Register today to participate in the Shop Stool Build-Off. You must register to win a prize! I find that making a list of criteria sometimes helps me work out a design. Here is my list of criteria I have for my stool: it should be light enough and easy to grasp that I can easily … Continue reading Designing My Shop Stool
Need Some Ideas for Your Shop Stool?
Register today to participate in the Shop Stool Build-Off and a chance to win a prize! Saturday, January 25 is the date set for the Shop Stool Build-Off. Some woodworkers I have talked to are already working on designs and expect to do some material prep (including building bending forms) before the big day arrives. … Continue reading Need Some Ideas for Your Shop Stool?
Get Personal with Insanity
I will be making and selling my wooden 3D jigsaw puzzles at Gallery Bistro (2411 Clarke Street, Port Moody) Saturday, December 14 and Sunday, December 15 from 10am-3pm. Sometimes I describe my work as that which is so insane nobody in their right mind would attempt it. My wooden 3D jigsaw puzzles are examples of … Continue reading Get Personal with Insanity
The Shop Stool Build-Off
Eleven months ago, two planemakers decided to each build a scrub plane simultaneously and share progress pictures along the way. It was later dubbed the Scrub Plane Build-Off. The two planemakers were Scott Meek and I. The Inspiration On Saturday, I was tidying up in the shop and noticed that my shop stool was in … Continue reading The Shop Stool Build-Off
Fundamentals: Understanding Wood Grain and Using a Chisel
This Thursday, I am teaching a seminar called Understanding Wood Grain. In this seminar, I discuss various methods of reading the grain and demonstrate how to use this knowledge to work wood efficiently. For the hands-on component, I guide students through a variety of situations and explore a multitude of practical techniques using a bench … Continue reading Fundamentals: Understanding Wood Grain and Using a Chisel
Fun with Sliding Dovetails
I have put Insanity 2 on hold to work on some small boxes of a design I came up with many years ago. The double-ended box relies on a pair of sliding dovetails perpendicular to each other to open. While functional, it is also a lot of fun to handle - similar to twiddling your … Continue reading Fun with Sliding Dovetails
Insanity 2: The Carcase
I attribute my success to my relentless push to try to fail. Insanity 2 is about trying to design something which I cannot create. Since my last blog update on Insanity 2, I laminated two curved sides and a curved bottom. Then I was faced with the task of joining them together. Although the four … Continue reading Insanity 2: The Carcase
Insanity 2: The Top
Last week, I put three sheets of 1/8" Baltic birch plywood between two forms I made to create the top of the cabinet for the doors. Although the glue-up seemed to go smoothly, I couldn't be sure of the success until I removed it from the form. I let the bent lamination set for two … Continue reading Insanity 2: The Top
Insanity 2: Doors
As you saw in my last post, I had created two doors with curved frames for Insanity 2. The curved edges eliminated most of the conventional options of attaching doors to a cabinet, so I sat down with my sketch book to come up with other ways. Here are the sketches that I drew. Their … Continue reading Insanity 2: Doors
Insanity 2
Insanity 2 is the working name for my latest speculative project. As with most, I'm designing it as I go and using the materials as my primary inspiration. Every project starts with an inspiration This piece of ash was the inspiration. It's been sitting in my shop for years waiting for me to do something … Continue reading Insanity 2
