Fancy Yourself As A Master Woodcraft Maker?

In all honesty, not really my cup of tea, as I never have been interested in building things from wood, but it is all about mindset, and maybe some day I will develop the passion for doing so.

But in the meantime, if anyone does have an inklingly towards it, I found a guy's sales video interesting and worth a watch.

Let me know if you're interested and I'll send you the link.

Re: Fancy Yourself As A Master Woodcraft Maker?

I love woodwork, and I'm a wummun! Attended adult education classes for two years many years ago and still have my items indoors: very proud I am too. Actually we had a fair mix of men and women, with a great teacher.

Re: Fancy Yourself As A Master Woodcraft Maker?

Sorry Ziad , I hope you won't take offence if I say am very suspicious of unknown new members offering to 'send links' . They could be trying to bypass our spamming rules, email harvesting or worse still pass on a virus.

I am particularly suspicious if the same new member 'knows people ' with miracle cures and cheap film downloads.

I won't be taking up any of the offers thank you.

Re: Fancy Yourself As A Master Woodcraft Maker?

Gosh that's clever of you, I never even manage to put a nail up for a picture straight so have no thoughts of being any good at wood working. Remember being banned form wood work and metal work at school, I was a danger to myself and others was the reason they gave

Re: Fancy Yourself As A Master Woodcraft Maker?

Re: Fancy Yourself As A Master Woodcraft Maker?

I've been thinking along the same lines, Meg. Hence ignored the posts.

Re: Fancy Yourself As A Master Woodcraft Maker?

I came from a family of Timber workers. We owned our own home construction Company.
I was never interested in working with timber,All things metal for me.
Years ago i built my own home in metal and although its was white ant safe, living on the Coast I't developed Rust problems.
Much later in life I purchased a few acres of land that was infested with Camphor Laurel.
After Buying a kit home and constructing it I got a bug to working with timber.
I had the Laurel trees cut down and racked to season.
I have used some of the timber to make all the furniture in my home.
It is now my favorite pass time.
If I had to buy timber it would be a different story though, It is so expensive. It would cost a lot more to make things yourself than to buy Cheap Chinese Look alike.
But the Camphor is such a beautiful grained timber, and the aroma when working it is breath taking.

Re: Fancy Yourself As A Master Woodcraft Maker?

That's really cool Dave!
I'm a retired framing carpenter here in California. We stick frame houses and commercial buildings.
I ran work for a long time and I got sick of tract framing and just managing the job so I took a job with my friend's framing company in Santa Barbara. I lived in Ventura which is East and South of S.B., a little bit of a commute. So taking that job meant I had to run work with my bags on.
It was all high end construction, mostly residences. We did a lot of Beam work (timber) some load bearing an decorative and some just decorative. Since it was high end we mortised, let's say, rafters into ridge beams. Anyhow it was fun work, taxing at times but very satisfying.
Now I hang a door or two or do some small jobs and I make stuff that is pretty crude by furniture standards.
I'm going to collect some local wood, we have live oak, valley oak, both are quite different than white and red oak- probably more like red oak. We have laurel but it is different than euro laurel and the stump is the best wood, you cut slabs out of it. Finding it is tough, as in finding one that is going to be cut down. It's not even close to Laurus nobilis, it's in the laurel family- Umbellularia californica. It's a very nice tree, it can have multiple trunks and it can get pretty big. It stays close to streams or sources of water here in CA.
Anyway it's wood butcher craft for me!

Re: Fancy Yourself As A Master Woodcraft Maker?

I enjoy woodwork and many other DIY crafts. I'm not especially skilled, but I have decent power tools to help me make presentable pieces of work.

At my last house I made a pair of wooden garage doors with hand-cut mortice & tenon joints and here's a pic of another two doors I made in my current house. I couldn't get cupboard doors to match the Victorian doors that are in the house, so I had to make them. Again I hand-cut the mortice & tenon joints.

Re: Fancy Yourself As A Master Woodcraft Maker?

From an early age I was taught how to use wood to make things the schools I went to were big on woodwork/metalwork and we also got taught how to build houses with miniature bricks and window frames,doors and the like.All our cement mixes were more sand than cement so it was easy after a build to take it apart and start a new home. Anyways although I never went into any of those trades that teaching as stood me in good stead over the years.
I had been dreading the winter arriving because it meant an end to my out door hobby which is making planters/borders and other garden stuff. Then I had a bright idea although the wife was a little against it "Making the conservatory into a work shop". Why not I already have a modelling bench in there so a wood working bench won't harm.
Was gonna throw my old computer desk out that my grandkids had been using as a painting table because it was to low for me to work on and buy a new wood bench. Then the idea came that I could kill 2 birds with one stone and save a couple of quid in the long run. Make the desk into a work bench. That way I can work through the winter indoors I have found BQ Online do a great delivery service and its free if you order over £50.
Heres a few of the things I have been making to keep busy over the summer.

The desk now a workbench.

PS.. Just in case you are wondering I do not work for BQ I am retired but I have honestly found their online service really good compared to their actual warehouses which I find hard work at times especially when it makes me laugh that you have to order £250 worth of gear before you get a free delivery from them.