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Strength, patience and a sharp saw turn scraps into treasure. The hardwoods I use are almost always riven or split from a log. When I need thinner pieces than usual, I split them again. But there [...]

While design is dominated by the eye, the hand plays an important role. Most of what I’ve written about design has focused on how we look at it. Yet good design often has multiple layers that [...]

Rarely a day goes by when we aren’t using a router for some aspect of a project. We’ve been building all kinds of jigs and trying new ideas (and ideas recently unearthed from our archives). A …

Add a new dimension to your work with a few basic skills and an inexpensive machine. Woodworkers are joining the welding renaissance that’s happening among makers. Understanding the fundamentals [...]

This workbench form is uncommon today, but it is still a sound bench because it allows you to perform all of the critical workbench operations with relative ease. Benches are a triumph of [...]

Apply layers of milk paint to add depth and contrast to your work. A visitor asked, “Paint over wood? Aren’t you obscuring wood’s natural beauty?” There are two assumptions behind these [...]

These doors are all about the angles – learn to bisect them using geometry and it’s a snap. When I walk into the American decorative arts Gallery at the Peabody Essex Museum in Salem, Mass., I am [...]

Here is a handy, inexpensive way to organize your shop screws and other small bits of hardware. I cut an old section of black PVC pipe lengthwise down the middle, then into sections to fit my [...]

Affordable line lasers and a simple setup make for perfect angled drilling. I’m a 21st-century Windsor chairmaker. I build chairs using mostly hand tools: froes, drawknives, spokeshaves, [...]

Why liquid hide glue should be your first choice as an adhesive. Since the beginnings of civilization up until World War II, most pieces of furniture were assembled using animal-based glues. That [...]

Gain more control over your staining with these techniques. The most popular types of stains are oil stains, also called wiping stains (though most stains are wiped after application). Oil stains [...]

Many new chisels, especially most premium-quality chisels, have sharp lands (the beveled side edges). Some people wear cotton gloves to protect their hands when using these, but I don’t like the [...]