Untable

During a storm last winter a large branch came down from one of our maple trees.
I harvested a few pieces of wood, one of which was this branch.
It immediately presented it self in my sketches as a small table base. The photo shows the result of the drawing.

Kid's Stepstool

The step stool is a very popular project in my woodworking kids class. So I thought I would put it up here. It is a good project for all ages, however, it's especially good for young woodworkers.

I pre-cut all pieces and the participants shape and assemble the stool. The two side-stretchers are counter sunk and screwed in place to be concealed with wood filler. There are two mitred support pieces that are about 6 inches long. These help square the construction. The top is attached to the gables by use of pocket holes and can be shaped with a block plane or a file.

This stepstool is made out of pine because it is easy to shape, however any wood in your scrap bin will do. It only uses 3 board feet.

2009 Is Upon Us

And I'm already feeling the weight!

Each year I have a habit of labelling the new year with a goal related phrase.

This year I believe it will be "Getting in to the Work".

I am spending time with my sketchbook designing some new projects that are just for me.

2008 was spent doing seminars and classes for the most part and it was great. I always get as much from my students as I give. It is very inspiring to see new woodworkers (sometimes only 6 years old!) getting excited about the craft.
My roots are in sketching and painting and sometimes I need to get back in touch with my purely creative side.

So in 2009 I am taking time to allow myself the luxury of exploring ideas and designing purely for visual effect without considering the actual function of the pieces. (I will let form lead for a while)

I will stay in touch and share my sketches as the new body of work develops.

Autumn Update

The last quarter of the year has been full of activity and inspiration.
This has included an excellent visit to the Irish Craft Guild in Kilkenny and the National Gallery in Dublin.

In October I was at the Woodworking Machinery & Supply Expo in Toronto where I had the pleasure to work for Mini Max tools demonstrating the 300 Smart combination machine.

It is a quality machine and a first class company.

Many thanks to Massimo Paganelli from Mini Max, Italy and Richard Hould From Mini Max, Canada, for a great show.

Another Year at the Show

Well, another year the Canadian Home Workshop Show is over and, once again, the overriding memories are of meeting all the wonderful woodworkers who stopped by the Masters Woodshop to see the project - a really sturdy and still good looking workbench - to observe it being built and to just talk shop.

I really appreciate all the positive comments about the project and we were all really pleased that the raffle for Habitat for Humanity was a rousing success.

Finally, congratulations to the winner of the workbench and the Bosch tools that I used to build it, Pat Strange.


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