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Designing the process can be as challenging as designing the object. The way something looks is only the first half of a design problem. How to make it and how to make it efficiently are often [...]

This useful tool is easy to make, easy on the eyes and awesome to use. Wooden layout tools usually are superior to metal ones in my opinion. They are lightweight, inexpensive and as accurate as [...]

It’s easy to get caught in the trap of design by formula. But if art were simply a matter of ratios, a paint-by-number Mona Lisa would be just as good as the one hanging in the Louvre Museum. The [...]

Use unconventional techniques to create a traditional tea caddy. England began to import tea about the middle of the 17th century. When first introduced, tea was expensive, so it was a drink [...]

This simple modular shelf offers plenty of options for reconfiguration. Editor’s note: This article first appeared in the December 2012 issue of Popular Woodworking. One symptom of my [...]

Steam-bending or bent laminations can be used to make this eye-catching design. The design of this table is part of a series that I revisit from time to time. The original concept for the series [...]

Three variations on a carved foot offer high style. Access to information provides the modern woodworker with greater variety, and it challenges their skills more than their 18th-century [...]

Expose your joinery skills with this Arts & Crafts classic. In the early 1900s, furniture maker Gustav Stickley began producing a unique style of furniture that he called “Craftsman.” At the [...]

This small coffee table is a great introduction to building furniture. It doesn’t require much material and it’s an opportunity to develop your skills. This project is sturdy, attractive and easy [...]

Gerrit Rietveld’s simple design for a lounge chair is a great platform for exploring ergonomics. PROJECT #2005 • Skill Level:Beginner • Time: 4 hours • Cost: $50 Gerrit Rietveld was a Dutch [...]

This project first appeared in the August 2011 issue. For me, one of the most perfect shapes ever designed is the general-purpose incandescent light bulb. While some people use the word [...]

Coffee tables didn’t exist as a furniture form until the 1920s  (when they were known as cocktail tables). So while there is no true Shaker coffee table, I needed a table to put in front of my [...]