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Author Archives: literaryworkshop
Ancient Crafts in the Modern World: Book Review
Cræft: An Inquiry into the Origins and True Meaning of Traditional Crafts, by Alexander Langlands, Norton, 2017. $26.95 Amazon link You may have noticed that there’s a handicrafts revival going on. Every month there seems to be a new craft market … Continue reading
Posted in books, Reviews, Wood and Woodwork
Tagged Alexander Langlands, book review, craft, Cræft, forgotten crafts, handicrafts, john seymour
3 Comments
Building A Frame-and-Panel Interior Door
If I had a backup career in woodworking, it would be making doors and windows for historic homes. It’s not that I especially enjoy making such objects more than others. (I’ve never even made a window sash.) It’s that it’s … Continue reading
Posted in Build-Alongs, Home Improvement, Kids, Wood and Woodwork
Tagged brace and bit, cat, dog, door, drawbore, frame and panel, frame and panel door, handplane, handtools, hang a door, hang interior door, interior door, mortise, mortise and tenon, plow plane, tenon, veritas small plow plane
7 Comments
How to Sell Your Handmade Goods at a Craft Market, part 3: Vendor Etiquette
In the last two posts, I offered some practical suggestions for creating an effective display table and interacting with customers at craft markets. But there’s more to being a good vendor than just making your stuff look good and having … Continue reading
Posted in Market, Wood and Woodwork
Tagged craft fair, craft market, etiquette, manners, Market, selling, vendor
2 Comments
How to Sell Your Handmade Goods at a Craft Market, part 2: Interacting with People
A lot of crafty, creative types are pretty introverted. While it might be relatively easy for you as an introverted, creative person to set up a very attractive display table, the prospect of standing behind that table and talking to … Continue reading
Posted in Market, Wood and Woodwork
Tagged attitude, craft fair, craft market, craft show, demo, friendship, market etiquitte, relationships, selling, shop, shopping, spiel
1 Comment
How to Sell Your Handmade Goods at a Craft Market, part 1: The Display
It took me a few years to learn to make wooden spoons and spatulas that people actually wanted to buy. But when I started trying to sell my work at local craft markets, I learned something important: selling things is … Continue reading
Posted in Wood and Woodwork
Tagged business cards, craft market, craft show, craft table, display table, market table, signage, signs
3 Comments
Book Review: Cræft by Alexander Langlands
Cræft: An Inquiry into the Origins and True Meaning of Traditional Crafts by Alexander Langlands, Norton, 2017. $26.95 You may have noticed that there’s a handicrafts revival going on. Every month there seems to be a new craft market to shop … Continue reading
Posted in books, Reviews, Wood and Woodwork, Woodworking Literature
Tagged adventure, Alexander Langlands, book, books, craft, craft book, Cræft, reading
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Build A Simple, Wooden Storage Crate in an Hour
One of the tests of a competent woodworker is the ability to make a simple, sturdy box to order. Just this afternoon, my wife was cleaning and reorganizing, and she asked me to make her a crates to help her … Continue reading
Posted in Build-Alongs, storage, Wood and Woodwork
Tagged box, build a crate, crate, make a crate, nails, organization, organize, storage, wood crate, wooden crate
1 Comment
The Hardest Part of Learning to Sharpen
The other day, I was teaching a friend to sharpen his plane iron, and it got me thinking about sharpening. Of all the skills I have learned while working wood, sharpening has been the most life-changing. It started with chisels … Continue reading
Posted in sharpening, skills, teaching, Wood and Woodwork
Tagged Chris Schwarz, edge, sharp, sharpen, sharpening
7 Comments
The One Essential Hand Tool
I have a favorite hand tool, one which has been with me (in one form or another) for most of my life. It’s my most-used hand tool, and the one I would be most reluctant to part with. It’s … Continue reading
Posted in Musings
Tagged basic hand tools, Benchmade, essential hand tools, hand tool, hand tools, handtools, pocket knife, pocketknife, sharp, Swiss Army knife
3 Comments
Rebuilding Trunnions on a 14″ Steel City Band Saw
Not long ago, a friend offered to give me his old bandsaw, which he was replacing with a newer, bigger model. The only catch: the old bandsaw had two broken parts, and because the manufacturer has gone out of business, … Continue reading
Posted in Wood and Woodwork
24 Comments
