With one board, you can put together this side table that packs in a bunch of great woodworking techniques. Project #2418 • Skill Level: Intermediate • Time: 3 Days • Cost: $250 I enjoy a good scrap wood project as much as the next woodworker but you can only make so many cutting boards. Surprisingly,…

This unique project was built for a specific purpose, but it’s the perfect learning opportunity for anyone building a box. Boxes come in countless shapes and forms. Most are crafted and used in a horizontal orientation, but some—like those for wine bottles or parchment scrolls—are often designed to stand upright. This story chronicles one of…

Build a tool chest that’s worthy of your tools. Customize it to fit exactly the tools you want. Project #2115 • Skill Level: Intermediate • Time: 4 days • Cost: $250 I have a confession. I like nice tools. There’s something about boutique tool makers that I love. I’m guessing it’s the combination of high-quality…

After detailing the design approach and layout in my last entry, I moved on to building the actual components for my garage post-shelf system. This phase involved crafting and installing brackets that would not only securely clamp onto the steel columns but also support a functional, sturdy shelving solution. To begin making the 2×4 brackets,…

From the Archives: Dale Nish, one of the principal architects of the turning revival, shares some turning techniques. Birdhouse Christmas ornaments have become very popular the last few years, and they are excellent gifts for family and friends. Back in 1993, I saw a birdhouse ornament made by Ray Huskey from Gatlinburg, Tenn. I was…

Like many home woodshops in North America, mine is set up in a two-car garage. Similar to other suburban homes, our garage has two steel columns in the middle, supporting the bedrooms above. These load-bearing round steel posts, common in ranch-style and many other one-family houses, are often found in garages, basements, and unfinished spaces….

This live-edge coffee table is just the beginning of what you can build with a $20 doweling jig. Project #2302 • Skill Level: Beginner • Time: 4 Days • Cost: $400 This walnut coffee table is featured in my latest book, “Build More Stuff with Wood,” (see all the places you can purchase it here)…

A few tools can go a long way. When you get started in woodworking there are many paths to follow, forks in the road, dead-ends and shortcuts. It’s a journey that our forebears would make with the help of a living, breathing guide: a master, a grandfather, a shop teacher. Sadly, the guides are fewer…

With its quartersawn oak, and Arts & Crafts finish, this desk is sure to serve generations to come. Project #2417 • Skill Level: Intermediate • Time: 5 Days • Cost: $450 The best thing about being a woodworker is the ability to make custom furniture for a particular spot in the home. Need a desk…

Brush up on your precision miters, and build this mid-century-inspired record player stand. Project #2416 • Skill Level: Intermediate • Time: 3 Days • Cost: $250 I’ve always appreciated vinyl for its aesthetic qualities as much as the analog experience of putting a record on. Yet for some reason, my collection has always lived inside…

All it takes is a router and a bandsaw. You’ll only need two machines to make these Arts & Crafts style knobs: a bandsaw and a router table. Although the saw cuts can be done on a tablesaw; the bandsaw keeps the operation safe and simple. The router table work requires two bits: a 5/8-in….

A woven seat adds a punch of color to this surprisingly easy project.

For a quick and simple bench stop, I mounted a sliding bolt taken from an old door to the end of my workbench. In the locked position, the bolt stays put, and in the unlocked position it’s completely out of the way. -Darryl Thomas

I felt like I won the storage-space lottery when I came up with this bench design for my shop. I wanted a way to store lumber and my benchtop tools. The backbones of this bench are the 2 x 4 frames. For my 8-ft. bench, I made four frames. The rest of the materials were…

Tool: 7 in. Carpenters Vise Shop Now   Manufacturer: Doyle MSRP: $69.99 I recently saved an old workbench from the scrap heap, and the first thing I knew it needed (after a good cleaning and flattening) was a vise. I wondered aloud to Logan if Harbor Freight had anything, then decided to check online. Just…

An 18th-century French workbench is quite possibly the most perfect design ever put to paper. In the 18th century it was common for the workrooms and living areas of a home to share the same space. A workbench, for example, would not be out of place in the front room of the house. This small…

Since I received my Benchcrafted Roubo workbench a year ago, my woodworking life has tremendously improved. My new and heavy bench (I wrote about it here and here) has 1” holdfast holes that can be fitted with the excellent Crucible tools ductile cast iron holdfast that Chris Schwarz makes. The 1” holes and the monumental…

The bench hook is without question one of the most indispensable tools in my wood shop. The force of gravity and the force of using the tool up against a solid fence is all that it takes to keep the work from moving. It’s deceptively sophisticated and exceptionally simple to make. It’s a great choice…

Build a tool chest that’s worthy of your tools. Customize it to fit exactly the tools you want. Project #2115 • Skill Level: Intermediate • Time: 4 days • Cost: $250 I have a confession. I like nice tools. There’s something about boutique tool makers that I love. I’m guessing it’s the combination of high-quality…

After detailing the design approach and layout in my last entry, I moved on to building the actual components for my garage post-shelf system. This phase involved crafting and installing brackets that would not only securely clamp onto the steel columns but also support a functional, sturdy shelving solution. To begin making the 2×4 brackets,…

Like many home woodshops in North America, mine is set up in a two-car garage. Similar to other suburban homes, our garage has two steel columns in the middle, supporting the bedrooms above. These load-bearing round steel posts, common in ranch-style and many other one-family houses, are often found in garages, basements, and unfinished spaces….

Is it the saw or where the saw lives that increases your accuracy? There are two types of miter saws. The first can be a mainstay in the woodshop, dependably making accurate crosscuts day in and day out. Or it can be a cantankerous helper, needing constant attention and delivering inconsistent results. The difference usually…

I love the convenience of mobile bases, but I hate it when they wobble on the floor even when they’re locked down. I got my chock block idea at the airport where the ground crews use something similar for parked aircraft. My chock block locks the fixed casters on my mobile bases so they don’t…

Giving a little bit of attention to the flooring in your shop can make your shop more inviting and more comfortable to work in. When’s the last time you took a good hard look at your shop floor? I know that’s an odd question. But if you think about it, it’s the one thing in…

Crafting the tops and bottoms of the boxes. Check out part 1 of this story. After milling and beveling (mitering) the long edges of the boxes’ sides, I turned my attention to the tops and bases. I crafted these rectangular parts from the same reclaimed stock used for the sides to maintain a cohesive look….

This unique project was built for a specific purpose, but it’s the perfect learning opportunity for anyone building a box. Boxes come in countless shapes and forms. Most are crafted and used in a horizontal orientation, but some—like those for wine bottles or parchment scrolls—are often designed to stand upright. This story chronicles one of…

Wooden spoons can be as elaborate or utilitarian as you’d please. Either way, it’s a great way to spend time in the shop. Project #2415 • Skill Level: Intermediate • Time: 1 Day • Cost: $5 I began woodworking in late 2015, and the more I learned about woodworking, the more I was intrigued by…