I enjoy looking at shop spaces and projects. Here are a few recent photos from my shop:

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The back side of my old Delta drill press has become an impromptu shrine to the kids: An origami whatsit from my eldest, and a note from the youngest. If you can't quite read the note, it says:

"Dear Daddy, I really love you and I really want to say I love you as much as Echo, because I love Echo a lot. To Daddy, from Marian"

Echo is the cat.

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Above is a planing stop I built with nothing but saw dust. Oh, and glue and wire brads. Yes, the scrap MDF from the radial saw top and testing boards (I must post about this sometime soon?I have the pictures) has come in useful. This stop allows me to set the board unclamped on the bench and quickly plane both sides. It lets me plane down to 1/4" in width.

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SWMBO recently started upgrading the kitchen. This involved some screw-together furniture, and a wish for one more shelf. The clear pine was almost too good for the project, but it was the perfect width with only one glue joint.


I don't know why the notches on the underside were so satisfying to make, but they were. These notches seat themselves on pegs, two of which I manufactured from the shanks of two wood screws (there were only two extra with the kit, and I just could not see paying Lee Valley $11 to ship me 50 more).

While making the shelf pegs I discovered that I no longer had a hacksaw (though I did have a hacksaw blade). Have you ever tried hacksawing by holding a loose blade in your hand? It makes the hand cramp up, so after a while I got smart and clamped it in a machinist's clamp. That was slightly better, but you can bet I bought a hacksaw frame when I went to the hardware store earlier this week.

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This 12" wide, 10' long cherry board cries out to be used for something good, preferably before Christmas. Wish me luck with fitting this project in with everything else.

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Two new additions to the shop, courtesy of Patrick Leach. I've wished for a grooving plane on many occasions, and now I have one. Will I ever do more axe hewing? I hope so. I just have to tighten the handle up in its socket and I'm all set.

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I started the storm window stock preparation. Above was a rough rip and chop.

Then the pieces were jointed and planed to width at a friend's shop. I'm letting it aclimatize to the shop while I figure out when I'll have time to work further on it (maybe tomorrow after helping my brother-in-law lay subflooring in his new "man cave".

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The pictures above almost speak for themselves. I cut a hole in the wall of the basement stairwell. Someday soon the plumbers will come and fix our plumbing, and I'm ready for them. For this project I pulled out the keyhole saw that had languished since I impulse purchased it from my friend Trevor.

Nothing beats the satisfaction of having the tool you need on hand, especially when you've never needed it for all the years you've had it.

Some people are luckier than the rest of us. When it comes to winning contests, Patricia and Mike Mortimer fall into the lucky category. Patricia entered Highland Woodworking's Win a Festool Package Sweepstakes and was the lucky winner out of thousands of entrants. She's shown here being congratulated by Chris Bagby, Highland Woodworking's owner and co-founder. It wasn't just the first contest Patricia has won. Among other things that she's won are a flat screen television and an all-expense paid trip to Bejing, China to attend the 2008 Olympics. We asked her how she did playing the lottery and she replied "I don't play the lottery. You have to pay to do that!"

The Mortimer's new power tool package includes Festool's Kapex KS120 Sliding Compound Miter Saw, the first miter saw with variable speed, which enables the user to match the speed of the blade with the requirements of the material. The Kapex Sliding Compound Miter Saw combines a large cutting capacity with a compact lightweight design. Of course the perfect mate to their new Kapex Sliding Compound Miter Saw is the Kapex MFT3 Multifunction Table which is designed specifically for use with the Kapex Sliding Compound Miter Saw. It features additional holes in the perforated top plate for positioning the feet of the Kapex and for mounting with clamps. Also included as part of their Kapex prize package is the Festool CT22E Mobile Dust Extractorwhich comes with HEPA filters that remove dust particles down to .3 microns. A tool-triggered switch with smooth start-up and shut-off delay, and adjustable electronic suction control make this the ultimate vac to connect to any hand power tool.

Mike works professionally doing commercial repair and finish restoration on furniture, cabinets and interiors. He is actually known for being quite the "magician" when it comes to recreating grain patterns and surfaces that have been damaged or distressed. When asked, both admitted that they were not really sure what projects they would attempt first with their new woodworking equipment. One thing for certain is that they'll definitely have room for it, as they have a 2400 square foot shop! After mentioning projects like chairs and end tables, they both joked that given the space they have, perhaps they would make a gazebo for inside the shop.

Since Highland Woodworking is well known for its Education Program, which includes a wide variety of classes for both beginners as well as advanced woodworkers, hopefully we will see both of them soon in some of our
upcoming classes for a chance to study woodworking with our knowledgeable instructors.

Visit Wood News, our monthly online woodworking magazine

Dear Highland Woodworking:

I have not been able to find a good stainable wood filler (or putty). Minwax indicates that their putty is, but it really isn't. It does fill the nail holes, but I can never seem to get the colors right even when I buy the wax pencils to try to assist. Normally I use Minwax Provincial Stain on my baseboard, pine doors and trim. Could you please help? I'll bet I'm not the only one with this kind of issue.

Thanks, Peter B.

Dear Peter,

Many of us struggle with the imperfect science of matching wood with putty. Despite the multitude of manufacturers and the wide array of colors they offer, finding an off-the-shelf product to match your wood and accept your stain exactly is a very tall order. It is really a process of getting the putty as close as possible to the color of the surrounding wood, and then further enhancing the repair through the coloring and finishing process.

As you know, putty and wood are different in many ways. Wood has side grain and end grain. Putty does not. Wood is wood, while putty is a mixture of many different organic and inorganic products. Furthermore, the density of wood is dissimilar from species to species as well as to wood putty. This is complicated by the fact that no two manufacturers' products are the same. As a result, finding an off-the-shelf putty to match your exact needs is very tricky.

So, what should we do? It is important to get as close a match as possible with either the wood, or if staining, with the final color of the piece. Then you can do your best to "make the repair disappear" through the staining or dyeing process and the finish coat (tinted or not). You will very likely have better luck disguising the repair by applying colored topcoats of finish, or by simply painting the area with artist colors. (Be sure to paint in grain lines to match the surrounding area.)

Several years ago, a trade magazine explained how large furniture manufacturers color match their products. As no two pieces of cherry or walnut are exactly the same color (and it is important to make them be the same color as the rest of the dining room suite), the process of coloring the furniture is actually a process of coloring the finish -- and multiple layers of finish at that. This allows a uniform color regardless of the underlying wood and any defects that are present. It is a little like repainting an old car, but you get the idea.

I hope this helps answer your question. We all struggle with this problem from time to time. For further reading, check out Bob Flexner's book entitled Understanding Wood Finishing. It is a super book that covers most aspects of finishing wood.

Sam Rieder
Highland Woodworking

Medium Density Fiberboard (MDF) isn't just for counters and insta-furniture any more. I've seen it used as a veneer base and structural component by woodworkers doing stunning work, and there are many things to recommend it, like stability, consistency, and affordability.

But I just can't like MDF, and after using it for reference boards to test and adjust my Radial Arm Saw (RAS), I can't say that I like it any more than I did. I will continue to use this product for sacrifice tables on the RAS, for reference boards used to test its accuracy, and for some jigs, but I aim to avoid using it as much as possible. Here's why:

If you don't know what you're looking at, it's dust. Not regular saw dust, but the finest powder I can imagine that still looks like it might be a wood product. I sometimes forget a dust mask when working with real wood, but never with MDF. After one cut, I'm ready to put the ventilator over my face?even on the hottest most humid day.

Two new rules developed this week while I was adjusting the RAS. These are good rules for any power sawing, but essential when working with MDF:

1. Clear surfaces of all but the tools required for the current job. This makes it easy to vacuum up afterward, and prevents the dust getting in the working parts of your tools.
2. If it can be closed, close all tool storage completely (Even if it is nowhere near the saw). Again: an ounce of prevention will keep most of this dust out of your tools.
   

One final sad fact about MDF: while you can plane it (and to make the reference boards I found it necessary) you cannot make shavings. Even with a sharp blade, MDF will only produce dust. Blade dulling, throat choking (the plane's, not mine), dust.

A popular theory holds that woodworkers belong to one of two categories: Normites, those who use power tools and only power tools; and Galoots, those who would rather take a hammer blow to the forehead than use a corded tool. It?s a religious thing, no one can be both. Like the Jets and the Sharks (when you?re a Galoot, you?re a Galoot all the way). When a Normite and a Galoot approach each other on the street everyone else crosses to the other side. There?s little common ground.

I?ve been a woodworker for ten years, more or less. Like many, I began with a table saw. My first project was a router table. I added other tools (planer, jointer, drill press, band saw) as needed but in rather quick succession. I had a well outfitted shop and all was right with the world. I was a Normite. Oh sure, I?d occasionally use chisels or even a block plane (oh, the horror) but I never strayed enough to put my American Federation of Normites membership in jeopardy. I made a number of pieces of furniture this way. Life was good.

That was the status quo for quite a while ? the electric meter was an indicator of my time in the shop. Until last year. That?s when some evil people made me think about hand tools in a serious way. There was no single event but a series of several involving talented, passionate, inspirational woodworkers. My world had been a settled, comfortable place. Until those evil people got me thinking. They motivated me to learn about the wide variety of tools and their capabilities (though there is still far to travel on this long, steep learning curve). They made me realize that some operations can be performed more accurately with hand tools. They made me spend a lot of money.

This was my introduction to Galoots. Like billionaires, I had known of their existence but I didn?t know any personally. And just as billionaires are shrouded with mystery, Galoots were an unknown quantity. I expected a bunch of throwbacks, guys stuck living in the good-old-days, possessed of a stubborn refusal to acknowledge progress. I believed that woodworkers of the past would have welcomed the opportunity to trade their planes for electric routers. Now I know better.

When I started acquiring hand tools I bought those that I thought would be useful based on what the (no longer so) evil people had demonstrated. So what did I hope to accomplish? What problems was I trying to solve? (Beyond the obvious of relieving my checking account of excess funds.) I had three goals: to improve accuracy and my ability make fine adjustments; to reduce the amount of sanding required; to wear ear plugs less often.

Several months later, I?m well on the way to accomplishing these goals. On my most recent project I used hand tools when possible. I cut finger joints largely with a hand saw and chisels. I used a block plane to round edges and trim the end grain of stiles. Tenons and panel tongues were fitted with a shoulder plane. I haunched tenons with a hand saw. The list goes on. Most importantly, the joinery turned out very well, I didn?t have to sand as much as in the past and there were entire days with no ear plugs. Along the way, I accomplished an unanticipated fourth goal: I had a great time. I?m not sure when I?ve had as much fun in the shop.

There?s no turning back now, though I won?t eliminate power tools from my shop. Frankly, the thought of dimensioning rough lumber using only hand planes is entirely unappealing. So I guess there are more than two categories for woodworkers (galootified-Normite?). So much for popular theories.

I wrote once before about the generous gift I received from Kori Capaldi, Operations Manager of the Gamble House. I met Kori when I was in Pasadena for Pasadena Heritage Craftsman Weekend in October. Because I spent quite a bit of time at ?THE house? for various tours and receptions, I got a chance to talk with Kori for a while. I told her about the chest I was building and that the lid would be restrained by a leather strap. A month or so after I returned home Kori sent me an email and asked if I?d like a piece of the leather that was used in the Gamble house when the leather straps on the lighting fixtures were replaced several years ago.

Of course I said ?No? and that was the end of it. OK, maybe I said ?Yes? and tried not to appear overly anxious in the process. You see, the Gamble house is tantamount to a religious shrine for those of us afflicted with serious cases of Greene-itis. It is indescribably beautiful. I mean that literally. No attempt to convey, using words, that amazing vision can end in anything but utter failure. Thus, to have a tangible link between the core of the G&G universe and one of my pieces of furniture is very special indeed.

Though I?ve had the leather for some time now, I?ve just completed installing it. I didn?t want to be hasty -- it had to be just right. I spent hours scouring the internet for the perfect rivets to use to attach it and the search paid off. I found a product even better than I had hoped for. Screw posts are similar to rivets but because they screw together they are removable. So if I ever have to remove the lid of the chest I won?t have to cut the leather (Actually, I wouldn?t have been able to cut the leather I would have asked my wife to do it. When I wasn?t home.). And with persistence I was able to find them in solid brass with an oil-rubbed bronze patina. With that final piece of the puzzle in place, the installation is complete. And it was worth the wait. Thanks Kori.

By the way, this chest is the subject of an article to appear in the April issue of Popular Woodworking (available early March). Unfortunately, I didn?t have the Gamble leather when photos were shot for the article -- in the magazine you?ll see a piece of upholstery leather leftover from a Morris chair project.

A page to discuss Mesquite Tables,Doors,furniture,mantles,slabs,burls,root-balls,logs,scraps for trim,turning blocks,turning sticks,artisans,crafts & firewood.

funiture welding

arc welding

welding

Greetings Folks, Having stumbled (I forget how) across this forum , and then having read the discussions on planes and cutting angles, specifically on bevel up format, I would like to introduce myself. Basically I am a cabinet maker, but also make the odd plane now and again-please see my web sites www.collectablefurniture.co.nz and www.marcouplanes.com. Pertaining to recent discussions folk may be interested to see that I have had a blitz on bevel up planes, having made smoothers bedded at 15 and 20degrees, a large block bedded at 20 degrees and a miter bedded at 12 degrees. I also made a hybrid bedded at 37 degrees, blade bevel up or down. I use Veritas A2 blades and my own D2 and O1 blades. At present I am making two smaller smoothers, 2" blade, 50 degree bed bevel DOWN. I welcome questions , suggestions and criticisms.

(ARA) – Most people think the first impression of their home is made by the color on the walls or furniture in a room; but in reality, it’s made by what’s under your feet – the flooring. If the carpet is dirty and worn, tiles are chipped, or the wood floor is warping, it’s time for a change.

So what’s holding you back? A lot of people are hesitant to jump into a home improvement project involving flooring because of all the work involved. First you have to remove and dispose of the old material, then invest the time and effort necessary to get the base surface ready for the new material before finally putting it in.

“Do-it-yourselfers are overwhelmed when they learn how much work is involved in redoing a floor. But it doesn’t have to be that way,” says Scott Day of Forbo Flooring. Forbo recently introduced a new product that’s turning a lot of heads in the remodeling industry.

Marmoleum Click is perhaps the easiest flooring surface there is to install. No adhesives or fasteners are necessary. The panels simply lock into place with a tongue and groove system. “If you have an existing resilient floor, no need to remove it. The planks and squares can be installed right on top of the old surface. If you have carpet or tile, you just need to remove and dispose of the old materials and start clicking the Marmoleum tiles together right over the subfloor,” says Day.


Marmoleum Click comes in 18 different colors and is available in two different sizes: panels that are 12 inches wide and 36 inches long, and 12-inch by 12-inch squares.
The panels and squares can be mixed and matched to create a wide variety of patterns and color combinations.

“It’s really cool. You can mix and match colors to create a space that is uniquely your own,” says Day.

In addition to being decorative and easy to install, Marmoleum Click is made from natural materials consisting of flaxseed oil, pine rosin, limestone and jute. It also has anti-static and bactericidal properties, meaning it’s easily kept dirt and dust free, and is resistant to such micro-organisms as Staphylococcus. These qualities make it especially popular in bathrooms and kitchens – and in places young children play.

“Marmoleum Click is the ideal do-it-yourselfer’s surface,” says Scott Day of Forbo. “We’ve received a lot of feedback from customers that it’s the easiest material they’ve ever worked with, and they’ve had a lot of fun with it.”

For design ideas, or to find a retailer near you, log on to www.themarmoleumstore.com.

Courtesy of ARA Content

Visit A1 Wood Flooring for more on wood flooring and laminate flooring.

ABOUT US

Okecrafts is a company specializing in making handicrafts made from natural materials such as bamboo, wood, stone, terracotta, stone, etc.

We are also production and export of Table Lamps, Wooden Photo Frames, Wooden Mirror Frames, Natural Stone, Candle Holder and decorative Bowls and modern-living pine wood furniture.

All products are purely handcrafted, making them unique and have artistic value. Since they are made of natural materials, they are environmentally friendly.

In this interview we have the opportunity to speak with John Economaki, founder and president of Bridge City Tool Works. John started out as a designer/craftsman, but after developing allergies to wood dust, had to find a new career.

John has always been a designer at heart and soon discovered that woodworkers were interested in many of the designs and improvements he had made to tools while building furniture for a living.

Fast forward to today, and you have one of the most innovative companies in the world when it comes to woodworking tools.

We hope you enjoy!

Craig

P.S. Be sure to check out our website for all kinds of other resources to help in your pursuit of this craft.

www.WoodworkersResource.com

I had a lot of fun interviewing Adam. He wears a lot of different hats: Period furniture maker, contributing editor for Popular Woodworking magazine, he writes on two different blogs, volunteers at Pennsbury Manor, and has a day "job" outside of woodworking.

Adam opens up about a variety of topics. He talks about being product oriented vs. process oriented and how there may be many more woodworkers that feel that way than we think.

Adam also explains why he chooses to build period furniture completely with hand tools (his answer will probably surprise you!)

We also get into a discussion on how the museum community is influencing the future of reproduction furniture making.

Our talk also gets into how our forefathers had advantages over us when it came to the availablity of hand tools and also what 18 century woodworkers lacked.

Adam talks about how the hand tool market is lagging behind for cabinet makers vs. specialty woodworkers such as chair makers and why that is and what he's doing about it (check out Adam's line of hand tools on his website: www.adamcherubini.com)

Check out the interview and also hear Adam talk about what classes he will be teaching at this years Woodworking in America Conference being held in Berea, KY.

Let us know what you think by going to our website and leaving a comment on our blog @:

www.WoodworkersResource.com/blog/

Thanks for listening!

Craig Stevens

www.WoodworkersResource.com

For immediate release

LumberJocks.com Grows to More Than 10,000 Projects; Now Officially the Biggest Online Woodworking Gallery.

September, 29th, 2008 – LumberJocks.com, the largest project based website for woodworkers, today announced that more than 10,000 woodworking projects have been posted to the site.

“We are delighted that our members and viewers are finding LumberJocks.com to be a great place to publish and find woodworking content,” said Martin Sojka, CEO of Lumberjocks.com. “With more than 10,000 projects posted, we know that our members enjoy sharing their talents and showcasing their skills from beginners to professionals. With this rapid growth rate we expect the numbers to rise dramatically over the next quarter.”

The top 5 project contributors received a thank you award for taking the time to share their many wonderful projects. “I know it may only be a small sign of gratitude; however I would like all the contributors to our site to know that showcasing your talents and the helpful and friendly attitude of our members has truly made the site what it is today. I expect our online family of woodworkers and their projects to continue to grow and prosper. I feel that LumberJocks is now the biggest online woodworking gallery.” said Sojka.

LumberJocks.com is quickly becoming the #1 online social network for woodworkers. The site’s structure and growing features allow members to easily connect with other woodworkers, post projects and blogs and compete in friendly competitions for fantastic prizes. Stay tuned for our Winter Awards!

About LumberJocks.com
LumberJocks.com is part of the growing network of online communities hosted by Martin Sojka. The rapidly growing LumberJocks.com is comprised of men, women, children, and youth from around the world who are actively involved in woodworking. The members are a combination of professionals, skilled hobbyists, beginners and everything in between. They are furniture builders, artists, home renovators, and wood explorers.

The woodworkers join LumberJocks.com to share their experiences with wood, ask and answer questions, seek and post their personal tool reviews, find and share resource information, and blog their woodworking journeys.

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It can be hard to figure out what will keep someone with Alzheimer's occupied - and one that will keep them happy...  The activity has to be something the person is interested in, and it's better if it has some long-time personal connection.  It was difficult to find such things for dad to do - about the only two things he was interested in were gardening and woodworking, and gardening was out in the winter - so woodworking was called upon as an activity we could both do while in the shop.  I tried having him help make saws, but the tasks required were all beyond his capabilities in his diminished state.  I also tried to get him to make wooden mallets and other basic tools for me, but he lost interest quickly.

 One successful activity we had with him was having him make reproductions of a lap desk my great grandfather owned.  It's an interesting piece, one I thought would be fun to examine for this blog.  It's an interesting study - showing some signs of both elegant and of crude construction techniques.  It lends itself well to study of early furniture and casework, as not all that was done as high-end furniture.  Most stuff that survives today wasn't the run of the mill stuff, anymore than you would expect today's run-of-the-mill furniture to be around in 150 years.  What does survive is often the high end stuff that is heirloom quality, which I think often distorts people's views of craftsmanship during these earlier periods.  To that, I offer this piece, which has more sentimental value than anything, as one example of construction techniques used in early work:

 

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I went to see Shiori Taguchi's metal workshop during summer holiday. It was an open day of her workshop, and she was running a copper pan forging class. She gave a brief instruction on how to forge the copper sheet to a teenager student, then left him and observed his work from a distance. "I tend to leave the students do", she said.

A few days later I had a chat with senior woodworkers on 'how to teach'. "I stopped giving too much instruction to the students, even when they are about to make a mistake. I rather tell them afterwards why it happened." said a man who runs a private furniture making school.

Those words made me think about our education at the college.
Are we giving too much to the students, hoping them to absorb as much as possible while they are at school?
Are we taking away their opportunity of trial and error, worring an error could be a serious injury?
Are we putting too much stuff into their schedule and they end up with even no time for a mistake and remake?
What we think "not enough" might be "just enough" for students.

夏休みの間に、木曽のkanehenさんの工房を見学させていただきました。
オープンアトリエの期間で、フライパンづくりのワークショップ中でした。
kanehenさん、中学生の子に銅板の叩き方を教えていたのですが、少し教えたらあとは離れて見ている。「私は放っておくんです」とおっしゃっていました。

その数日後、木工家のイベントの打ち合わせの席で、先輩方と「教え方」の話になりました。木工教室を営む方が「生徒が失敗すると分かっても、指摘するのをあえてやめたんです」と言われました。失敗したあとで、なぜそうなったかを教えるのだと。

なかなか難しいことです。
限られた学生生活でなるべく多く吸収してほしいと、つい情報を与えすぎていないか。
失敗は大けがにつながると恐れるあまり、学生に自ら試させる機会を奪っていないか。
学生に失敗させる暇もないほど、詰め込みすぎてはいないだろうか。
この夏、考えさせられた言葉でした。

This week’s project is submitted by Bryan. Let’s check out what he has to say:

“This is my first piece of ‘fine’ furniture, which has helped to develop my passion for woodworking. I built this piece as part of a Furniture Design class in the architecture school during my undergrad, even though I was a finance major. The piece is made of red oak and walnut and the table tops stand at 12” and 24” respectively. I started out with all rough lumber, 5/4 red oak, and 8/4 walnut. I milled the oak with the thickness planer down to 1” thick by 3” wide for the larger side, and 1” thick by 2” wide for the smaller side. Once I had these measurements, I used the table saw to cut all of my angles for both the longer pieces and smaller ‘head’ and ‘foot’ pieces. At this point I had cut all of my oak pieces and it was time for glue up. I did this in sections. First I glued up the 3” section by combining two long pieces with the appropriate ‘head’ and ‘foot’ pieces. Once all of these smaller sections were done, I glued them together until I eventually had one long row of alternating blank sections and long sections 17” wide. I then built a jig to hold this entire piece at the appropriate angle in order to route out the section for the walnut/glass, which took a nice long 2” router bit a while to hog out. Once this step was done, I was able to put the last two outside boards to make the ends look more finished. I cut the walnut to size, drilled the holes for the dowels, cut the angle on the walnut and glued it into place, along with the red oak dowels. I used a ½ piece of wood as a spacer for the glass. I did the a similar process for the 2” smaller side, except I didn’t glue the alternating boards on the bottom section until after I meshed the two together. Once together, I glued in the missing pieces, securing the two sections forever. The last step was inserting the 17”Wx23”Lx1/2”D glass into the top section and the 17”Wx11”Lx1/2”D glass into the bottom section.”

“It is finished with about 3 coats of Danish Oil sanded down to about 400 grit and has a poly spray topcoat. Overall this is a very strong piece, and has no problem holding the glass, even with me leaning on it, as the table will tip over before the joint would ever fail. There are definitely things I would consider doing different though, but that’s the challenge for my next piece. Enjoy my cantilevered end table and thanks for all of the inspiration. As always, I look forward to the next video!

Related Posts

• July 11, 2008 — Walnut Side Table - Project of the Week
• March 13, 2008 — Sculpted End Table - Project of the Week
• March 3, 2008 — Episode 42 - End Table (Pt. 6)

This is a previous post, but I never did continue the discourse. I find it fascinating how furniture design has evolved over the centuries. If we go back to the middle ages and the era before, quite a few developments in furniture construction techniques were in progress. Prior to this era, in the centuries before, very little furniture was available, it was considered a luxury to have chairs, tables and cabinets. The larger, more finely made furniture of this era was typically destined for the aristocracy of the time as a display of their wealth and status.

Most conventional furniture of these early periods was assembled without consideration to wood expansion and contraction or wood movement. This worked for many years, since the interior of buildings in this era was often at the same temperature as the exterior. With the advent of heated interiors, wood movement became much more of a factor to deal with in construction and design of furniture, and the practice of simply assembling wood planks together to form furniture needed to evolve. It was in the middle ages that frame and panel construction was adopted. This technique allowed a solid wood panel to literally float within a wood frame composed of rails and stiles. The solid wood panel could expand and contract on a seasonal basis, and not cause any structural failure within the furniture.

All of a sudden many more possibilities were created for furniture design and its widespread appeal began in earnest. Furniture also began to become more affordable as of the 18th and 19th century, more furniture makers existed and sound construction techniques began to become standardized. There are numerous periods over the past centuries and each of these had a style or styles associated with them. Additionally, each country had a style of its own within these periods. One can see how similar furniture design principles were adopted by successive countries over the different periods. Popular furniture styles which are widely recognized have familiar names such as English Chippendale, German Biedermeier, American Federal and Arts & Crafts, French Art Nouveau, Italian Rococo, etc. The evolution continues to more recent styles such as Modern Swedish ( Krenov style) and Contemporary styles.

One interesting tidbit is that a style of furniture is never really defined until the particular period has elapsed, almost like looking through a rear view mirror. Today's styles might be referred to as a particular period of style, but only after the period has lapsed. In the photo, a small swedish modern styled tabletop cabinet . To be continued...

I sometimes ask myself, what constitutes good design. Is it the aesthetics of the piece, the pleasing proportions, the balance of form and function... or all these characteristics combined? Taking a step back, the aesthetics and pleasing proportions are definitely at the forefront. I'm usually drawn to a piece of furniture that stands out with respect to the "look" of the piece. This one characteristic causes me to stop and further examine the piece by trying to understand what has drawn me to this particular design over another design on the same page. This analysis helps me in my own design process as I better understand what characteristics of a piece of furniture I am drawn to. Of course, we all have different styles of furniture that we are drawn to, but the common theme is good design. I am convinced that even an admirer of period styles of furniture will stop at a well-designed modern piece of furniture to further analyze it.

I'm picking up where I left off on the beech cabinet I began a few weeks ago. The cabinet itself is fairly complete except for three dovetailed drawers. I will build the drawers only after having decided on the type of wood to use for the cabinet base. The reason I am doing this is to bring some of the color from the cabinet base up to the cabinet itself. The very first step in this process is to select the type and color of wood to use for the base. I have the option of either making the base of the same wood (European beech) as the cabinet itself, or selecting a contrasting wood instead. If contrasting, how much variation in the color and grain pattern also.

I've been mulling over this for a few days now as I complete some smaller items in my studio. It is not a simple decision as it can affect the complete aesthetics of the piece. I need to consider if the eyes are going to be drawn away from the upper cabinet and how much so. I also need to design the cabinet and base to be in harmony with each other. I have the actual design in mind, the stumbling block now is the color and which wood to use for the base.

In the photo, I have a fairly large plank of mahogany I have kept for quite a while now. The plank is rift-sawn and has ribbons of color in it, although subtle. Using this wood would provide the base with a reddish-brown color once the patina of the wood has developed completely. This is something that should always be considered when selecting woods for a piece of furniture. after a number of months or years, what color will the wood finally attain. It is important when using two colors or tones of wood, as the initial contrast might either become subdued or more pronounced over time.

This is one option I have, to use this plank for the base components. I should decide in the next few days however...

Baldwin's Book Barn, located in Chester County, PA, is 4 stories of ruggedly-built shelves that support over 300,000 used and rare books.

The main portion of the store is a former dairy barn built in 1822. Original flooring, rafters, and doors remain, providing the proper setting for the collection.

A grassy embankment behind the barn slopes upward to the second floor, enabling the 19th c. farmer to easily move things to the upper levels. This embankment is characteristic of a Pennsylvania Bank Barn.

Inside is a catacomb of tomes.

Stacks and shelves and row after row of hard to find and out of print literature are a book-lover's dream.

I found the handmade lock on the door that leads from the lobby to the barn particularly interesting. The bowed piece of oak on the left, which was originally longer and has since snapped off, acted as a spring mechanism to slap the bolt shut as the farmer closed the door, thus keeping ol' Bessie from getting loose.

It's nearly impossible to leave the store without finding some must-have book. I purchased three.

One is a book on Pennsylvania Dutch furniture ($27) and one is about handtools ($4). You may notice a few loose papers sticking out of the handtool book. Baldwin's includes whatever papers were tucked within the book by the previous owner. Mine contains articles about woodworking that were clipped from local papers in the 1970's.

So, what's the unassuming little brown book? That is a 1952 reprint of The Village Carpenter, by Walter Rose ($12).

You never know what little treasure you'll find at Baldwin's, but no doubt, you will find one.

Hi Folks
For quite some time I've been working on a shoulder plane design. I know when it comes to planes you are re-inventing the wheel, but I really want to make a plane that I am proud of - and that is visually identifiable as a "Philly Plane".
I have plenty of sketch pads full of drawings and ideas. But I really can't "see" a design until I get to hold it in my hands - a potentially time consuming affair, especially as so many designs just don't work once they become "3D". So I have started to make mock-ups from scrap timber - they take minutes to produce, thanks to the bandsaw, scroll saw and sander. And you can instantly tell if you like the design - it is immediately obvious to the eye and hand.
So I have a growing pile of shoulder plane ideas, rendered in wood. And after much work, I have arrived at a design I am happy with. The finish is still drying on the prototype, so you'll have to wait until tomorrow for a photo. But I have attached a picture of some of my mock-ups - hopefully, this will inspire some of you to try this approach. It also works well with furniture designs - a hot glue gun and some offcuts will soon help you see your design in the flesh.
Cheers
Philly

The EAIA meetup last weekend was held at the recently renovated Dills Tavern, originally built in 1794. The weathermen promised a warm, sunny day, but it was cloudy and frigid, which prevented me from staying for all the day's activities. I was sorry to have missed Jim Leamy's afternoon lecture on making plow planes. The ivory plow plane was one of many of his exquisite planes that were on display.

Tailgating with vendors who were selling antique tools started early, and was followed by presentations by the man in charge of restoration —Sam McKinney—and a decendant of the family who purchased the tavern in 1800—Bob Eichelberger.

The three years it's taken to bring the tavern back to its original form included removal of many Victorian elements and additions that were added in the late 19th century. The kitchen needed to be gutted and other rooms needed major work, but as much as possible of the original architecture and flooring was salvaged. That which could not be saved was either replaced with elements that were purchased from other period buildings or were authentically reproduced by the men who conducted the renovations. On display were a plethora of antique moulding planes that they employed during construction.

"We basically removed anything that used common nails" explained Sam, who in my opinion is part detective—because of his ability to uncover the clues that enabled him to restore the historic building to its original state—and part visionary.

The tavern, outbuildings, and grounds are being fashioned in the same pattern as Eastfield Village, where Sam has taken classes since 1983. His vision is to replicate the original Dills Tavern setting, including distillery (ironic, since Dillsburg is currently a dry town), and to offer workshops that teach 18th c. techniques in stonework, timber framing, basket making, wool dyeing, and open hearth cooking.

But that's not the best part.

They have recently started construction of an 18th c. timber frame woodwright's shop, in which the 3 men who have so diligently reconstructed the tavern will build authentic reproduction furniture, including my favorite, PA German. Their pieces will furnish the tavern and will also be for sale.

With only a 15 minute drive to Dillsburg, I plan to conduct many drive-by droolings as the shop is being constructed, and occasionally stop to talk with the builders. One gave me his card and said to "stop by anytime." (honest!)

I will try my best to practice restraint and not make him regret having told me that....lest I be labeled the Dills Tavern Stalker.