Sugar spoons in oak

My Mum bought a sugar spoon in the sixties, and wanted a couple of copies done for two friends of the same vintage. This spoon is a classic example of the angular designs of the period, optimised for mass production and a bit tricky to reproduce in small numbers. The time to build the necessary … Read more

A Serious Problem?

But a nice one to have… whisky glasses (even empty ones) do not belong on the arm of a sofa. They may spill! But for ages now, that’s where they’ve gone. Given the quality of the single malts involved, this is a very high risk situation. The solution: This little table is made from scrap … Read more

woodwork page part2

It proved too clunky to do the whole page in one post, so here’s the rest: Bows Some examples of early bowmaking efforts. English longbow in elm with a linen back:                           Clan Cameron                 15 … Read more

Woodwork page part one

This post shows examples of some woodworking projects I’ve done over the last 10 years or so. Some readers of this blog have asked about custom work- in short, I don’t take orders, unless offered sufficiently vast sums of money to compensate for taking a fun hobby and making it into work, or you happen … Read more

Making the Picture Castle

It’s my youngest daughter’s second birthday next month, so I am making her a fairy castle picture frame- each window will have a photo of a family member in it. The watercolour is the basic sketch I’m working off, though there are some changes occurring between the painting and actually cutting wood. The castle was … Read more

More Wooden Planes

This is my second wooden plane, following Mr Finck’s advice quite closely. The oak I got for it wasn’t quite thick enough for a one-piece, so I made a virtue out of necessity and made the cheeks out of walnut, with the crosspin and wedge to match. The blade is a 1 1/2″ honey from … Read more

Wooden Planes

So, planes then: my first attempt, with a blade from Plektra trading, which straight off the bat took lovely angel hair shavings. It has since been adapted for a lovely 2″ Krenov-style blade from the one and only David Finck, author of Making and Mastering Wood Planes, and was instrumental in making my second plane, … Read more

The Salle Shed

That was easy. This is my shed, where most woodworking gets done. It started out as a tatami store, and ended up being a mini workshop, with lathe and bandsaw.