Chris Russell is leading whittling workshops at Bromyard Folk Festival under the name At The End Of The Garden. Since 2021, Chris has been running Whittling and Green Woodworking Workshops, having discovered a passion for green woodworking during the lockdown period.

Whittling offers a unique form of focus, where the act of using the knife to make the next cut or shave away the surface becomes all-consuming, allowing everything else to fade away. It’s a moment of complete immersion in the craft. The process of transforming raw material into a finished piece feels almost magical—a wonderful act of creation. Through the workshops, Chris not only teaches practical skills but also shares the excitement of making something tangible. The joy when participants proudly display their work is a key part of the experience, as are those meditative moments when it’s just the maker, the knife, and the wood.

Chris has been involved in making for as long as can be remembered, with a background in silversmithing and experience teaching and working with various materials. Currently, Chris runs a monthly Whittling Group at a Community Garden in Worcester and contributes to wellbeing courses with Whittling for Mindfulness.