Sometimes “lifestuff” happens and disrupts the normal routine of life, including shop time… The last year to year and a half have made it so I haven’t had as much shop time as I normally would have. Though both my parents passed in 2017, not all life changes are bad. I have been able to get started in wood turning recently and made some pens. Here is a quick update of what’s been going on, including a new day job, Maker Faire in Boston, and the Lie-Nielsen event at the Furniture Institute of Massachusetts (Phil Lowe’s shop) in Beverly, MA.
Tag: Shop Time
Accordion Style Christmas Tree Decoration
Shop time has been a bit in short supply lately. I had a couple of days off this week where I was able to spend some quality time there finally.
Sometimes a small, easy project is great to get back into the groove and get a feeling of accomplishment that you got to finish something. In this video, I make a small Christmas Tree decoration that has an accordion style to it. To make it more interesting, I adhered sheet music of “Silent Night” to it.
After a mistake and redo, I finished the project, and then celebrated in a fashion that I think Nick Offerman would approve.
Books seen:
Good Clean Fun: Misadventures in Sawdust at Offerman Woodshop by Nick Offerman.
Hybrid Woodworking: Blending Power & Hand Tools for Quick, Quality Furniture by Marc Spagnuolo.
Make Your Own Cutting Boards: Smart Projects & Stylish Designs for a Hands-On Kitchen by David Picciuto.
The Minimalist Woodworker: Essential Tools and Smart Shop Ideas for Building with Less by Vic Tesolin.
Nick Offerman’s original Yule Log video.
(** Please drink responsibly **)
A Woodworking Mindset During An Unintended Hiatus
Unfortunately, various events of late have kept me from getting into the shop as much as I would like. From end of summer and back to school, to giving my dad some extra help as my mother has experienced increasing health issues the last few weeks, I haven’t spent too much time in the shop from mid-August onward.
I did however, get a few hours on a Friday a couple of weeks ago to attend the Lie-Nielsen hand tool event in Manchester, CT. I have to say it was nice getting back into a woodworking setting and mindset. This particular event in Manchester, CT was hosted at the Connecticut Valley School of Woodworking. I’ve been to a few other Lie-Nielsen events, but this one by a good margin was the largest. Lie-Nielsen will often have another vendor or two with them, but there were several at this event: Tico Vogt (premium shooting board maker), Fine Woodworking Magazine, Catherine Kennedy (Tool Engraving), and others who I forget their name, but dealt with molding and wooden hand planes. If you have never been to one of these events, you owe it to yourself to try and get to one. You can test drive any tool they have there, and you get a great feel for what a quality, sharp tool should feel like. Ask a question, and you’ll get a detailed answer and/or a great demonstration.
So here are a few pics:
Thanks to Google+ “auto-awesome”, a panoramic of Connecticut Valley School of Woodworking. Lie-Nielsen area is on the left, and other vendor booths along back wall.
Some furniture on display at Connecticut Valley School of Woodworking.
Deneb Puchalski of Lie-Nielsen answering questions on hand planes.
Mike Pekovich of Fine Woodworking magazine doing a demonstration on card scrapers. It was nice to chat with Mike for a bit after his demonstration.
And of course, I couldn’t NOT post a pic of my new #4 that I ordered at the event and arrived the other day!