As autumn leaves brighten in color, woodworkers are inevitably making their way back to the woodworking shop in their basement, garage or outbuilding to resume the work they love: making practical and beautiful things out of wood.

In these troubled economic times more than ever, possessing woodworking skills and the tools necessary to exercise them can help enrich and enliven a woodworker's life. Besides the joy and satisfaction that comes from creating something by hand, the opportunity exists to supplement your income by concentrating on practical projects that your local marketplace needs. Tables, chairs, shelving units and cabinets never go out of style and everyone needs them. Woodturning projects make excellent gifts, and everyone will be looking for unique gifts to give this holiday season. Woodcarving is great for this too.

We welcome your suggestions for specific project ideas that your fellow woodworkers around the country might use to generate income locally or save money on gifts that would otherwise need to be purchased. If you have some project ideas to share, please describe it by posting a reply to this blog entry.

The latest issue of Wood News Online, our monthly woodworking magazine, features an excellent article by Doug Bittinger that kicks off a series on taking the plunge into full-time professional woodworking. Whether woodworking is a hobby, a part-time moneymaker, or full-time occupation for you, Doug has some thoughtful ideas that are worth considering.

Here is a link to the full October issue of Wood News Online. An excerpt from Doug's article follows below:

Taking the Plunge into Professional Woodworking
by Douglas Bittinger

I cannot say that I know anyone who was going through life with no woodworking experience and simply said to themselves "I think I'll become a professional woodworker," signed up for some courses to learn what they needed to know, and then went looking for a job as a woodworker. Not to say it doesn't happen. I just don't know any.

All of the professional woodworkers I know discovered a talent and desire for woodworking and nurtured it. Some discovered it while young, some not so young, but they found it. Some got into it out of necessity: they wanted things they couldn't afford to buy and decided to make them. For others it started as a relaxing hobby. At some point they said, "You know, it would be great if I could make my living doing this instead of [whatever]."

If this thought has breached in your brain, let me issue a caution: When you take a hobby and turn it into your occupation, is ceases to be a hobby. Along with this change come responsibilities that weren't there before. Your hobby becomes your JOB.

If you possess certain capabilities and resources, it can indeed be a rewarding and fulfilling job, leading to a more pleasant life style. If not, it can turn into a stress filled nightmare. What are these capabilities?

Hi! I found this pattern on the web, on sandyfroglegs blog. They are really cute to make as a gift on this holidays. I´ve made only one, but I´ll share it with you now so you can make them for Eastern holiday.

The pattern is really clear: just follow the step by step (or row by row) instructions.

My egg seems Einstein, so I named it Einstegg. I made the eyes and mouth with yarns, but you can try other materials, like beads, for example.

Hi! I want to introduce to you a new member in my finger puppets family. She came to bring me a lot of chocolat on this Easter holidays: please say hello to Rosemary, my Easter bunny!

But she is not alone, someone has to look after this cute little bunny. Bob, the elephant is Rosemary´s company.

How to do them?

I used rest of used yarns.

- Crochet a little square (the size will depend on the yarn you use and on the finger size). You can use single crochet or double crochet. In my case I made Rosemary with single crochet and Bob with double crochet (body) and single crochet (head).

- When you think that the body is long enough, you increase a little to make the head´s shape (I increased 3 or 4 stitches along 3 rows, but this depends on the yarn you´re using).

- After that, you decrease, but this time don´t be afraid to over do it: crochet two and skip the next one along 2 rows. The important thing is that you don´t have more than 10 stitches.

- Then, sew the piece, leaving a hole in the down side (that´s way you can put your finger in). Put some cotton to make the head rounder.

- To fiinish your puppet add the details according to the animal you are doing and make the eyes with a contrasting color. This is not a big deal and there isn´t a strict technique: just put the hook in the correct place of the head to make the ears, trunk, mouth…

The finger puppets are a cute and easy gift. You can send me links or pics of your fnished puppets to share with us!

We had a great time walking, beachcombing and building "Goldsworthy" towers from the fantastic granite pebbles.



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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.

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Halloween Challenge: LumberJocks | HomeRefurbers | GardenTenders

That’s right. You’ve been challenged!. You have until the end of the month to build a Halloween decoration for outdoors and enter it in our very first Halloween LumberJocks Challenge. What’s the size? That’s up to you. What’s it made of? Wood, of course (and, yes, you can add non-wood objects to it as needed). We have all seen those cemeteries and skeletons in people’s yards, well we are LumberJocks and we can’t be outdone! Get your tools out and start building. We will be looking for creativity and for something that fits with the season.

PRIZES

Lee Valley will provide 3 random winners with the following great prizes:

1. $50 gift card
2. Leather apron plane holster
3. Lee Valley cap

Get your Project in by Saturday November 1st and the winners will be announced on November 2nd. Are you up for the challenge?

HOW TO ENTER

1. SUBMIT your challenge entry as a project and tag it with challenge07 (of course you may add any additional tags too):
   
   Note that you don’t need to use ‘challenge07’ in the project title (use the meaningful title instead).
2. You can submit only one entry – give it your best shot.
3. Describe your entry and how it inspires you to enjoy the Halloween season
4. The entry deadline is November 1st.
5. Winners will be announced online at LumberJocks.com on November 2nd.

The Challenge is on. Let the games begin!

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We are also holding special Halloween challenges at HomeRefurbers.com and GardenTenders .com. This is the right time to use our new single access feature to join in all of our holiday fun ;)

Halloween Challenge: LumberJocks | HomeRefurbers | GardenTenders

Another week in the wonderful Isles of Scilly.

Theresa will be manning office, Monday, Wednesday and Friday afternoons, approximately 2.45 - 3-45.

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