Projects

Coffee tables didn’t exist as a furniture form until the 1920s  (when they were known as cocktail tables). So while there is no true Shaker coffee table, I needed a table to put in front of my [...]

The editors present some of their favorite designs. Whether we spend most of our time building 18th-century highboys, production cabinetry or toys for our kids and grandchildren, we all build [...]

Flaring sides, tapering bevels and asymmetrical corners make these mid-century modern style frames perfect for wacky photos or jazzing up a wall. They’re surprisingly easy to make and just [...]

Whenever I make a right angle cut on my tablesaw, I use a sled. If I’m cutting large panels, I use a big crosscut sled. I pull out a smaller sled for rails and legs. To cut tenons with a …

The box arrives in the mail and the new plane you’ve been yearning for has finally arrived. You spend a few minutes admiring the workmanship, then get to work flattening the back of the plane [...]

Wedged through-tenons keep this handle secure. Whether you’re using it for woodworking tools or garden tools, a tote is a simple and quick project. It’s so simple, in fact, that I decided to add [...]

When I think of a tool chest, I think of a carpenter’s box, usually open and inviting, a little rough perhaps but clearly made by the hand. Think of Roy Underhill merrily skipping over the stream [...]

Yet, inspiration works in weird ways. While visiting Maine in February I saw an enormous birdhouse that looked like a jointer plane hanging outside Liberty Tool, an ironmonger. I just had to have [...]

Although Linker Logs are made with the aid of a computer— once complete, they’re a great way to get kids (and parents) off the computer for an afternoon of old fashioned fort building and [...]

Sliding doors and bookshelf ends store bakery goods and favorite cookbooks. Sitting on a countertop or mounted on a wall, this little gem helps to organize your kitchen. In addition to keeping [...]

Peeling surfaces on inexpensive furniture give veneering a bad name. It’s actually a sophisticated technique with a rich history dating all the way back to the Egyptian pharaohs. So it may be [...]

Thomas Jefferson’s book boxes became the foundation of the Library of Congress. I like to think of Thomas Jefferson’s personal library as America’s first “bookmobile.” When the British burned [...]