“What kind of wood is this?” In my work as a furniture restorer and conservator, I often hear this question. Red alder is especially hard to identify because it can be finished to closely resemble many other more expensive hardwoods. (It’s often referred to as “poor man’s cherry.”) This “chameleon” characteristic is one reason red…

While doing the dishes the other night, I looked at the drying rack and thought, “Wow! I need one of these in my shop.” First I drilled centered 5/8″ diameter holes every 3″ along both edges of a 1″ x 6″ wide board. After mitering both edges to a point, I ripped off the two…

Oil and oil/varnish-blend finishes are not very protective against moisture because they are too thin; they can’t be built thicker because they don’t harden well. But these finishes are very popular because they are so easy to apply. So they are often used when a thicker film-building finish would be a wiser choice. It is…

Three years ago while teaching a woodworking class at Peters Valley I met Blacksmith Eric Dennis, who was at the time the studio assistant in the iron shop. When I entered the noisy, coal-smoky, old building, Eric was in the middle of forging some impressive looking tool. Coincidentally, that very summer I was trying to…

By George R. Walker Meet Reid Schwartz: artist, interested human, maker of tools, worker of wood and restorer of old things. It’s hard to think of a craft that’s not tied to woodworking in some way. Wood is either the material of choice or it’s found in the tools used to shape other materials, such…

Try Squares While you can certainly use a typical machinist’s combination square for layout work, they aren’t particularly friendly to the hand, they are heavy and they can easily, if mishandled, ding the wood. In contrast, a wooden square feels soft, light and warm to the touch and is a thing of beauty to look…

Sam Maloof’s sculpted rocking chairs are iconic, so much so that his name is synonymous with that furniture style. As his chair designs advanced, so did their construction.

Master these skills and you can build anything. From chests to cupboards to cradles, frame and panel joinery opens a whole new world of possibilities.

You can use a router to joint two boards at once. This is a really handy trick if you don’t have a long-bed jointer or you don’t have a jointer at all, and you’re working with really long stock. The trick is to rout both boards at the same time, so the edges mirror each other….

Chris Schwarz shares some handy, nearly-forgotten handsaw tricks to use in the shop.

Resawing on the bandsaw allows you to cut logs into lumber, make thin boards from thick and cut your own veneer. Here’s how.

Safely make shaper-quality molding on your tablesaw without fancy jigs. By Eric Smith and Richard Tendick This how-to story has a picture-perfect ending. In fact, you might want to round up some spectators for applause in the final steps. Richard Tendick has developed a safe, simple technique to help you make narrow, complex picture-frame stock…

In earlier posts in this series, I explained how you can take simple computer drawings and make paper patterns. In my last post, I revealed the process I used for years for making MDF patterns. But, how do you do that if you don’t own a CNC?  Outsource it. Here are a few tips on finding and…

Dale Barnard has been building furniture professionally for decades. And during a recent video shoot, it was very comforting to see that I wasn’t the only one breaking the rules on sanding. Building a Greene & Greene furniture piece means changing transition levels in the wood frequently. And that leads to either rasping, filing or…

Ebony plugs are essential to the Greene & Greene style. In fact, it would be almost inconceivable to design a Greene & Greene piece without them. They are simple to make, but woodworkers often struggle with the process. Over many years of building and teaching in the Greene & Greene style, I have developed a…

Part Three: Design Though digital woodworking tools may be different and the scales are finer, the importance of precision is the same for every woodworker. If you’re working to a precision standard and your processes reinforce it, then the only differences between digital and machine tool woodworking are the numbers. Essentially, digital woodworking is to…

  Part Two: Commitment To be successful as a woodworker, either hobbyist or professional, precision needs to be a standard you set that you’re willing to live by. Professionals have obvious reasons to do this as their success is at least partially measured by efficiency with time and materials. If you mess up, mistakes are…

Part One: Precision There are two sides to this story. The first is obvious. The other not so much. First, digital woodworking is all about numbers. Very small numbers. That makes it simple, direct and precise. Your drawings, your setups, the instructions you give to digital tools and the machining itself, have to be accurate….

A can of lubricant is very useful around the shop, and so is the little red straw… if you can find it after the first use! I figured out that the straw fits in the groove in the top of the can, and you can still put the lid on. No more lost straws!—Brian Roesch

C-clamps can make nasty dents that are tough to sand out. Pads or block will prevent this, but they’re often awkward to hold in place while you tighten the clamps. I make pads that don’t require extra hands. I bought a roll of 1-inch wide adhesive-backed magnetic strips from a craft store and cut off…

While doing the dishes the other night, I looked at the drying rack and thought, “Wow! I need one of these in my shop.” First I drilled centered 5/8″ diameter holes every 3″ along both edges of a 1″ x 6″ wide board. After mitering both edges to a point, I ripped off the two…