When you think about generous people, the first group of people that cross your mind might not be woodworkers.

Think about it.  We want tools for our shops.  We want prized timbers so we can build killer projects. And we relish each commissioned job that comes into our shop – a chance to buy even more new tools!

And yet…

My first group woodworking project happened when Gail O’Rourke invited me to the American Sycamore Woodworkers Retreat for the charity Build-A-Thon to benefit the American Cancer Society. Imagine my excitement. Flying halfway across the country to go to a professional workshop with woodworkers more immensely talented than me, each working toward a common goal.

I went back for the next two Build-A-Thons over the next two years, the last one benefiting Habitat for Humanity. Each time, the experience was uplifting, instructional and thoroughly enjoyable.

Since I started writing this blog, I have seen many other heart-warming stories brought to life by woodworkers  A nationwide effort to turn pens for service men and women to write home with.  A group of retirees who build instructional toys for teachers in the local school district.  An agency that helps disabled American veterans find employment in a woodworking-related field.

The more I see, the more I come to realize that woodworkers are really a generous bunch of folks.

This generosity now continues with Marc Spagnuolo, the Wood Whisperer. After helping Wood Whisperer guild member Duane Moore with a steamer trunk project, Marc discovered that Duane had received some troubling news about his cancer treatment.

To do just a little bit to help Duane, Marc has launched Woodworkers Fighting Cancer.  This is the first Wood Whisperer Guild Build – a small Shaker Table – and is donating $5 from his own pocket to the American Cancer Society for each Guild member who builds the project and sends him a picture.

Since he first rolled out the idea, others have offered donations toward the cause.  Marc keeps an up-to-date contribution ticker on his website, and as of this posting, he has raised more than $1,200 for the cause. Eagle America, Festool, Rockler, WoodWerks and Bell Forest Products have all lent their corporate support toward this effort, as have many individuals who visit his site. For those who don’t want to participate in the build or don’t want to join the guild, Marc has included a donation button.

Looking at an effort like this, I can’t help but feel as if woodworkers are giving from deep in their hearts.

And, I should also stop being surprised by this generosity… it seems to be the norm among woodworkers.

February 2010

There’s nothing quite as simple – yet complicated – as an end-grain cutting board.

Sure, it’s just a flat, thick piece of wood you cut food on.  However, if you want it to be really durable, you want it oriented so that you are cutting on the end grain.  That’s the tough stuff..

Fortunately, there are many good plans for end-grain cutting boards out there.  Wood Magazine has a good one, as does the Wood Whisperer. Each of these plans offers step-by-step instructions on how to build them.

The wood for the board came from Bell Forest Products, and included a sweet piece of maple and another of purple heart.

I started by jointing and planing the boards flat and true, then ripping them into strips.  I glued the blank together with alternating strips.

Once dry, I took the boards out of the clamps and planed the assembly dead flat. Then, I crosscut the panel into 1.5″ thick strips, rotated them end for end and then stood them up with the end grain facing upward.  I shifted the pieces into a pleasing pattern and glued them into place.

While my glue up was pretty good, I still had to use a belt sander to get everything into perfect shape on the top.  First, 50 grit was used to get the pieces flush, then 80 and 120 to smooth things out.  Then, I hit it with my random orbit sander with 120 grit and 150 grit.  Since the top was going to see some abuse from knives, I didn’t want to make it too smooth.

I finished it with polyurethane thinned about 50% with mineral spirits, allowing the finish to soak all the way through the board and then wiped off the excess, as per Marc Spagnuolo’s instructions.  That seemed to do the trick.

Now, here comes the hard part.  I had originally built two boards, but I won’t be seeing them in my house.  I already gave one to a really nice couple who has us over their home  for gourmet dinners and really fine wine.  The other one?  Well, when my mom saw it, it became hers.

Oh, well… At least when I go to these homes, I’ll know the meals I’m eating were prepared on them!

January 2010

No, I don’t wear a beret, sit in coffee shops debating the merits of Karl Marx and snap my fingers when the improvisational jazz band finishes playing a set.

But, I do enter an annual art contest.

It’s that time again, when the National Arts Program co-sponsors an art contest here at the county courthouse.  County employees, relatives, volunteers and retirees are welcome to submit their projects for judging.

Amidst the many paintings, photographs and sculptures, I have entered my woodworking again.  In the past years, I have done pretty well in the competition, earning a first place in the adult intermediate category for the Contemplation Bench and Pagoda Box.  I took a second place red ribbon last year for the Fujiwhara Chest.

This year, I am back with two projects.  One, the Nakashima-Inspired Bench, was already featured in the blog.  Click here to read more about that project which has already gotten more than a few ooohs and aaaahs….

The second project is new, but you have seen elements of it already.  Remember last August, when I posted my article about bending wood?  And, when I made the entry about laying up a matched  veneer sheet?  You were actually seeing elements of this.

This project is called ‘Mars and Venus Rising’ and is a collaborative effort between myself and a very talented ceramic artist named Debra Lansdowne.  We have worked together in the same department for the past 11 years, and her work is incredible.

The stand was constructed of three bent ‘legs’, each made with alternating layers of walnut and ash.  The three are connected to a walnut piece in the middle of the ‘waist’ with dowels, epoxy and plugged screws.  I was going to try to do this without screws, but I kept having issues with one of the legs, and figured the small walnut plug I put in would  be a  visual accent.

The top is a circle of 3/4″ plywood veneered with some very sweet walnut burl.  It is secured with plugged screws and epoxy.  The edge is banded with ash veneer to stick with the overall theme of the project.

I had a bear of a time getting the angles right when I notched the disc around the legs.  I ended up with a small gap between the inside faces of the legs and the disc, which I covered with small pieces of walnut shaped into sculpted triangles.

I sanded the heck out of this and finished it with a seal coat of 1# dewaxed shellac.  Once dry, I sanded it down with 400 grit wet/dry paper, blew off the dust and wiped on three coats of wiping poly.  I was tempted to use my homemade oil/varnish/thinner mix, but I have heard that oil gives ash a very yellow appearance.

Debra’s part of the project is an upside-down bowl. She threw the12″ diameter bowl and sculpted the figures of a man and woman into the wet clay.  She glazed it and fired it in her home kiln.  This process added subtle colors to the finish and gave it a nice glossy look.  Finally, she glazed a smaller bowl to the inside of the larger piece in order to give it lift above the disc.

The awards presentation will take place on February 1, and I’m interested in seeing just how well our joint project shows.

If we win, we will split the prize money. My share may be just enough for me to buy a beret!

This is one of those projects that was supposed to be done a few weeks ago.  When I first posted my entry about building a cradle to donate to a local pregnancy crisis center, it was supposed to be ready in time for Christmas.

However, I don’t think that the need for it has gone away.  It’s done now and ready to be dropped off anonymously to be given to a new mom.

The original patterns for the cradle came printed on standard letter-sized paper and had to be joined together to create the full sized working plans.  That took a little time to understand, but was very easy and allowed me to create the flowing curves on the piece.

The original plan for the cradle was to be a knock-down design which could be stored safely after a child outgrew it, waiting for the next new family member should a new one arrive. After discussing this plan with my wife, she brought up a very important point.  If I was donating the cradle anonymously and someone had a question about how to set it up, how would they know what to do?

At that point, I decided I should modify the plan to permanently attach the sides to the head and foot board.  Fort this application, I chose plugged pocket screws, but I could have easily chosen dovetails or some other joinery method.

The handles were easy to cut. Working from the patterns, I located two center point for 1″ forstner bit holes and connected them with a flowing curve.

As I cut each piece to size, I finish sanded them and rounded over all the edges, paying special attention to the areas that were going to get handled.  This was much easier before everything was assembled.

The finish was a thinned down coat of Zinnser Seal Coat (mixed half and half with denatured alcohol).  Then, A thorough sanding with 400 grit paper to get the surface super smooth, then three coats of wipe-on poly to offer more protection.

Again, I would like to thank the folks at Wood Magazine who donated their cradle plan and the guys at Bell Forest Product for donating the beautiful maple.  Thanks, guys.  I appreciate your generosity!

Now, to get the cradle into the car and get it down to the pregnancy crisis center before they open at 8:30…. I hope they like it!

My Christmas Tree decoration

• December 1999

This sad Charlie Brown-looking tree decoration was actually far more sophisticated than it looks.

My mom had just given me my first router for my birthday.  It was a fixed base, 1/4″ collet model that wasn’t very powerful.  I had six bits all stored in a neat wooden box, and I was ready to roll.

With the holidays fast approaching, I thought that a simple, holiday-themed decoration would be in order.  With a 1 x 6 pine board and chunk of dimensional southern yellow pine, I struck on this idea.

I cut out the tree part with a jigsaw and cut the SYP block down to size with a hand saw.  That’s when the router came out.  I chamfered the edges of the block – top, bottom and sides.

The real fun began.  I measured the thickness and width of the base of the tree and carefully marked where I wanted to cut a mortise.

Yes, a mortise with a fixed base router. I fired up the trigger with the router up on edge, then gently tipped the router bit into the work.  It was a little hairy at times, but the mortise cut very well.

I test fit the tree into the base, then, to permanently fix glue the joint, I set the base into Bondo auto body filler.  I had the stuff around, and figured it would create a watertight bond.

I finished it with some green, yellow and brown craft paint and stuck the tree out on the porch. The first thing you see when you walk up to the front door during the holidays.  We will go to a local park and pick up a few pine cones to scatter at the ground around it, just to add some ambiance.

Over the past ten years, that’s where this decoration has sat during the holidays.  It’s one of the first decorations that comes out of the attic at the start of the season and one of the last that goes away.

Even in its tenth year of service, we would never dream of giving it up.  It still marks that our home is ready for the holidays, and we wouldn’t have it any other way.

Thank you all for reading Tom’s Workbench through the holidays, and may each of you have a very Merry Christmas.

Twas some time before Christmas, when all through the shop
I was just so darned busy, I thought I would drop!

The gift list was hung by the workbench with care.
“If we don’t ship these soon, they’ll never get there!”

I in my apron, glue bottle in hand,
was prepared to work hard, to make my last stand.

Sanding and planing, the dust it did blow,
covering the shop floor like the new-fallen snow.

I struggled and sweated as I wiped off my brow.
“I’m sure I can’t do this… no way or no how.”

Project pieces lay about, both tennon and mortise.
“If I progressed any slower, I just might be a tortoise.”

When what in my offended nose did I smell?
“I can place that aroma!  I know it so well…”

When in swang a monkey, hanging high by his tail.
“I’m here to help – together, we won’t fail.”

Of course, it was Iggy, the trained Shop Monkey.
He looked very dapper, his smell was quite funky.

With tool belt cinched tightly around his middle.
He looked young and  strong – as fit as a fiddle.

He was 20 inches tall, all covered in fur.
I guess it’s there so, if cold, he wouldn’t say ‘brrr…’

With eye protection on and boots on his feet,
his shop working outfit was completely complete.

“Now, what’s on this list? Something for father and mother…
We’ll finish this job, don’t you worry, my brother.”

But, raising my hand, I told the monkey to hush.
“They’ll all look simply awful if we get in a rush.”

“Not to worry, pal,” said the monkey with glee.
“We’ll get this job done, just you wait and you see.”

And, with fur and tools flying, working hard was a must.
“You know all these tools, in your skills you must trust.”

“Don’t overthink your joinery, lay out and do cut.
If you don’t get a move-on, I’ll just kick your butt.”

With motivation a-plenty, I set out to work.
“You do a good job, Tom, just don’t be a jerk!”

With project pieces cut, the work was quite simple.
I was happy it worked! You could just see my dimple.

The monkey and I, we worked at the bench.
I was no longer bothered by his terrible stench.

The tools sprung to life, and I was in awe.
Iggy shouted quite loudly, “On router and saw!

On sander and chisel! On spokeshave and plane!”
Our work was quite orderly, the pace was insane!

Together we worked, and with our combined project attack,
there, on the bench, sprung to life nine tiny wine racks.

(A note to my relatives: Right now, shield your eyes
or I will be blowing the big Christmas Surprise!)

The plans we had gotten from our friends there at Wood.
The project looked sweet, the fit was quite good.

From a stack of work pieces all perfectly milled,
from just a plain drawing, these projects distilled.

The frames are held fast with the mortise and tennon.
Try as you might, there’s just no way to bend ‘em.

I sanded the pieces, then applied the finish.
Iggy said “You work faster than Popeye on spinach!”

A coat of shellac, a wipe on finish made them pop.
The look amazed both of us, our jaws they did drop.

Eight tiny wine racks, made of maple and sapele.
(That’s a wood from Africa, not Brazil or New Dehli)

Eight were the same, but there was this one
made of dark wood –  it  looked nice – I had some.

The bottle supports are all of curly maple.
In Iggy’s workshop, that wood is a staple.

And riding on each was a bottle of wine.
Most of them cheap, very few of them fine.

The eight sapele projects they lined up to follow
the dark wooden wine rack, with a red foil on bottle.

The scene it reminded me of old St. Nick’s Sleigh
with Rudolph’s red nose a-lighting the way.

Iggy said, “We got them together, of that there’s no lie,
just try not to touch them ’til the finish is dry.”

“We now need a cheesy photo… go get the missus!”
“What if she won’t?”  ”Well, go ply her with kisses!”

And so, in a flash, she came with her camera to snap.
She took some pictures, then went back in for a nap.

Iggy looked pleased as I reviewed the shots on the camera.
“That was some hard work.  Now, how ’bout a banana?”

And as I handed Iggy a big golden bunch,
he said, “At least – this time – you fed me lunch.”

And, as he swung to a tree and disappeared from sight,
Iggy shouted, “Get  to the post office now, not later tonight!”

Raising kids today can be quite a challenge.  I want my two sons to grow up as generous young men, not thinking solely about themselves.  The holiday season always poses the toughest challenge of the year.  My wife and I have had to work hard to ensure that the holidays are not just about Me! Me! Me!, but about the spirit of giving to those who are less fortunate than we are.

For instance, at my office, we have a holiday bike drive that provides new bikes to kids who are receiving social services.  All through the year, my co-workers and I throw our pocket change into a container to add to the effort.  It’s an effective and painless way to give to the cause, and in years past, we there have been times we have managed to collect more than $250 that way.  I have encouraged my sons this time of the year to collect the pennies languishing in the bottom of their desk drawers and contribute them to the drive, and they have done so willingly.

Another, more heartfelt way we have given back started a few years ago as a way to clear space in our house.  I had built a cradle for my youngest son just before he was born.  It was just a plain pine model screwed together.  At the time, I thought it was the epitome of craftsmanship…

But, as my skills progressed, I soon realized that it was nothing but a simple screwed together pine cradle.  Since I was sure that I could do better when my grandchildren arrive in a few decades, I loaded the cradle into the back of our van early one morning and left it by the front door of a local pregnancy crisis center.  We attached a note:

Dear Folks:

Please be sure this cradle is given to a young mother who may not be able to afford to give her new child something nice this holiday.

Santa

I needed my sons to be there to see what generosity means this time of the year.  An anonymous donation of something special  may have meant the world to a frightened young lady.  My boys learned a lot that day, and I could see that they were getting the message that it’s great to give to others without praise or reward.

Since then, I’ve made it a point to donate other hand crafted things to that center…either more cradles or a simple rocking horse built from a plan I use.  I always drop them off with the same note.

This year, I am planning on doing more of the same. I have gotten a lot of encouragement  from my friends at Wood Magazine. They provided me with a plan to build their classic  Heirloom Cradle.  No, I decided against building the storage box…  I’m just tackling the cradle to keep things simpler in the hectic holiday season.

Thanks also goes out to the folks at Bell Forest Products, who donated the maple and walnut for the contrasting wedges I will be using to build this piece.  Thanks, guys.

Through the building process, I’ll try to remember to post in-progress pictures (I am terrible about remembering this step, aren’t I?) to document the building, and I hope to be able to drop this cradle off to the nearby center sometime before mid-December.

While I have always been a Secret Santa, this year, I thought that it would be a good idea to share this experience with my woodworking friends.  I’m sure that in your hometowns, there must be other similar facilities which serve those going through tough times.  I’m hoping that – if you are so moved – you might consider building a cradle of your own and dropping it off – anonymously.

I don’t want to have to post this, but I believe it’s important that I do. I understand that teen pregnancy or pregnancy outside of marriage can be a hot-button issue.  Just so you know, I won’t be accepting or posting any political manifestos about the topic.  However, might I suggest that if what is written here does evoke strong feelings, perhaps you might want to consider channeling your energies to building something you find more palatable, like a rocking horse for kids getting medical treatment at a nearby children’s hospital.

I know that one day my two sons will grow up, become young men, move away and eventually raise families of their own.  I just hope that the lessons my wife and I are teaching are something that stick with them, and that they pass them on to their children.

I have so much to be thankful for this year.  My wish for you is that  the holiday season brings each of you nothing but health, happiness and peace.

Happy Thanksgiving to all of you, my friends…