Learn From Our Members
Three CMCFA member shops run training programs for fabricators -
because getting better at this trade is the whole point.
Nobody teaches marine canvas better than the people doing it every day. Three of our member shops have built training programs around that idea, and each one takes a different approach. Whether you're picking up an industrial machine for the first time or you've been fabricating for years and want to sharpen one skill, one of these will fit.
Yachtsman's Canvas
Keri Ames runs hands-on workshops out of an active 1,100 sq ft canvas shop north of Philadelphia. Classes cap at three people, so you're working the whole time — not watching.
With only three in the room, Keri can work one-on-one when you're stuck and teach the whole group when everyone needs it. Everyone gets their own industrial walking foot machine and a step-by-step workbook.
Basics — three days, two biminis start to finish
Bimini Enclosure — four days, five-panel enclosure
One-Piece Dodger — four days, traditional dodger
Small Group Setting - only 3 max students, more hands on experience
Yachtsman's Canvas
Keri Ames runs hands-on workshops out of an active 1,100 sq ft canvas shop north of Philadelphia. Classes cap at three people, so you're working the whole time — not watching.
With only three in the room, Keri can work one-on-one when you're stuck and teach the whole group when everyone needs it. Everyone gets their own industrial walking foot machine and a step-by-step workbook.
Basics — three days, two biminis start to finish
Bimini Enclosure — four days, five-panel enclosure
One-Piece Dodger — four days, traditional dodger
Small Group Setting - only 3 max students, more hands on experience
Marine Canvas Consulting
Mark and Deb Hood spent 43 years running Hood Canvas and thirteen years running a marine canvas school. They've retired from in-person teaching but are still passing the knowledge along — live Zoom classes capped at fifteen, private one-on-one sessions by the hour, and two spiral-bound how-to books built to lay flat on a workbench.
Best fit if you can't shut the shop down for a week, or you want one technique rather than a whole project.
Marine Canvas Consulting
Mark and Deb Hood spent 43 years running Hood Canvas and thirteen years running a marine canvas school. They've retired from in-person teaching but are still passing the knowledge along — live Zoom classes capped at fifteen, private one-on-one sessions by the hour, and two spiral-bound how-to books built to lay flat on a workbench.
Best fit if you can't shut the shop down for a week, or you want one technique rather than a whole project.
Marine Canvas Consulting
Mark and Deb Hood spent 43 years running Hood Canvas and thirteen years running a marine canvas school. They've retired from in-person teaching but are still passing the knowledge along — live Zoom classes capped at fifteen, private one-on-one sessions by the hour, and two spiral-bound how-to books built to lay flat on a workbench.
Best fit if you can't shut the shop down for a week, or you want one technique rather than a whole project.
Boat Canvas University
John Cavender brings more than thirty years of fabricating and shop ownership to a week-long, in-person workshop in Maryland — and it doesn't end when the week does. Students get a library of 175+ step-by-step lessons, a private student community, and ongoing mentorship afterward.
Best fit if you want intensive in-person instruction plus something to go back to when you hit a problem six months later.
Boat Canvas University
John Cavender brings more than thirty years of fabricating and shop ownership to a week-long, in-person workshop in Maryland — and it doesn't end when the week does. Students get a library of 175+ step-by-step lessons, a private student community, and ongoing mentorship afterward.
Best fit if you want intensive in-person instruction plus something to go back to when you hit a problem six months later.
Which One Is Right For You?
New to the trade
Start hands-on. There's no substitute for your hands on a machine with someone watching.
Can't leave the shop
Online classes and video training let you learn without closing your doors.
Sharpening one skill
A single workshop or a private session beats a full program.
Still not sure? Ask in the members' community — somebody's taken all three.
Does Your Shop Train Fabricators Too?
Email us at [email protected] and we'll add you to this page. Members only.
And remember — every CMCFA conference includes seminars taught by award-winning fabricators, included with your registration.
