Archives

Take a walk on the wild side of finishing. I’ve got six good reasons to skip the stain and polyurethane on your next small project: bleached, blended, charred, marbled, salt and pepper, and iron [...]

To keep stock from slipping when using my miter gauge, I rely on this simple jig. Screw a 3/4″ x 2″ fence to your miter gauge. Make it whatever length you need. Use a continuous hinge [...]

Arts & Crafts style and knockdown design team up for a winning combination. Imagine this attractive little table residing next to a comfortable chair, holding important items such as a cup of [...]

Here’s a fast, inexpensive way to keep your edge tools razor sharp. First, cut out a few 5″ x 3/4″ MDF discs.  Drill a 1/4″ hole in the center of each disc. Next, glue different [...]

A sure-fire recipe for turning any wood deep black. Remember the old ad slogan, “better living through chemistry”? When it comes to turning wood black—a process called ebonizing—I prefer the [...]

Give ordinary wood the charm of old age. I love the look of old paint—I’ve often tried to capture it in new furniture I’ve made. I’m not trying to build fake antiques, however. I’m just trying to [...]

I made my own try square using a 1″ x 4″ corner mending plate and a couple scrap pieces of hardwood. To make one yourself, first check the mending plate to be sure it’s square. If [...]

Improve your results by understanding wood characteristics. Each species of wood has unique finishing characteristics, both positive and negative. To help you determine how to choose the right [...]

Ordinary push pads tend to slip, I’ve found, when face-jointing a board. I modified one of mine by cutting 1/2″ of the rubber padding off its back end and then screwing on a 1/2″ x [...]

A push stick is a familiar device to prevent kickback while ripping a board, but I prefer to use a “push shoe.” It’s shaped like a shoe with a handle, and has a heel, just like a boot. The [...]

The Ol’ 1–2 I volunteered to drill the holes for the halogen light fixtures in the 6′ tall display cabinet that my cohorts and I were building at the architectural millwork company where we [...]

Trailing along a power cord when I’m routing can really be awkward. All too often, my cord hangs up on a corner of the project or gets tangled around my legs. Adding a dust collection hose, which [...]