Woodworking Articles

Poplar step stool with anti-tip bars
This step stool was built to replace an older model that was starting to show its age. It’s made from yellow poplar and features retractable anti-tip bars that slide out when needed and slide back in for more compact storage. The basic design of the stool came from a plan that is available as a […]

Step Stool

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This rather unassuming chunk of wood represents the initial stages of an abstract wood sculpture that is being crafted by my friend Rich. The wood came from a white oak tree that had been cut down 3-5 years previously and had been slowly air drying in a garage since then. My involvement with the project […]

Wood Sculpture

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Science kiosk
  This unusual looking structure is an educational kiosk that will be used at science fairs to assist students in learning about the Sun and the planets in our solar system. It was designed by one Dr. Leonard who enlisted my woodshop and woodworking skills to help build the beast. In it’s finished form (not […]

Science Kiosk

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Maple floor clock
This is a floor clock, also called a longcase clock, tall-case clock, or grandfather clock (technically, I suppose it’s a grandmother rather than a grandfather clock because it’s just under 6 feet tall). I’ve dubbed this clock the “Pop Clock” in honor of my dad who built the clock many years ago (early 1980’s I […]

Pop Clock

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Strawberry cage keeping the birds at bay
This bare-bones cage was created to keep the birds from devouring the yummy strawberries in our garden. In the past, we just draped chicken wire on top of the plants. This worked fairly well but it was a bit of a pain to position and remove the chicken wire and it also didn’t prevent those […]

Strawberry Cage

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Red oak letter and key rack
I came across this letter and key rack in Issue #32 of Woodsmith and decided to make it the gift project for Christmas 2005. It seemed like a fairly simple “weekend” project and something that most anyone could use. Now, if I only made one of these racks, it would have indeed been a weekend […]

Letter and Key Rack

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Insulated dog house 4
The “Sparky 1” This dog house features an insulated floor, roof, and walls, a removable roof for ease of cleaning, a cedar deck with roof, and solid construction throughout. It was made from common construction materials – including recycled cedar boards from an old deck, T1-11 exterior grade plywood, and 2″x3″ pine framing lumber. The […]

Insulated Dog House

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Oak carpet trim
Here is an idea for capping off the carpeting at the top of a stairway so it won’t fray or get in the way. When the carpet guy installed the carpeting on our basement stairs, he finished by wrapping the carpeting over the top step and tacking it to a strip of oak. This worked […]

Oak Carpet Trim

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Cedar bird house 2
This past winter I was poking around for a challenging woodworking project. Something different from anything I had done before. Something involving unusual joinery and/or cutting techniques. Something that would expand my repertoire of woodworking skills. Something I could make multiple copies of to give out as gifts, thereby incurring the good will of friends […]

Cedar Bird Houses

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Bathroom vanity shelf almost doubles storage capacity
Here is an easy to build storage shelf that utilizes the wasted space inside a bathroom vanity cabinet. I’m talking about that space below the sink basin and above where all the bathroom supplies pile up on the bottom of the cabinet. The shelf assembles in place and can be made from scraps you probably […]

Bathroom Vanity Under Sink Shelf

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My dad added a porch to our house back in the 1970’s and I must say he did a pretty good job overall. Especially for someone who wasn’t a professional builder or carpenter. However, there was one critical flaw in the construction: the main sill plate running across the front of the porch was made […]

When Wood Goes Bad

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A miter saw, also known as a chop saw, is an indispensable woodworking tool for cutting molding, making picture frames, or other applications involving bevels and angled cuts. They also work well for general purpose cross-cutting. In many woodshops, the miter saw has replaced the radial arm saw. There are several different types of miter […]

Miter Saw

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A Japanese saw is a thin-bladed hand saw that cuts on the pull stroke, unlike most other hand saws used in the U.S. and Europe that cut on the push stroke. Because they cut on the pull stroke and thus are not subject to compression tension, Japanese saws have thinner, more flexible blades than their […]

Japanese Saw

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Handsaws (aka, hand saws) have been around in one form or another for thousands of years. Nowadays, handsaws have been largely supplanted by power saws but a quality handsaw with a properly sharpened blade can still work wonders (plus you’ll get a good workout using it). A typical handsaw has a wooden or plastic handle […]

Handsaw

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Most of the heavy lifting in woodshops today is done with power tools but there are many situations where hand tools can get the job done just as well or even better than power tools. Some woodworkers even rely on hand tools exclusively.  Roy Underhill of Woodwright’s Shop fame, comes to mind.  The eco-appeal of […]

Woodworking with Hand Tools

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As woodworkers, we use wood to build beautiful furniture and other objects. But wood does have a dark side: it can be harmful to our health. Trees contain toxins in the bark, fruit, sap, wood, and foliage but for the majority of woodworkers, exposure to the wood and, in particular, wood dust is the primary […]

Wood Dust Health Hazards

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