Weekly Editorial
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It’s Go Time
I am not even sure how I am making time to write this editorial. Having completely ignored the imminent approach of Christmas in recent weeks, I have — as of now —moved into “woodworking shop ninja mode.”
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The Way of All Woodworkers
It happens every year … as the days begin to get shorter here on the tundra, and we begin to don sweaters, fleece, wool sox — and to huddle together for warmth — that singular and vitally important annual celebration begins to loom large on the calendar. No, it is not St Andrew’s Day (important to us who celebrate the clans and haggis), nor is it the winter solstice. No, the anniversary that I am referring to is the 11th of December, 1955.
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The Heat is On!
The painful truth is that I can be a bit of cheapskate. When I used to live in a big old 1906 vintage house, I would try to avoid starting the furnace until the end of October. Now, in Nashville, that’s not such a big deal, but in Minneapolis … my kids used to walk around wearing parkas and looks that could kill.
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I Vote for Woodworking
By coincidence, today is Election Day in the U.S.A. (so go out and vote if you haven’t). Now, I am a pretty political dude in my private life (not here in the eZine. What do you care about my political convictions — not much, hey?), but even a political junkie like myself has consumed just about all I can swallow of the current TV and radio election advertising fare.
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We’re APP to do Anything!
The ways to learn about woodworking are always changing. And I could not be more pleased to announce that Woodworker’s Journal has just added another opportunity for our readers to get great woodworking information: an iPad app. (For now, it’s not available for Android … that will come later.)
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And the Answer Is…
This holiday season will be the first in which I can make a gift for my granddaughter; she was born on the last day of January this year. As you may expect, I am more than a little jazzed about the opportunity, but in truth, the number of potential gift ideas I’ve come up with is actually a bit ridiculous.
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Trees to Lumber
Last Sunday at church, my friend Jay started asking me about making a butcher-block table. He is a handy young man, and had decided that the butcher-block tables that he and his wife had been looking at were simply too rich for his blood. He asked me what I thought purchasing the lumber to make the table would cost.
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Handheld Routers: The Gateway Tool
Unless you are ready for the consequences, don’t let anyone give your kid a router. Because once they get a taste for edge trimming, dado routing and molding making … they will be hooked. You’ll have a woodworker on your hands, plain and simple.
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New Woodworking Tools and Accessories: the IWF
Last week, I spent several days at the International Woodworking Fair down in Atlanta, Georgia. It was like many shows that I’ve been to … I found new products to look at, old friends to reconnect with and miles of aisles to wear down my shoe leather. But this year, there was something at the show that had been missing for a few years: a spirit of optimism.
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The Woodworking Fairs of August
You might think summer would be winding down in August, but for some of my woodworking tasks, it’s just gearing up. In the next week alone, I’ll be going to two different fairs. First, I’m participating in the judging for woodworking entries at the Minnesota State Fair.
