For the first time in Latvia, a practical training course entitled “Restoration of Traditional Wooden Buildings” has been created and launched. It is being implemented by the Wood Workshops of Bulduru tehnikums. This is an excellent and unique five-week non-formal education programme. As part of it, anyone wishing to restore their family home – be it a log cabin or a timber-frame house – or anyone working in the construction of wooden buildings, is trained by experienced master carpenters from the Latvian Chamber of Crafts.

The training participants are 11 brave men aged between 27 and 64 from Rīga, Ķekava, Mārupe, Nīca, Piltene, Jaunpils, Īle, Carnikava, Skrīveri, Murmastiene, and Ogre. Each has their own story and life experience – there are farmers, office workers, entrepreneurs, and carpenters. Yet, together, they form a powerful team to master skills that only a few dozen craft masters in Latvia still possess. The goal is shared – to understand and become capable of restoring their own family homes.

The training is practical. The first few days were devoted to understanding the fundamentals of timber, building structures, and joints. In the second half of the week, participants travelled to Burtnieki, where a log sauna had been prepared for demolition. It was measured, marked, dismantled as a group, and then transported to Bulduru tehnikums, so that during the training process in the Wood Workshops, it could be cleaned, its damaged parts restored, and then reassembled. Throughout this, they are learning about building structures, foundations, roofs, insulation, interior and exterior finishes, and so on – everything necessary to restore an old wooden building.

The intention of the programme authors is to identify and pass on the knowledge of Latvian master carpenters to a wider circle of people – while we still have such masters and practical knowledge that can no longer be acquired in any school in Latvia!