Sign Up for the January Purely Post and Beam Class

Mortise and tenon, dovetail, lap joint, through-tenon, birdsmouth notch—posts, beams, braces, roof rafters . . . spend five days with the Shelter Institute staff and learn how to design, layout, cut, and assemble a timber frame structure.

At the end of the week you'll leave with detailed cut sheets for a 24x24 timber frame structure and the knowledge of how to masterfully craft a timber frame structure yourself.

The next Purely Post and Beam Class begins on Sunday, January 6th and runs through Friday, January 11th, 2013.

Read more »

Tools for Women Workshops Special Offer

Ladies, are you looking to gain some confidence when it comes to tools? Does the idea of building your very own timber frame home excite you, but you’re not sure how to get started? Or do you just want to be informed enough to talk to the contractor remodeling your kitchen about all your options? If so, you have to check out the deal we’ve got on our Tools for Women workshop series!

Sign up for THREE classes in the Tools for Women series*, and we'll take 10% off each class. (Total discount will be applied to your third tuition.)

If you’ve already taken Basic Tool Selection for Women workshop or have signed up for another course, consider adding the Sharpening, Hands-On Sawhorse Building Workshop, Power Tool Selection for Women, or our famous Post & Beam course—all designed just for women. Not only is this a great bargain, it’s a wonderful opportunity to learn something new about construction, tools, timber framing, and yourself. 

*If you've already taken a class in the series, it will count towards earning the discount.

Bangor Daily News Features Tools for Women Workshops

Blueberry at work.
(From Bangor Daily News)

Blueberry is featured in today's Bangor Daily News. Writer Christopher Cousins asks her about the challenges of working in the construction industry as a woman and highlights the upcoming Tools for Women workshop and class series at Shelter. Here's a selection from the article:

Read more »

Maine Writer Blogs about Post and Beam Course

Maine writer J. Marsha Michler wrote an extensive post on taking the winter 2011 Purely Post and Beam class with Gil Harris on their blog, "The Existential Gardener." It's a great overview of what it feels like to take the week-long class. There are new tools to learn, old skills that need dusting off, and it's lots of fun.

In particular, I like the photos of the bloggers at work on cutting beams, sharpening chisels, and the class assembling the frame. Here's an example of Gil finishing a tenon from their blog.

"The Existential Gardener" blog chronicles "the experiences and recipes" and "other related stuff" of their all-season organic garden. A recent post offers a recipe for green bean casserole that looks delicious. Please visit and subscribe to their blog.

If you're inspired by Gil and Marsha and want to enroll in the next Purely Post and Beam class, we're currently accepting applications for our January 22-27, May 6-11, and September 24-28 courses.

Shelter is DownEast Magazine's Choice for Best Working Vacation

Shelter is featured in the July "Best of Maine" edition of DownEast Magazine. We're the Editor's Choice for Best Working Vacation. Here's what the editors had to say:

For some vacationers, lying on the beach just isn’t their definition of relaxation. The one- and two-week courses offered by the Shelter Institute represent a great way to enjoy the Pine Tree State and gain some valuable skills at the same time. The one-week Purely Post and Beam class, to be held August 7-12, teaches up to twenty-two students how to build a 24’x24’ post-and-beam cabin. (There were still a few spots open when we checked, but don’t wait to book your spot!) The class also gets to enjoy off-hours events like a lobster bake on the banks of the Sasanoa River. This might be one vacation you can actually claim as a deduction!

We're very honored to be recognized by such a fine magazine.

If you've already made summer plans, remember that Shelter offers classes year-round. (Visit our website to see our current schedule.) Summers in Maine are fantastic, but our winters are special. (If you don't trust us, read this essay in The Atlantic by Paul Theroux on the virtues of Maine winters.)

In the summer, students enjoy a fantastic lobster bake, campfires in the woods, and spend their free time sailing or kayaking. In winter, you'll have access to snowshoeing or cross-country skiing on the quiet trails around Shelter. We have a large indoor production facility at the Shelter campus, where the January Purely Post and Beam class builds a timberframe.

It's a great vacation, but it's also an extraordinary opportunity to learn valuable and life-changing skills.

A Few Spots Left for Two-Week Design Build Class: July 11-22

Need something to do during your July vacation in Maine? There are a few openings left for our July 11-22 Design Build class. Call us today or register online.

Our August Purely Post & Beam class is full and closed to new registrations, but you can register online now for our one-week Purely Post & Beam winter session (January 22-27).

Why should you take a Design Build course? Building or renovating a home involves so many decisions. Our Design Build course gives you the foundation for making those complex decisions. More than 20,000 women and men have taken this continually evolving course. The class is carefully crafted to teach building concepts from site planning through foundations, alternative energy, value, framing, wiring, plumbing, insulation, weatherization, roofing, and more to foster the ability to make wise judgments about the myriad alternatives facing prospective home owners today. Timber frame? Straw bale? Truss? Air Concrete? Foam? Stone? Steel? Photovoltaics? Stick frame? Which one, where and why? What works, what makes it work better, where does the truth lie?

Read more »