Aya Abdallah felt the touch of the wood in her hands with something like ecstasy. She has been working on her folding table for four months, finishing a part every month. With the help of the instructor and some of her female counterparts, she has been able to create a new multi-purpose table that she can use for any function, from small conference table to kitchen table. “I wanted to create something using my own hands, something beautifully designed. I was looking to make a multi-purpose table which can suit anywhere,” Abdallah, a married graduate of the Faculty of Science in Cairo, said. Abdallah inherited a similar table from her grandparents, but unfortunately it was broken. She tried to fix it by asking carpenters in Cairo, but all of them asked for too much money. In the end, she joined a carpentry workshop, and the more she learned how to work with her own hands, the more she fell in love with the work. The craze for carpentry Learning carpentry has become a major trend for many people today who want to create their own furniture or even to change careers. Ahmed Abdel-Wahab, a carpenter and the founder of the Facebook page Kalam Nagareen (Carpenters' Talks), is one of those people whose career has been completely changed. Abdel-Wahab was a history teacher until 2006 when he changed careers to become a renowned modern carpenter. “The story began when I wanted to buy some furniture myself. I couldn't find what I wanted, so I decided to make my own, and this is how I ended up falling in love with this trade,” he said. Abdel-Wahab is self-taught, and he explained that he taught himself the necessary skills by watching tutorials and streaming videos showing him the required expertise. He then established his own workshop called Al-Hamad in Cairo where he trained many other people for free. In 2011, he created two Facebook pages that now have thousands of followers including older carpenters and those who are simply interested in the trade. In partnership with the Alexandria Hackerspace, an online community, carpenters including Abdel-Wahab have held many workshops to teach people the craft of carpentry at four levels. Despite some feeling anxious about so many new entrants to the trade, Abdel-Wahab said that this should not be a concern. “When people get to know the basics of the craft, they understand the materials and how time-consuming it is. As a result, I feel people have come to appreciate the craft more rather than trying to compete with those trained to practise it.” “Sharing information is part of being human. There is no such thing as the secrets of a trade or a profession,” he added. The craze for carpentry Amr Al-Shaer, the founder of Alexandria Hackerspace, is the reason why many people in Alexandria have developed an interest in handicrafts. Al-Shaer's studio in the city's Asafra district now produces metalwork, textiles, turned wood, paper, glass and other forms of craft. Whereas carpentry and woodworking are jobs needing muscle and are often associated with men, women have also shown great interest in such skills despite societal norms. “When we started a year ago, we were puzzled to find so many women interested to join,” Al-Shaer said. “As things have progressed, woodwork now can be done by machines, and this means that there is no longer such a need for muscular strength.” Carpentry is one of the oldest and most important trades in the Middle East, and Egypt and the Arab countries have long been celebrated for their intricate Islamic art and oriental designs such as arabesques, many of them realised in wood. Many people in the Arab world are also now fascinated to see the creation of authentic items that no mass-production can replicate. “I used to watch my brother putting things together and pulling things apart, digging holes, painting, and writing calligraphy on wood using a set of carpentry tools which father gave him when he was young. I always asked for one as well, but father gave me a cookery set instead,” remembers Cairo resident Mona Hashish, who is now 47 years old. Hashish later joined the Faculty of Fine Arts in Cairo where she specialised in interior design. “I always knew I had the skill to make things. I wanted to make small objects, perhaps in arabesque, but I did not know where to go,” she said. “When I found out about the courses that are now being held I did not hesitate for a moment. I learned many skills, and I am now teaching my own children how to create their own designs,” she added. Aisha Al-Sewidi, on the other hand, fell in love with carpentry because of a game she used to play on the computer in which the player cuts down woods and builds a virtual town starting from a bench and going on to houses and other structures. “At school, the teachers used to teach us etiquette, cooking, sewing, and so on, while the boys would have carpentry and agriculture lessons. It is like a division in which we never had a choice,” said Al-Seweidi, today a physician at the Gamal Abdel-Nasser Hospital in Cairo. “Being an amateur carpenter or woodworker can make you feel more alive, more connected and more accomplished,” she concluded.
