A Total Window Makeover course offers a transformational experience—each participant restores an entire double-hung window in just five days. In that time, they gain hands-on mastery of essential movements in window restoration, not just in theory but through actual, complete restoration work.
A team of three participants—mirroring the ideal size for a professional Window Craft team—restores three windows in one week. This fundamental, yet comprehensive, training provides the core skills necessary to sustain a historic home. The metric for success in a real-world setting? One window per three person artisan team per day—260 windows per year. At an average rate of $1,500 per window, this translates to $390,000 in annual revenue per team.
To reach this level of proficiency, a team must command the high-level skills of Joinery, Carpentry, and Finishing—the very same trades that originally built our historic house communities.
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A Legacy of Craftsmanship: The Three Trades That Built America
The homes we treasure today were constructed using natural resources and expert artisan labor, where Joiners, Carpenters, and Finishers worked independently yet were fully reliant on one another:
- Joinery shops produced raw materials—sashes, doors, frames, millwork, and cabinets—manufacturing the intricate parts that were then shipped across the country via railroads or made locally.
- Carpenters assembled these parts into homes, mounting window frames into rough openings as walls were built and later fitting, tuning, and balancing sashes into the installed frames.
- Finishers provided the final layer of protection and beauty, applying paint and finishes that sealed and enhanced the work of both the Joiners and Carpenters.
These skilled trades built the neighborhoods we cherish, and it is these same skills that will preserve them for the future.
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Reclaiming What Time Seeks to Erase
“I passed by the field of the sluggard and by the vineyard of the man lacking sense, and behold, it was completely overgrown with thistles, its surface was covered with nettles, and its stone wall was broken down.” — Proverbs 24:30-31
Left untended, nature reclaims all that we borrow. If we fail to act, our historic neighborhoods will succumb to neglect, decay, and corporate-driven replacements. We must act. We must reunite Joinery, Carpentry, and Finishing, interweaving them into a tightly knit, highly skilled, and well-equipped force for preservation.
The Total Window Makeover and Intro to Sash Making courses do exactly this. Total Window Makeover focuses on Carpentry and Finishing, while Intro to Sash Making covers Joinery. Together, they form a complete training system that brings the three classic trades back into harmony, creating a new generation of artisans capable of reviving and sustaining historic homes.
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Who Will Carry the Torch? The Three Essential Demographics
To restore our historic neighborhoods at scale, we need the right people. But first, we need leaders—skilled artisans who embody the Five Pillars of Window Craft and can guide others through the apprenticeship process. Once we have strong leadership, we can effectively recruit and train from three key demographics:
- The Leader – A person with mastery of Joinery, Carpentry, and Finishing, a deep connection to historic communities, and the ability to recognize and refine raw talent. This leader must excel in project management, team-building, and order of operations to create and sustain a highly functional crew.
- The Skilled Tradesperson Seeking More – A young carpenter or finisher who feels stuck, unfulfilled, and eager to rise above mediocrity into a role of honor and expertise. This individual already has skills, drive, and work ethic, making them an ideal candidate for an accelerated apprenticeship.
- The Untrained but Passionate Apprentice – A high school graduate, college dropout, or career shifter looking for something more meaningful than a desk job. This apprentice thrives in hands-on, outdoor work, seeking an alternative to dead-end service industry jobs. Their path follows a structured four-year apprenticeship:
- Year 1: Mastering the foundational movements of each pillar
- Year 2: Applying these movements in project management
- Year 3: Managing multiple teams while mentoring new apprentices
- Year 4: Running a Window Craft business, ensuring the sustainability of the trade
Whether as a leader, experienced tradesperson, or long-term apprentice, the future of Window Craft is built on mastering Joinery, Carpentry, and Finishing, blended together to execute the Five Pillars of Window Craft.
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Join the Movement—Restore the Artisan Spirit!
Wood Window Makeover is on a mission to recruit, equip, and launch an Artisan Army—craftspeople dedicated to serving, upholding, and protecting historic neighborhoods. These neighborhoods contain the highest concentrations of the Artisan Spirit anywhere in the world, and it is our duty to keep that spirit alive.
A single team of three artisans can restore 260 windows per year, but many historic neighborhoods contain over 60,000 windows that need attention. We don’t need just one team—we need hundreds.
Now is the time to act.
Sign up for the Total Window Makeover or Intro to Sash Making course today.
Join the movement. Build your skills. Become an Artisan. Help us reclaim the homes, neighborhoods, and legacy that corporate interests seek to erase.
Let’s put artisans and craft over corporations and planned obsolescence—together!
