongoing access to one of the most versatile tools in the shop.

Member Price: $400
Non-member Price: $560

Age Requirement: 18+ only
Prerequisite: None

This course includes:
CNC200 – CNC Router Concepts
CNC201 – CNC Router Programming
CNC202 – CNC Router Setup