Usually, when I find a TED Talk that I enjoy, I add it to my list of favourite TED Talks and do nothing more. Jay Silver’s talk, Hack a banana, make a keyboard! resonates so strongly with me, I am sharing it with you on my blog. I think what Jay’s son does with building blocks and a book speaks volumes.
The video duration is 13:16.
Broken Square originated from a drawing in my sketch book. I had been playing with variations of a cube when this form emerged. In the drawing, it stood on two edges but I later realized that it would sit nicely on three points.
Intrigued by the form, I built a version using square cherry stock. Although I liked the appearance, I was surprised at how expansive it was – at only 14.5″ tall, it approached a diameter of 40″.
I mitred the corners and reinforced them with floating tenons. Rather than leave the supporting corners sharp and vulnerable, I flattened them slightly. I was relieved that this did not diminish the effect of the form.
Originally, I built Broken Square to help visualize the form and saw it as a sculpture of sorts. When I stood back and looked at it, I realized that the design would work well as a table, particularly if scaled to be taller.
You can find Broken Square in my Store as well as my Gallery.
Let me know what you think of the form and possible variations in the comments section.
When posts on my blog are infrequent it’s usually a sign that I’m preoccupied with other tasks. Here’s some of what’s keeping me busy.
My exhibition at Gallery Bistro (2411 Clarke Street, Port Moody) is being extended and there is no closing date set at this point. I am spending Sundays at the gallery, and I encourage you to come by if you have not already. The gallery is open Tuesday through Sunday, 10am – 3pm. The bistro next door (and connected to the gallery) is a great lunch spot and I have a new favourite – the smoked turkey sandwich.
When I have spare time, I am working on the hand-cut joinery for my insane V-table which I had prototyped a few months ago.
The centre section is the most difficult. As I progress, I am taking pictures which I will share in another post and I may record video as well.
I also have other projects on the go, at different stages, which I will share at a later date.
In other news, Todd Butler is giving away a starter set of tools. If you’re just starting out in woodworking and could use some tools, head over to his blog, The Butler Did It WoodWorks.
Be sure to keep an eye on my blog for more Overflow items that I’ll be purging. I would suggest that you subscribe to my blog so that you never miss a post.
I kept this Drill Press Stand with the idea that it would help me accurately bore 3/4″ holes for bench dogs. Then, when I set out to drill them I realized that the drill only has 2 amps and that my larger drill could not be properly installed in the stand. That meant that I had no use for it.
This Drill Press Stand would probably be ideal for drilling smaller holes or running a wire wheel brush.
The drill is lowered in a controlled manner with the feed lever on the right side and the whole assembly can be raised or lowered along the post, as well as swiveled to sit away from the base to drill long stock.
The same goes for the table, which can also be rotated.
The keyed chuck accepts bits up to 3/8″ diameter and the key has a handy storage spot on the stand.
Okay, here’s the deal.
If you would like this drill and Drill Press Stand, please leave a comment below indicating your interest by 10am of April 25.
I will then draw a winner at random. Even if you don’t get this item, remember that there is still much more I want to give away.
And if you haven’t already, be sure to subscribe to my blog so you can be notified as soon as I post something new! Please tell your friends about my Overflow program.
During Artwalk, I showed my work in Gallery Bistro (2411 Clarke Street) with three other artists: Bronwen Belenkie, Clive Tucker and Mandara Lebovitz. Our exhibition will continue through April 28th. The gallery is open 10am-3pm Tuesday through Sunday.
Last week, I spent three days at Lee Valley Tools Ltd. demonstrating joinery techniques. I took the opportunity to hone my skills and try some new ideas.
The first joint I cut was a through dovetail. I cut both the pins and tails over-length, then rounded their edges. I was using a Japanese dovetail chisel that had sides ground so that they came to a point on the top of the chisel. That point left marks as I used the tool bevel-down to sculpt the joint – something that I hadn’t foreseen.
Next, I cut a half-lap joint. These joints were really simple to make – I just placed one piece on the other, marked its position with a knife, then removed the waste between the lines to a depth equal to half the stock’s thickness. Then I repeated the process for the other part. I made the angled joint to demonstrate that when using hand tools, it was just as simple to work with angles – the process is the same.
After having warmed up with the easy joints, I tried some more advanced joinery. For my next performance, I started by cutting a blind mortise, leaving 1/4″ of material at the bottom of the mortise. Then I laid out and cut a design at the bottom of the mortise using a fret saw.
I cut and fit the tenon, then inserted it into the mortise as far as it could go. I then used a pencil to trace the shape of the letters onto the end of the tenon, then used a saw and chisels to carve out the letters.
Then I drove the tenon home and the letters slid through the end of the mortise.
WISH! was fun, challenging and different, but it still seemed too ordinary and not mind-boggling enough to satisfy me. So my next joint was a twisted mortise and tenon. I’ve had lots of practice making twisted legs so I decided to start by making the tenon, rather than the mortise as is more conventional.
I then laid out the twisted mortise and cut it out with a fret saw.
I adjusted the mortise with a narrow chisel, then scraped the tenon until it began to fit.
Once I got it started, it wasn’t long before I got the joint fully seated. It’s a neat joint to handle.
Out of ideas for crazy joinery, I turned to the books for a challenge and chose the intimidating full-blind dovetail. This was my first attempt cutting it and it did not seem very difficult. Layout, however, is fairly complicated and I mis-marked and made one mis-cut on the right piece – I removed material from the face of the pins, rather than the end of the pins.
One of the blessings, I realized, is that because it’s completely blind, you don’t see my miscut. There is still lots of surface area in the joint so the strength is not compromised.
The fit is good and the joint closes with moderate pressure.
Lastly, I cut a finger joint using a Veritas dovetail saw. Since the spacing is done by eye and each finger is equal to the kerf of the saw, no chisel work is required so it is a quick joint to cut, despite the fineness.
It was a fun way to spend a few days and a good opportunity to practice my skills with hand tools and try some new joinery. I haven’t yet figured out where I can use the twisted tenon, but I’ll keep thinking.
Tolerances and precision in woodworking have been two ideas that I’ve been contemplating for a long time (see A Box Called “Tolerences” and A Box Called “Necessessity”). That was why Magic Square captured my attention.
This video outlines the benefits of Magic Square (duration – 4:24).
You can order the Magic Square here.
This is the seventeenth slide from my PechaKucha presentation.
Power carving is unlike working with hand tools because you can remove wood without regard for grain direction or knots. To me, this is liberating as I can focus on form.
As I work, I constantly ask myself, “Do I want to save this section or obliterate it? My sculpting approach is to simply remove the parts I don’t like and leave the parts that please me. I often emphasize form and encourage the sculpture to be caressed by using a combination of hard and soft edges (something I learned from the work of Sam Maloof).
Although I use an angle grinder with a power carving attachment to establish the rough shape, the final shaping is done with abrasives – first on a sander, then in my hand. The sanding stage is perhaps the most critical stage of sculpting and I spend more time sanding sculptures than I do carving them.
The sculpture shown here is made of Pacific yew with a concrete base. It will be for sale in my store when I finalize the price.
This is the thirteenth slide from my PechaKucha presentation.
This year, I will be exhibiting in Port Moody’s ArtWalk. Opening night reception will be at the Old Mill Boathouse at Rocky Point Park on Friday April 12, 6:30pm-8:30pm and ArtWalk will take place the following Saturday and Sunday along Clarke Street.
Artists will be hanging art in the trees to promote the event and my idea is to hang a piece of sculptural furniture. I want to make a chair that is missing a back leg. Upon installation, the tree will become the back leg of the chair.
This Saturday, March 23, I will begin building (and hopefully finish) the chair. It will be a live Tweet-Along that you will be able to follow here: tweetchat.com/room/flairww
Follow me on Twitter – @FlairWoodworks.
This is the eleventh slide from my PechaKucha presentation.
Maple Slab Table
Ten months ago, my co-host Matt Gradwohl and I retooled the weekly Twitter chat known as #Woodchat and added a video component to include more content. Last Wednesday, we talked with our guest Eli Cleveland of The Furniture Project about how to show work in a furniture show.
We had a lot of questions for Eli and he was equal to the task. The hour went by quickly, as it always does, and we covered a lot of ground. I found it very informative and timely, as I was accepted into two shows later this year (more details later).
Here’s the video. Make sure the captions are enabled (the CC button) to display the tweets. (Duration: 1:05:31)
Tune into #Woodchat Wednesdays at 7pm Pacific.
This is the tenth slide from my PechaKucha presentation.
Maple Slab Table
Many woodworkers are technically skilled and able to create an item exactly as detailed in a plan. Some lack the willingness to take risks and push the boundaries. Technical skills are important, but they only get you so far.
Creativity and problem solving are key skills for anyone making original work. For me, design is very instinctual and I rely on my intuition. Most of the design decisions I make cannot be made until I’m looking at the materials in front of me.
I believe that woodworkers who are able to adapt to the unique materials and circumstances are more capable of producing something special than someone following a design to the letter.
If you remain insensitive to the individual characteristics of the material you are working with and cut regardless to a predetermined, exact measurement, then the finished piece will lack a certain wholeness and be little better than something you could have bought from a factory.
- Graham Blackburn
You can find this quote among many others on my pages Quotables and Quotes from Woodwork.
This is the ninth slide from my PechaKucha presentation.
A Box Called “Tolerences”
