Author name: Enthusiast

As I mentioned a few days ago, I’m in greater Baltimore for a chairmaking class with Larry Barrett, a student of Jennie Alexander’s (author of the seminal greenwood book “Make a Chair From a Tree”). Yesterday, we took a field trip to downtown Baltimore to visit with Alexander, who gave us a whirlwind tour of how to make one of her chairs. Above, I’m testing out the comfort of one […]

The post Jennie Alexander’s Riving Stump appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.

Editor’s note: I am resurfacing this article from American Woodworker because I am in the process of turning new handles for my Lie-Nielson and Stanley Sweetheart chisels. Tim Heil presents an interesting take on obtaining the taper for the socket with a folded piece of paper. I’ll share my version on YouTube later this week.  – David Lyell  Turning Wood: Socket Chisel Handles Here’s a 1-2-3 system for getting a […]

The post Turning Socket Chisel Handles for Lie-Nielson and Stanley Sweatheart Chisels appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.

I needed to cut stopped grooves on a round surface – and while I could have cut them on the stock while it was square, then proceed to turn it on the lathe, I didn’t want to worry about catching my turning gouge on a groove and causing tearing out (or worse). So, after considering (then rejecting) some kind of router jig, I figured out a way to use my […]

The post Cut Flat Dados on a Round Surface: Tricks of the Trade appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.

Here’s a question that comes up often. What is the best way to apply a stain or finish? To begin with, all stains and finishes can be applied with one of three finishing tools: rag, brush (including paint pad, roller, etc.) or spray gun. Each is easy to use. Even a spray gun is no more difficult to use than a router. There are at least five key differences among […]

The post Wipe, Brush or Spray: Pros and Cons of Finishing Tools appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.

As Christopher Schwarz posted on his blog, Brendan Gaffney and I are in Maryland for a chair class with Larry Barrett (along with Chris, Narayan Nayar and Sean Thomas); Larry is teaching us to make chairs a la Jennie Alexander’s in “Make a Chair from a Tree” (with some minor variations). Today, we split out the back posts from red oak (and some punishing black oak…with which I ended up) […]

The post Steam-bending Oak in the Kitchen appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.

This week, Popular Woodworking Magazine is short two employees as Megan Fitzpatrick and Brendan Gaffney have joined me on a chair class in Maryland. We’re building a version of the Jennie Alexander chair from “Make a Chair From a Tree” with Larry Barrett – one of Jennie’s students and friends. If you think that taking a class is easy for an experienced woodworking magazine editor, think again. No matter how […]

The post Yes, Megan and Brendan are Alive appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.