Sometimes the best workmanship that a woodworker does is never seen on the final project. It sits in a corner of the workshop and collects dust until it is time to make another of the same project. I am, of course, talking about templates. In these cases, the final project is not much more than a copy of the template. The amount of care and time that a woodworker puts into creating a template will certainly show through in the final product, but if a template is done correctly, it will save you time and make your project look very impressive. Continue reading Template Crazy
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Many times when I begin to design a project, I start out with a pre-conceived image in my head of what I should end up with. Before I ever put pencil to paper to create an initial sketch, I have already locked myself in to a particular look or style. Sometimes this is not a problem because the idea in my head is easily translated to paper and is a very nice design. Continue reading Designers Block When I first began woodworking, back in the late 1990’s, Norm Abram’s “The New Yankee Workshop” was by far the most popular woodworking show on television. Once I discovered the show, I couldn’t get enough of it. Here was this regular joe, (ok, regular Norm) making such beautiful projects that almost anyone would want in their home. And Norm made it look sooo easy! Of course, nothing is as easy as it looks on television. But that didn’t matter because I had been bitten by the “I can build that….” bug. Continue reading Homage I finally found a couple of hours this weekend to cleanup my garage/workshop. It had been slowly becoming a disorganized mess over the last few months. I haven’t had enough time to start a real project, so most of the work done in the shop had been quick little fix-it or modify-it type of work. Continue reading Unfinished Projects
The frame for this net made out of laminated Walnut and White Ash. The inlaid fish is also made out of Walnut. The plan called for 3/32″ thick strips, but mine were closer to 1/8″. Sometimes woodworking and art become one. Sometimes they are two very separate things. Woodworking, I think, is always a skill or craft. But how often does it actually become art? Where is the line that a wood project crosses in order for it to become art? Continue reading Woodworking and Art  Front View (Click for larger view) Here is a quick update of where I am on the workshop design. If you remember from my first article, the footings and frost wall already exist so I cannot modify anything with them, but every thing else is fair game.  Mary Kay Give Away Display A couple of years ago, I had a client who sold Mary Kay cosmetics. She wanted me to build her a display that she could place near the cash registers at local businesses. People could fill out an entry form and place it inside the display in order to win prizes. Now that I have my wish list for the general construction of the workshop, it is time to focus on the interior of the shop and make a list of its features that I would like to include. This list will focus on things like; whether to have drywall or wood walls, flooring, cabinetry, pegboard or upper cabinets, lumber storage etc. This list is also a work in progress and will probably be updated as time goes on.  Marquetry Mirror This hand held mirror was one of my first attempts at marquetry. I saw the plan in the June 2000 issue of Wood Magazine and immediately decided I wanted to try my hand at it. It was challenging to say the least. I made 2 or three attempts at the marquetry before I had results that I was satisfied with. The outer part of the frame is made of black Walnut, and the back panel is made of Curly Maple. The rose petals are made of Purple Heart, while the stem is made of Cherry. These are all woods that I had worked with before, and they compliment each other beautifully. Continue reading Marquetry Mirror |
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