Table 1

Spent the winter learning about table construction and designing and building my first table. A worthy project considering my shop was now operational & needed to stretch it's legs. This one is made of all kinds of wood that I had resting on the lumber rack; bubinga, ash, oak, alder, walnut, with a copper veneer & cold rolled steel thrown in for good measure. Despite the shotgun approach to wood selection, the different tones & grain came together without looking like too much of a circus. and I inevitably find a component better suited to steel than wood, like the table top landing strip which acts as a trivet. I didn't build a mock-up for this project, feeling that it was mainly a learning exercise and so the piece itself would be a mock-up. I milled the wood from rough stock, and also slabs from locally harvested fallen trees. The joinery was easier than expected, incorporating floating mortise & tenon; live double mortise & tenon; handcut dovetails. The leg shape was borrowed from famous woodworker James Krenov, cut free hand on the bandsaw & cleaned up with a spokeshave, a very pleasant way to spend a day in the shop.

The finer things in life

I was introduced to making & using hand planes at the Inside Passage School of Fine Woodworking in Roberts Creek, BC. The principle being that shearing the wood fibres with a sharp iron produces a better finish than tearing the fibres with sandpaper. Makes sense, especially when you start seeing results for yourself. I'd also be lost without a hand plane for dialing in fit. The lightweight, nice to handle planes can be made for all sorts of purposes. Here's a sweet coopering plane I made from boxwood. I enjoy designing, laying out & cutting joinery. I have so much to learn. I had the priveledge of visiting Machu Pichu in 2006 while cycling around South America. Here's a picture of some Inca joinery that for me puts everything in perpective.