Category Archives: Home Improvement
The Best Tire Swing Ever
We have a large oak tree in our front yard, and while we have attempted to put up several different kinds of tree swings for the children over the years, this tire swing has been by far the best. The … Continue reading
A New Door, a New Bed, a New Daughter
My summer ended with big woodworking plans for the coming year. (Most people’s year begins on January first, but being a professor, I think as much in school years as in calendar years, so my year effectively begins in mid-August.) … Continue reading
Major Lumber Storage Project Finished
This winter, I took a couple days to completely rebuild my lumber storage area. My house is built into the side of a hill, and one of the previous occupants had constructed a makeshift workspace underneath one end of the … Continue reading
Building a Half-Door (with What I Had On Hand)
As tomorrow is the 12th day of Christmas, and the next day we celebrate the gifts of the Magi to the infant Jesus, I thought I’d show off my big gift to my wife this Christmas: a door. My wife’s … Continue reading
Really Vernacular Furniture
Over at Lost Art Press, Chris Schwarz has been talking about “vernacular furniture,” or “furniture of necessity,” which is furniture that, while hand-made, is cheap and simple to construct using a small tool kit. Much as we woodworkers admire the … Continue reading
Yes, You Can Compost Wood Waste
This compost, which has been sifted through a 1/2″ screen mesh, is made from about half leaves and half wood shavings with minimal “green matter” (kitchen waste). I just dumped the material in the bin and forgot about it, and … Continue reading
Lee Valley Reel Mower: A Review
While not directly related to woodworking, lawn care often requires judicious use of hand tools. Now that spring is approaching, I am dusting off my lawn care equipment, the most-used of which is my reel push mower, a hand tool … Continue reading
The Compost Bin: Where Three Hobbies Meet
As I was unloading some finished compost into a flowerbed the other day, I reflected on the one part of my house that all three of my hobbies have in common: the compost bin. Gardening, cooking, and woodworking all meet … Continue reading
Screen Door, Round Two
A year ago I built myself two wooden screen doors to replace some rickety old metal ones on my house. After a year of the kids pushing on the screen to get out and our crashing into the door with … Continue reading
Screen Doors: An In-and-Out Job
One of my favorite parts of working wood is being able to make what I need. When we bought our current house, it came with several very shabby metal screen doors. After attempting to repair the closer on one and … Continue reading
