tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-81283699508311739162012-02-03T13:41:52.289-05:00One person's woodworking journey, with a focus on handtools, a nod to the past, and an appreciation for the creative spirit.Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.comBlogger4781100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-45651238812611576962012-02-01T20:28:00.000-05:002012-02-01T20:28:40.935-05:00

After countless hours of chopping and paring, testing and tweaking, I finally got one of the legs to fit into the top of my workbench. The next three should go a little more quickly because I learned something very important: trust my layout lines. Rather than sneaking up on the lines and testing the fit of these very heavy boards along the way, I'm going to cut right to them. Because these

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com22tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-18210394390708496592012-01-27T12:29:00.000-05:002012-01-27T12:29:32.251-05:00

Tom Iovino, of Tom's Workbench, has come up with a brilliant idea.As shop classes are being discontinued in our schools, as people spend more time on the internet than working with their hands (I'm guilty of this one), and as the knowledge to build, repair, and swing a hammer is disappearing, woodworking bloggers are being called upon to help save woodworking. Read about Tom's idea here. All next

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-82249532162207909322012-01-26T09:23:00.007-05:002012-01-26T10:53:25.503-05:00

Make a Joint Stool from a Tree, by Jennie Alexander and Peter Follansbee is now available from the Lost Art Press. Preorder before the February 27 press date and get free shipping. Why am I promoting this? Do I get a free copy? No. Do I get a handmade joint stool by Peter Follansbee? No. Do I get homemade chocolate chip cookies for life? No. I am promoting this for a purely selfish reason,

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-17392222702413058112012-01-23T19:49:00.004-05:002012-01-23T20:23:42.777-05:00

A workbench with no top! But that's next on the list now that I've finished the joinery on the legs. By the time I was working on the fourth leg I had managed to find a good technique for getting all faces square and flat. I had been using floats, which worked great, but they left a rather rough surface. By using a chisel, the surfaces are smooth, which will help them slide into the mortises

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com22tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-89029153536229077052012-01-19T21:14:00.002-05:002012-01-19T21:15:45.993-05:00

2 WIA Conferences! Popular Woodworking Magazine has answered the pleas from the West Coast. In addition to the regular show in Cincinnati, they're taking the event all the way to California! I wonder how Megan's going to fit her workbench in the overhead compartment....

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-75013337586859114772012-01-16T19:19:00.001-05:002012-01-16T19:21:54.280-05:00

I had planned to build a poplar base for my Roubo workbench. But wise friends talked me out of it, arguing that poplar would never hold up to the cherry top considering that the bench would be broken down for transport on occasion. They were right of course, so I chose soft maple instead. I started cutting the through-tenons and dovetails on the legs this weekend and figured I'd have all of

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com20tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-49723076477553538202012-01-11T18:45:00.003-05:002012-01-13T16:44:16.089-05:00

Working with hefty boards requires a fair amount of handwork unless you have equally beefy machinery in your shop, which I do not. So, after I glued up the leg boards for my workbench, I had to flatten one edge of each with handplanes before running them through my power planer. I had already flattened the faces by hand. All legs were then power planed to final width and thickness: 5.5" x 4.5".

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-52037719119444119002012-01-03T16:19:00.011-05:002012-01-03T16:32:35.423-05:00

If you're building a Roubo (or any other substantially sized) workbench, before you start laminating boards to make the beefy legs, the first thing you need to do is buy stock in your favorite glue. 'Cause you're going to use a lot. For covering large areas with glue, I use a J-roller from the big box store. It spreads the glue quickly and evenly. Just remember to rinse off the glue before it

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com20tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-72256649246348403092012-01-02T07:07:00.003-05:002012-01-02T07:15:43.822-05:00

~Or~How I spent New Year's Day: (And there's another stack around the corner.)

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-109578850885851682012-01-01T07:28:00.000-05:002012-01-01T07:28:10.951-05:00

In case you're looking for something to do this New Year's day, Season 2010-2011 of the Woodwright's Shop is online. I just watched "Elizabethan Joint Stool with Peter Follansbee." Megan Fitzpatrick and Peter show the details in making the joint stool. One point of interest is the undercutting of the inside shoulder of the tenon—saves time and ensures that the outside shoulder is tight against

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-77966289000373991982011-12-31T15:33:00.007-05:002011-12-31T15:47:02.453-05:00

The one-handed grip wore me out. Seems like everyone's building a Roubo workbench these days. Marc Spagnuolo is even hosting a split-tip Roubo, group-build through his guild. Many folks are blogging about or posting their progress on social networking sites. It's become quite a community-wide activity. I've wanted to build my own bench for 20 years. And like many woodworkers, I've spent lots

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com16tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-29904974223380966832011-12-18T21:19:00.002-05:002011-12-18T21:20:33.790-05:00

This storage box is based on an antique, the original of which has dovetailed corners and a drawer pull to make the stackable boxes easier to pull down from a shelf. I simplified the design by using rabbeted corners and omitting the drawer pull.  However, I kept the beads at the top and bottom of each side board, and along the edge of the lid. The bottom boards are beveled and slid into grooves

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com22tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-22999519134849667002011-12-14T19:36:00.000-05:002011-12-14T19:36:37.305-05:00

I had encountered shellac gone bad before, but I had never come across shellac that won't dissolve completely in denatured alcohol. I mixed up a batch of blonde shellac but, days later, it looked like semi-masticated lemon jello rather than clear finish. I mixed another batch using amber flakes to see if the alcohol was the problem, but they dissolved completely in an hour. I had used flakes

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-777681950667893022011-12-06T13:48:00.004-05:002011-12-06T13:51:00.516-05:00

I love scratch stock. There are things at which it excels, such as getting into places that a router can't reach. Scratch stock also enables you to create your own profiles and saves you from having to buy expensive router bits. In some instances, however, scratch stock falls short. If you need a really large profile, for example, scratch stock is not going to work as well as moulding planes

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com16tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-67083801601917635182011-12-01T13:25:00.003-05:002011-12-01T13:32:56.091-05:00

I took a break from more involved projects to make a quick storage box. "Quick" turned into "Unnecessarily Complex"—a phenomenon that all woodworkers can relate to. For example, I added quirk bead moulding along the edges with scratch stock (and had to make the scratch stock first). And rather than glue up four thin boards as a solid piece for the bottom, I decided to shiplap and bevel the

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com19tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-45345956006643164442011-11-20T12:45:00.001-05:002011-11-20T12:50:01.519-05:00

If you're considering giving up your secular life to become a brother or sister of the Ephrata Cloister, I have a few words of advice for you. The sisters' dorm is five stories. First, you might want to leave your aubergine zoot suit at home.  And your steak knife.  Leave that at home, too.  Oh, and never, ever get in a pillow fight with your brethren. These things will help you get

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-58303690860031826272011-11-05T20:09:00.003-04:002011-11-05T20:13:24.789-04:00

Like any task in woodworking, cutting rabbets by hand can be done a number of ways. It's all about stock removal. How you get there is a matter of choice and the tools you have in your shop. I'm building simple storage boxes for the house which will be nailed and glued at rabbeted corners.  I tried a few different ways to cut them and settled on the following because it was relatively fast,

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-30893084122127577972011-11-02T20:28:00.009-04:002011-11-02T20:35:39.888-04:00

Vinegar-treated on left; zinc on right. I ordered some box nails from the Tremont Nail Company for another storage project. The nails were zinc-coated and shinier than I liked so I used a tip from Bob Rozaieski to antique them. Two vinegar-treated nails. The one on the left was buffed with steel wool. Following his suggestion, I put a bunch of nails in a sealed jar filled with vinegar for

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-19275418248270949952011-11-01T06:36:00.003-04:002011-11-01T06:38:29.563-04:00

Here is a link to a French woodworking video from 1912 that shows students building period chairs. The actual woodworking starts at 2:50, but the things leading up to it are worth a look. There is an interesting vise at 5:30, an unusual router/shaper at 6:50, and carving a 8:57.

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com16tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-61012214290451985332011-10-23T15:01:00.001-04:002011-10-23T16:00:37.436-04:00

Don't ask what possessed me to suddenly get organized, but I got it in my head one day that I wanted all my woodworking books and magazines in the shop and grouped into categories. Sometimes even right-brained people like a little orderliness. If you're like me, you have books and magazines all over your house tucked away in various nooks and crannies.  So, when I gathered them all together I

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com17tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-15183473284068598112011-10-17T19:39:00.001-04:002011-10-17T21:28:01.612-04:00

We can't help it.  Workbenches turn our heads, and quite a few got my attention at WIA. Shannon Rogers brought his newly-built bench to his Hand Tool School booth.  Its height was determined by the measurement beneath the elbows of the vertically enhanced Shannon, who found this to be perfect for joinery work. Chris Wong, of Time Warp Tool Works, added a handy planing attachment to Shannon's

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-55176555207740015842011-10-12T16:46:00.002-04:002011-10-12T16:48:56.466-04:00

Based on the comments (here, on other blogs, and on social networking sites) that followed Adam Cherubini's presentation on nailed furniture, it sounds like many of us are interested in working with period fasteners. If you're looking for cut nails but are confused by all the varieties, Tremont Nail Company offers two sample boards* (one is card stock and the other is wood) which can be hung on

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com16tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-13334132468744332202011-10-10T18:39:00.005-04:002011-10-10T18:42:51.093-04:00

For two years in a row, John Sindelar has packed up and transported a portion of his vast collection of rare and unusual tools for us to view at WIA. These are pieces that we might never see otherwise and I'm grateful for the chance to see them in person.  This year, John brought with him a number of highly decorated tool chests.  The detail and craftsmanship were jaw-dropping.  And drop my jaw

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-10150327028003335192011-10-09T13:26:00.004-04:002011-10-09T13:30:09.010-04:00

There is no shame in building nailed furniture. It's been with us a long time. In fact, nailed furniture goes all the way back to the Egyptians. But, according to Adam Cherubini in his presentation at WIA on nailed furniture, it was in 1632 when the Worshipful Company of Joyners of London managed to have standards for joinery passed into law.  These standards gave them exclusive rights to

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com22tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-23205003790147442292011-10-03T19:40:00.004-04:002011-10-04T08:36:48.467-04:00

We arrived on Thursday, the 29th—two women, three days, 10 pieces of luggage, a cooler, and one yoga mat—ready for our woodworking adventure. After registering, we headed for the Keystone Bar & Grill to meet up with what turned out to be a gathering of about 40 conference attendees. A jocular time was had by all and the evening set the mood for what was the best WIA I've ever attended. One

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com19tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-4001594564305449492011-09-14T18:37:00.002-04:002011-09-14T18:49:07.650-04:00

Nik Brown has organized an opening night extravaganza at a local bar near the WIA convention center. It's being billed as a blogger gathering, but all are welcome.  My partner and I will be there to keep everyone in line as we will no doubt be the only teetotalers.  Although, she's been known to dance on tables and I do a mean Joan Jett on the karaoke machine. (Kidding. We're Presbyterian.)

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-68737047850866360322011-09-11T13:11:00.000-04:002011-09-11T13:11:59.311-04:00

Scrub plane. I am not a masochist. I don't really like pain or discomfort. But when you need to mill rough cut boards—none of which are flat enough to run through a power planer and are too wide for a power jointer—it's time to break out the handplanes and play some workout music. Here is one method for flattening boards. Other woodworkers use different approaches. Scalloped surface left

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com15tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-91752132766888589042011-09-04T13:03:00.002-04:002011-09-04T21:35:19.080-04:00

Reach for a cabinet scraper. Because I rarely work with ornery wood, this tool does not see much action in my shop. But when you're working with a species that won't play nice, the cabinet scraper is your best friend. A neighbor asked if I would make some striped discs of wood for a jewelry project she's working on. So I glued up a bunch of exotic wood strips and planned to plane the laminated

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-25022366542513913702011-09-01T17:41:00.004-04:002011-09-01T17:44:36.088-04:00

We're in the home stretch for the Woodworking In America: The Ultimate Joinery Weekend conference. If you've been riding the fence about attending, Lie-Nielsen is offering an incentive if you register before September 9: Using the promo code below, you will save $25 when you register online for a Full Conference Package.  In addition, you will receive a $25 Lie-Nielsen gift certificate,

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-26614766372824010382011-08-27T20:26:00.000-04:002011-08-27T20:26:18.502-04:00

Based on sage advice from friends, I bought soft maple for the base of my bench rather than poplar. I wasn't able to get 16/4, so I'll need to glue up some boards, but this is a much better choice in the long run. In the meantime, I came up with what I think is a good design for a wagon vise. It's one that I can add to the thick-slab benchtop anytime and requires no hardware, just some careful

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com29tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-20129761955200440562011-08-26T21:55:00.000-04:002011-08-26T21:55:46.138-04:00

I believe I have the dimensions sorted out for my new workbench. Thanks to Chris Schwarz' two workbench books and the dimensions he provides for his Roubo, working out the measurements was much easier than starting from scratch. I've decided on poplar for the base of the bench. The top will be cherry. I realize that poplar might not hold up as well as the cherry, but if I need to tighten the

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com19tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-63285297121683151462011-08-21T14:17:00.000-04:002011-08-21T14:17:33.384-04:00

I'm just really excited to have made the local paper. 

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com23tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-78353324399341085342011-08-17T20:54:00.007-04:002011-08-17T21:53:50.779-04:00

A friend on Facebook—Dale J. Osowski, who owns a woodworking business— was asked to repair a bench. He quoted a price and time frame ($150, two weeks) but the owner of the bench found the price and length of time to repair it to be unreasonable. The bench cost $150—new. Now, I didn't need to see pictures of this bench to know that it was built shoddily, quickly, and with cheap materials. (But

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com51tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-61061807273350418122011-08-13T16:23:00.003-04:002011-08-13T16:27:19.585-04:00

I'm giving a chip- and letter carving demonstration tomorrow so I've been preparing a number of boards with designs and letters. To transfer the designs from paper to wood, I rub graphite pencil on the back of the paper and use a pen to trace the graphic. This works okay, but often the pen's tip is too fat which results in a too thick pencil line on the workpiece.  That alters the look of the

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-64414406747720635172011-08-06T22:08:00.020-04:002011-08-06T22:31:05.322-04:00

Some woodworkers might say it's the look on a recipient's face as they're given a piece they made. Others might claim it's a project's completion, a tight-fitting joint, or a pain- and swear word-free glue-up. For me, the best part of woodworking is starting a new project. It's the thing that occupies my thoughts when I'm supposed to be sleeping. Or paying attention in church.  Making decisions

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com21tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-57860642162303118902011-08-04T21:33:00.001-04:002011-08-04T21:36:27.720-04:00

You may have heard the news around the internet that Marc (The Wood Whisperer) and Nicole Spagnuolo are expecting a baby. Congratulations, you two! In response to this exciting news, Shannon Rogers (The Renaissance Woodworker) and Matt Vanderlist (Matt's Basement Workshop) recorded a special edition of Wood Talk Online Radio. They enlisted the help of the woodworking community in providing

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-86276987094228037482011-07-31T13:02:00.002-04:002011-07-31T13:04:21.932-04:00

We all have to start somewhere. Nineteen years ago, and armed with less than a gram of woodworking knowledge, I would buy vintage tools that caught my eye at flea markets and auctions. I didn't know how to sharpen, much less use them. Looking back, sometimes I lucked out as a newbie and would score a nice socket chisel or adjustable tenon cutter. Other times, I'd end up with something that looks

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com20tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-1999993427154258282011-07-29T07:01:00.000-04:002011-07-29T07:01:12.204-04:00

I'm glad Chris Schwarz is playing on our team. If he had decided long ago to take up needlepoint rather than woodworking, we'd be missing out on his sense of humor, creative writing, commitment to the woodworking community, and enormous amount of hand tool knowledge. Chris's latest book is The Anarchist's Tool Chest.  Why "anarchist"?  He provides several explanations, one of which is "a desire

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-36590168355987714732011-07-19T15:37:00.001-04:002011-07-19T15:40:17.918-04:00

There's a reason why I took so many classes with Ron Herman at last year's WIA Conference—he's a great teacher. In his new video, Sharpen Your Handsaws With Ron Herman, he provides clear, concise instructions.  After watching the video, you will know exactly how to sharpen handsaws—rip, crosscut, and miter. Also included with the video is a 14-page pdf file explaining saw terminology, sawtooth

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-28272667890418738482011-07-11T20:56:00.000-04:002011-07-11T20:56:12.635-04:00

I don't *think* this is going to turn into a carving blog, but I reserve the right to change my mind at the drop of a hat or a chip off a chisel. So, if you aren't yawning yet, I'll share with you how I'm making the scrolls on the frame saw fairly identical. In the comment's section of the last blog post, Bubba Squirrel posted a link to Roy's episode that featured violin maker Joe Thrift.  The

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com15tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-35695835761011823282011-07-04T12:37:00.000-04:002011-07-04T12:37:02.098-04:00

Geez, Kari, why go to the trouble of carving scrolls on the arms of your frame saw? It's just a utilitarian saw! Here's my answer: 1) The Roubo illustration I'm using for reference shows scrolly arms and I think it looks cool. 2) I've always been fascinated with the volutes on violins and have wondered how they are made. 3) I like to carve. 4) I thought you'd find it interesting. So, here is

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com19tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-30888978138271692042011-06-24T19:04:00.000-04:002011-06-24T19:04:50.829-04:00

Moving along with the frame saw project—once you cut the mortise and tenons for the arms (what I'm calling the horizontal boards that hold the blade) and stretchers, it's time to work on the blade-holding mechanism. One end of the blade will be held in place with a lag screw (minus its head). The other end will have a carriage bolt. Both the screw and bolt need to be sawn down the middle along

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com20tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-85267401828854555912011-06-19T12:01:00.002-04:002011-06-19T12:02:56.309-04:00

A few weeks ago during a lightning storm, we lost the top half of a huge pine tree that separates our yard from our neighbor's. It fell smack dab in the middle of her backyard—no damage. Whew. Our other neighbor, who loves physical labor and was an ox in a former life, offered to chop it up for her with his chainsaw. And I offered to make everyone rustic window boxes. As you may know, I'm a

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com30tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-83096726194316597772011-06-14T10:15:00.003-04:002011-06-14T10:24:02.513-04:00

On this, the day after Chris Schwarz' 43rd birthday, and the day before his last day as editor at Popular Woodworking Magazine, I'd like to thank him for making such a positive impact on the woodworking world. To the man who was one of the catalysts for the current hand tool renaissance; whose midas touch sets off waves of orders to many a one-man toolmaking business; and who possesses boundless

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-63778440315287549532011-06-14T09:20:00.000-04:002011-06-14T09:20:46.746-04:00

Register! If you're planning to go to Woodworking in America this year, don't wait to register. Classes fill up quickly as do the evening activities. If you've attended in the past, check your email before registering. I believe they're giving a discount to past event-goers. Looks like another great line up of topics, speakers, and market place exhibitors. See ya there!

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-84246882663985644912011-06-11T19:30:00.003-04:002011-06-11T19:42:38.135-04:00

You might wonder why there are circular troughs surrounding each of the bench holes on my workbench.  They are the result of me swinging the arm of my desk lamp around as the light needs to be shifted. The plastic clamp portion of the lamp had broken long ago and I am too frugal to buy another, so I just stick the metal post in a bench hole and get to work. Over the years, the metal post has

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com16tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-16324698816524686762011-06-04T16:09:00.010-04:002011-06-04T16:21:44.484-04:00

Sure, there are more than two reasons to own one or more handplanes. But if you work primarily with power tools and do not plan to unplug your shop in the near future, here are two benefits for adding a handplane to your tool arsenal. Have you ever experienced burn marks on the edge of your boards from your table saw? Some wood species such as cherry and maple are prone to it. You could take a

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-22291081388488387332011-05-22T11:46:00.003-04:002011-05-22T16:12:53.901-04:00

I did not get raptured yesterday. According to Christian broadcaster, Harold Camping, May 21 was the day that all the good people of the world were to be whisked away to heaven, leaving the rest of us baddies behind. That's okay with me. Because that meant that I got to spend time in my shop building a little table for our back porch. And yet, I can't help but wonder what might have prevented

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com33tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-14918505513250103832011-05-20T14:23:00.001-04:002011-05-20T14:24:24.053-04:00

After writing two blog posts about the Fort Frederick Market Fair in previous years (here and here), I thought I'd shoot a video instead. Some of the craftsmen you'll see are, in order: Brian Graham, Patapsco Valley Woodwright (at 00:30 - 00:39 in the video) James Stewart, Woods Unlimited George Mathews, Handcrafted Windsor Chairs Dave Krill, Capt. Krill's Den of Antiquities William Ebner, Fine

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-44900731185533355772011-05-15T14:27:00.008-04:002011-05-15T15:26:46.077-04:00

Occasionally someone writes me with a question about woodworking. Sometimes I'm able to give them an answer and other times I enlist the help of others to provide a better and more thorough one. This is where you come in. A 31-year old woman from North Carolina would like to get into woodworking, but "knows absolutely nothing." She asked if I could suggest some ultra-basic beginner books and

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com25tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-24617030536003415642011-05-09T21:45:00.002-04:002011-05-10T07:47:19.983-04:00

The wind wasn't blowing and my hand wasn't shaking. This tree's leaves were THAT wispy. Ever since I read A Splintered History of Wood by Spike Carlson, I've never looked at trees the same way. As soon as I became aware of the herculean effort trees undertake in simply growing, I've thought of them as large creatures deserving of our respect and care. Certainly, as woodworkers, we revel in

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com16tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-17400297886118174192011-05-04T21:31:00.039-04:002011-05-05T06:40:36.276-04:00

Years ago I took a class with Tod Herrli at Olde Mill Cabinet Shoppe on making a panel raiser plane. When Tod teaches on the road, he brings with him a petite, but fully functional workbench (first photo).  The removable shelving unit underneath the benchtop adds weight when handplaning. The face and tail vises are beefy. Cubbies of tool holders hang on the back edge of the benchtop

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-24893700839137310302011-05-01T11:26:00.014-04:002011-05-01T13:30:25.080-04:00

You've felt it. That moment of panic when, while planning for a family vacation, you realize you're going to be away from your workshop for an extended period of time. An excruciatingly long period of time. It's the very reason I learned to carve and whittle. For times on holiday when I can't bear to relax for one more second, I have a set of carving tools and chunk of wood at the ready. As

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-59819013811732771492011-04-23T14:45:00.011-04:002011-04-23T15:04:12.671-04:00

After Polishing The scratches on top of my cherry and brass level were really distracting and made it look a little slipshod. So, I took friends' advice and ordered polishing papers, which worked really well. I went through these successive grits: 400, 600, 1200, 4000, 6000, and 8000. The level is much shinier than before, but I could have spent a few more minutes on some areas where light

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-65035091374957778582011-04-18T18:40:00.002-04:002011-04-18T18:49:36.359-04:00

The best way I can describe the work in the gallery at Winterthur that displays the 18th-century southeastern Pennsylvania furniture from the Paint, Pattern & People book is this: the pieces simply glow. The combination of the lively painted surfaces, gallery colors, wall hung paintings and deep, rich tones of the various woods make this collection a warm and vibrant experience. There is

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-48097656091551052542011-04-12T20:13:00.006-04:002011-04-12T20:25:20.371-04:00

A Variety of Carving Tools Disclaimer: I am not an expert carver. I don't even play one on TV.  Feel free to challenge, contest, throw tomatoes at, or add your thoughts to any of the following. There are several types of wood carving: chip, letter, and relief carving; and carving in the round. Chip Carved Box Carving tools include knives, chisels, gouges, and mallets. For carving in the

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-39321106440389481362011-04-07T17:53:00.001-04:002011-04-07T17:54:09.547-04:00

Well, as glamorous as I'm willing to go without the assistance of a boa and leopard-print fabric. The level is sanded to 400 grit and has four thin coats of wipe-on polyurethane and two coats of dark paste wax. Over time, the brass and cherry will darken (my preference). One person asked in the last post what happens if the wood moves over time. How will I fix it so it's still level?  I'll

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com28tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-90604434196881136262011-04-03T17:06:00.002-04:002011-04-03T21:24:00.475-04:00

According to Herbert P. Kean's book Restoring Antique Tools, mounting the vial in place can be achieved by filling a bathtub with a few inches of water, floating a board, laying the level on top of the board, and adjusting the vial until it's level. I tried this with a large tub of water, but the board did not support a block of wood very well. It tended to tip, become soaked with water, and

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com19tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-31038221831919191772011-03-26T13:12:00.018-04:002011-03-29T12:09:02.142-04:00

Paint, Pattern & People: Furniture of Southeastern Pennsylvania 1725-1850by Wendy A. Cooper and Lisa Minardi Wendy A. Cooper, Senior Curator of Furniture at WinterthurLisa Minardi, Assistant Curator of Furniture for the Southeastern Pennsylvania Furniture Project at Winterthur Ms. Cooper and Ms. Minardi’s newly released book appeals not only to woodworkers, but to anyone who is interested in

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-26238190545957054612011-03-19T17:58:00.002-04:002011-03-20T09:19:36.098-04:00

The outside of the level still needs some final shaping and sanding. Despite this, I moved onto the next step because, well, I'm impatient. Levels require a way to view the vial not only from the top but from the sides.  Wooden levels (at least the antique ones I own) have sloped side holes which necessitate a bit of shaping.  Two arcs create the slopes—a small arc that is closest to the vial,

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-61946379897075845082011-03-11T19:27:00.009-05:002011-03-12T07:01:49.156-05:00

I promised my partner and brother that I'd make each of them a meditation bench for Christmas. My partner's was finished about two weeks after the holiday.  My brother's was finished last weekend—10 weeks late. Ah well. Meditation involves patience, right? My brother did not want any carving on his bench, so I decided to add a little pizzaz by making the bevels on the tenons and mortises

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com20tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-34987508912354356142011-02-27T20:28:00.002-05:002011-02-27T20:41:43.624-05:00

I spent some time this weekend working on the level that I started a couple weeks ago. This is not a difficult project, but it can take longer than expected if the only shop time you've been getting is somewhere between "none" and "if you blink, you'll miss it." (I know that all my brothers and sisters in wood can relate.) I squared up one edge of the wood blank with a handplane.  Referencing

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-49412518493289520042011-02-23T12:54:00.002-05:002011-02-23T13:24:05.398-05:00

The Society of American Period Furniture Makers is opening a new chapter which includes Maryland, southern Pennsylvania, Delaware, Washington D.C., northern Virginia, and West Virginia. The first meeting is scheduled for Saturday, April 9, from 10:00-4:00 in Rockville, Maryland and features a demonstration called "Carving the Cabriole Leg for a Low Bedstead by Kaare Loftheim." Kaare Loftheim is

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-53146135484338835982011-02-21T22:07:00.007-05:002011-02-22T08:46:09.470-05:00

Frugal and Old School. I've been called both by a certain partner who mocks me for wearing socks with holes and sneakers with soles worn paper-thin. Ah, but I sure have some nice tools.  We all have our priorities. Which is why, when my 15-year-old plastic desk calendar met with an abrupt demise last week due to the uncharacteristic actions of a mild mannered graphic designer who momentarily

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com25tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-55694492390365816852011-02-20T15:44:00.001-05:002011-02-20T15:45:18.654-05:00

I had hopes of making an adjustable, rather than fixed level, but after taking apart one of the antiques I bought, I see that I lack the necessary skills to do so. This E. Preston and Sons level (foreground in the first image) includes plumb and level vials, each of which are housed in a "vial casket" (which sounds more like a shoddily constructed sarcophagus than it does an encasement for a

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com15tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-66361891230122056382011-02-13T15:15:00.005-05:002011-02-15T18:08:55.459-05:00

According to Don Rosebrook's excellent resource book American Levels and their Makers, the first levels, which consisted of an A-frame and plumb bob, were developed by the ancient Egyptians.  Early Romans devised an instrument that's the ancestor to the type of level we're familiar with today.  They used a flat-bottomed trough containing water. When the water reached the same level along the

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com20tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-87613892712138902642011-02-09T18:57:00.001-05:002011-02-10T11:36:12.749-05:00

Many of you are familiar with Peter Follansbee who builds authentic reproduction 17th century New England furniture and writes the blog Joiner's Notes. Peter works almost exclusively in oak. He splits the logs, planes the boards, carves them, and joins them. From start to finish, he works wood exactly as they did three centuries ago. Most of his pieces include ornately carved designs which

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-33299001861050231982011-02-06T06:36:00.000-05:002011-02-06T06:37:27.363-05:00

Enjoy!The Woodwright's Shop

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-52015420145117191212011-01-29T15:29:00.008-05:002011-01-30T06:38:32.042-05:00

I have lots of excuses for why I haven't built a workbench to replace my 4.5'-long shorty: too many good designs on the internet vie for attention; Chris Schwarz keeps writing new bench books with more information to consider; good ol' fashioned lethargy rears its slothful head; and I don't have enough space in my shop to build the length of bench I *should* build.But thanks to Swedish

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com34tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-85014689680808049412011-01-23T13:25:00.003-05:002011-01-23T13:36:11.414-05:00

A friend posed this question on facebook recently: What advice would you give your 14 year-old self?I'd tell myself: Pay more attention in History, Geometry, and Chemistry. But, yeah, you're right about Home Economics. It is just a bunch of malarkey which you'll eschew later....big time.The only reasons I passed high school Chemistry with Mr. L, the instructor, were because my older brother aced

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com20tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-72191282693254397112011-01-15T14:34:00.010-05:002011-01-15T16:25:15.903-05:00

Wood and metal go hand in hand. We're surrounded by the combination through the tools we use—try squares, handplanes, chisels, to name a few. And as woodworkers, it's necessary for us to learn some things about working with metal—from sharpening plane irons, chisels, and scrapers to making blades and hardware.But metal isn't just a utilitarian companion to woodworking. We see how brass and steel

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-47694388810591711032011-01-08T18:07:00.007-05:002011-01-08T20:07:36.131-05:00

Meditation benches are made up of three boards. How hard can they be to build?That's what I thought. And by the time I was building the third one—and had made lots of mistakes on the first two—why, it wasn't difficult at all.I decided to make benches for my partner and brother, who are both into Buddhist philosophy.These types of low stools are canted forward, and the person tucks his or her legs

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com34tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-44987584348813734682011-01-01T14:51:00.005-05:002011-12-02T07:49:22.714-05:00

Ahhh, back from a nice, two-month blogcation. But don't think for one minute that I didn't keep busy during my time off. I got plenty done. P-L-E-N-T-Y. Music: "You're the Cream in My Coffee" by Colonial Club Orchestra

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com32tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-41356316817081296472010-11-07T11:01:00.002-05:002010-11-07T22:49:09.722-05:00

I'm planning to take November and December off from the blog.It's been 3 years, 2 months, and 418 blog posts since I started it and there are things I need to do that I've put off during that time.Vacuuming comes to mind. The dust bunnies have morphed into dust rhinos.Yardwork is another. A machete makes a handy appliance as you navigate the terrain to our front door.And there are other things

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com32tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-44729683429150420872010-11-04T21:57:00.005-04:002010-11-05T07:01:20.049-04:00

Harvest Days at the Landis Valley Museum is the best traditional, hometown country fair I have ever attended.Artisans in period costume showed patrons how things were made by ordinary people a century and a half ago.It's a fantastic place to bring kids, where history walks and talks and shaves wood right in front of them.Doug Shaw, who makes hayforks, rakes, scoops, ladles, and shovels, carved

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-86270979936897083152010-10-30T18:11:00.005-04:002010-10-30T18:18:40.341-04:00

Let's pretend that you've built a PA German sawbuck table, and the last time you knocked it apart and put it back together, the top refused to slide onto the rails.Rather than waste time trying to figure out what might be wrong, because it had never given you trouble before, you reach for your mallet and persuade the table top to slide home.*Snap!*That was the sound of the dowel portion of two

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com18tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-60793683255914645682010-10-28T15:27:00.003-04:002010-10-28T15:30:45.959-04:00

I found this video, thanks to Sean Hellman, who posted other videos on his site. Enjoy.NUNS LEARN WOODWORKYour browser does not support iframes.

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-41064727861731973242010-10-27T19:39:00.011-04:002010-10-27T22:27:17.810-04:00

I've already marked my calendar for next October's Harvest Days at the Landis Valley Museum.This was the first year we attended and it was worth every penny (and not just because Turkey Hill was handing out free ice cream).During the two-day event, various 19th-century reenactors showed what life was like in a small country village.It didn't take long for me to spot a woodworker—Jack Stone, the

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-54255856237570636272010-10-19T19:48:00.004-04:002010-10-20T08:08:13.279-04:00

Why on Earth have I wasted money on cosmetics all these years when all I needed was a set of jeweler's magnifying glasses to make my eyes look bigger and my nose look smaller?I started working on the little cooper carving and decided to invest in a pair of these* in the hopes that I could achieve a higher level of precision than my current capabilities. (That's the roundabout way of saying that

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com25tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-3522329134759454892010-10-16T17:55:00.008-04:002010-10-16T18:12:20.949-04:00

Jersalem Mill, a Quaker village established in 1772, is located in Maryland's Harford County.Business partners Isaiah Linton and David Lee set up several grist mills along the Little Gunpowder River in the second half of the 18th-century. Buildings sprang up over subsequent years to create a village surrounding Jerusalem Mill.A gun shop, located behind the mill, is believed to have produced

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-16410140409463869012010-10-12T07:18:00.011-04:002010-10-12T08:34:55.440-04:00

Just when you think you know everything there is to know about shooting boards, along comes Ron Herman to show you just how tricky these jigs can be.Ron owns Antiquity Builders of Ohio, a company that specializes in authentic restorations.How authentic?In his shop, tools are grouped according to the periods in which they were manufactured.So, if your 1820 home needs some repair, Ron and company

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-7860876061185211892010-10-08T09:30:00.015-04:002010-10-08T10:58:38.761-04:00

I want John Sindelar to come decorate my house.I love this guy's style.It's "19th-century gypsy" according to John, who has remarkable talent for creating Old World atmosphere.As you step inside his trailer, it's like walking onto a theatrical set, or a turn-of-the-century carnival tent, or a Dungeons and Dragons game.Visions of knights and castles, and medieval chambers transport you out of the

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-37112817892286642782010-10-05T21:35:00.007-04:002010-10-05T21:42:42.912-04:00

I've only been home a short while from the WIA Conference and my thoughts are still in the marketplace.As per usual, I spent a lot of time chatting with tool makers and other woodworkers.Here are some of the new products that were on display and some of the people that I met for the first time.I don't need to tell you that all of these toolmakers are top notch. Every single tool that was offered

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-22526637399812103212010-09-25T14:07:00.005-04:002010-09-25T14:16:38.437-04:00

My friend, Dyami Plotke, sent a book to me entitled "The Artistic Crafts Series of Technical Handbooks—Wood Carving: Design and Workmanship."It was printed in 1903 and focuses on relief carving—from choosing and sharpening tools to the do's and don'ts of the craft.The author is very opinionated (alluding at one point to his distaste for a new trend in artwork which he finds to be without

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com15tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-29438705507662871512010-09-21T19:42:00.010-04:002010-09-21T20:45:26.518-04:00

As the Woodworking In America Conference is quickly approaching, I'd like to turn the spotlight on two more toolmakers I spoke with at last year's conference: Andrew Lunn of Eccentric Toolworks and Gary Blum of Blum Tool Company. Both men will be at this year's conference, so if you're visiting the Marketplace, be sure to stop by their booths.Because I did not have enough time to speak with them

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-81126944521911421902010-09-15T17:01:00.002-04:002010-09-15T17:14:15.343-04:00

This was the first year we attended The Market at Washingtonburg, located in Carlisle, PA.The setting was 18th-century and living history sutlers selling their crafts lined the grassy fields of the U.S. Army Heritage & Education Center.Military units marched in formation and shot their reproduction muskets for event-goers.This was the setting for one of the supply stations that was built along a

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-62226155315988095662010-09-14T11:47:00.002-04:002010-09-14T11:58:22.520-04:00

Woodworking In America is just 2.5 weeks away. Even if the Conference sold out before you could register, you can still shop in the Marketplace, which will feature 70 vendors, many of whom are hand tool makers.Admission to the Marketplace is $7, but a $2 coupon is available on the WIA site.If you plan to attend and you'd like to say hi, you can find me here—bogarting the Sindelar Tool Museum.

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-77802621067705097592010-09-10T15:14:00.005-04:002010-09-10T22:15:02.710-04:00

This video covers a few chip carving basics for beginners. To learn more, I highly recommend Wayne Barton's book, The Complete Guide to Chip Carving.*I'm not sure if I made it clear enough in the video, but the primary knife is the one that should NOT have any bevels. You SHOULD have bevels on the stab knife, however. Do not remove those.View the video in a larger format here.*I do not benefit

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com18tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-76426801529500930402010-09-01T21:38:00.005-04:002010-09-01T21:41:46.324-04:00

During the one day I spent in Jögge Sundqvist's class at Country Workshops, I started carving a small bowl using an axe, adze, knife, and gouges.I finished the shape in my home workshop and decided to add a little chip carving for decoration. Jögge carves decorative elements into most of his work and he cautioned us in class to resist the urge to add too much. "Don't overdo it" he said.So, I'm

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com15tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-73419766099100082422010-08-28T10:50:00.004-04:002010-08-28T11:01:23.719-04:00

I asked for and got two things for my birthday: a new wallet (mine was held together with a rubber band) and pocket tweezers.There isn't a single thing I need, tool-wise, and it's not possible for me to care less about fashion, so my bday wish list is always on the meager side.But I'm happy as a woodworker with a pile of pink ivory and pearwood.I am not endorsing this product, but it is pretty

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com19tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-13428784765049260652010-08-27T16:17:00.013-04:002010-08-30T16:27:34.185-04:00

I made it down to Country Workshops for one day only before stomach problems chased me back home, but it was well worth the drive.Jögge Sundqvist is an excellent instructor and extremely likable person. I learned a ton of things from him in a short period of time, such as: the correct way to use an axe and adze, and the details that must be considered in bowl design.The finished thickness of the

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com21tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-31854049820726653902010-08-22T08:21:00.005-04:002010-08-22T21:31:08.115-04:00

I should be on the road to Country Workshops as I write, but something is preventing it.A stomach ulcer.I've never had one before, so while I've battled increasingly worse burning nausea for the past five weeks and cut virtually every food item out of my diet (thinking some food product was the cause) except soda crackers and antacid pills (hey, I'm losing all kinds of weight), being doubled over

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com31tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-24171913991214941472010-08-15T13:00:00.001-04:002010-08-15T13:04:37.592-04:00

A friend once told me, "Women always have aspirin in their purses."By that, he didn't mean that we suffer from headaches all the time, but that women tend to be prepared for "just in case" scenarios.Which is why we pack so much for trips.I'm getting ready for my week-long class at Country Workshops and have made an ongoing list of things to take along. Items include clothes for temperatures

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com18tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-82027858190843656312010-08-10T22:19:00.002-04:002010-08-10T22:21:00.500-04:00

Just a mere two years and three months after starting the reproduction Pensylvania German sawbuck table project, I can finally call it complete.The finish consists of six coats of blonde shellac and a coat of dark brown paste wax on all pieces except for the top, which is eight coats of blonde shellac and a coat of Circa 1850 Antique Paste Varnish.The overall dimensions are 28" tall x 29" wide x

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com25tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-69053676556115157202010-08-09T20:39:00.005-04:002010-08-09T20:44:34.157-04:00

Some things are just plain hard to find.Like an effective weight loss program that includes all-you-can-eat bowls of ice cream. An Elvis impersonator who looks like the young Elvis. A fat, 3-legged, vision-impaired ground hog that can't outrun my lazy dogs.And books on Swedish country furniture.I've been looking for images that reflect the characteristics of old world folk and peasant furniture

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-31412614656125748762010-08-04T12:59:00.007-04:002010-08-09T21:06:52.095-04:00

A peak inside this magnificent tool cabinet, thanks to a video made by Norm Abram (and the person on the Old Tools Forum who posted the link).Norm shows off the interior here.Thank you to Dean, who posted this link in the comments section, where you can read more about the tool chest.

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com16tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-70838375929003703312010-08-02T16:05:00.002-04:002010-08-02T16:08:56.790-04:00

If you've been vascillating about whether or not to attend the Woodworking In America Conference this October in Cincinnati, you might want to make your final decision sooner rather than later.There are only five spaces left for the conference and you have until midnight tonight to save $40 on the early bird special.

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-43454964324429456522010-07-31T11:24:00.003-04:002010-07-31T13:19:29.652-04:00

Fox wedging is a joinery technique for a mortise and tenon joint where the wedge is fitted into a sawn kerf in the tenon. As the tenon is driven into the mortise, the wedge flares the split tenon and locks it in place.High definition version of the video below can be found here.One commenter asked if I had bored a flared hole to match the flared tenon. I did not. But you can cut a dovetail-shaped

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com23tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-56658568295729692072010-07-20T09:01:00.006-04:002010-07-20T09:09:26.842-04:00

If you read the Lost Art Press Blog, you may have seen a link posted by one of the commenters on this entry. If you like carved Medieval chests, be prepared tospend a few long minutes here.Don't say I didn't warn you.

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8128369950831173916.post-48072121873875218882010-07-16T12:47:00.002-04:002010-07-16T12:51:30.779-04:00

What's with the disturbing image? Read all about it here.

Kari Hultmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01224053263659415329noreply@blogger.com17