The challenge: To figure out if this coffee table could be pumped up to dining-table size.

“Do you think you could enlarge the design?”

That’s a good question for almost any furniture design. It’s also an intriguing challenge that whets the appetite of any designer. I was game.

At first glance, the coffee table looked like it could be sized larger with very little re-design. Add a bigger top; make the legs taller; lengthen the stretchers, adding perhaps more thickness to carry the extra load.

No problem. No problem, that is, if you forget that people have legs, which includes knees and feet.

On the coffee table, there’s little need to accommodate a sitter’s legs. However, for a work table, the extra room below is paramount. And in this table, if you removed the lower stretcher assembly, which would give free range to a sitter’s appendages, the table would certainly wobble back and forth. Triangulation is the key to sturdy construction, and unless the upper framework could be made to withstand racking, some form of lower connection would be necessary to keep the table stable.

To help me out, one of the editors at Fine Woodworking.Com drew up a few ideas, using Google SketchUp . The results were interesting, but the design had moved boldly away from the initial intent. My original idea was to create a table that appeared to ‘float’ above its frame. To achieve this effect, it was necessary to have a rail structure immediately below the outer edges of the tabletop, but with some space between top and rails, to accentuate the floating idea. The new sketches tucked the framework too deeply under the top. The result? The floating effect was lost.

Sketches show something different. A few drawings made in Google SketchUp show that room for the sitter is possible, but now the table looks nothing like the original.

The next step? Back to the drawing table. I made a sketch based on photos of some old English tavern tables I had seen over the years. The tables had lower stretchers that actually rested on the floor, allowing a sitter to place their feet directly on them. I distinctly remember the surfaces of the stretchers, which were heavily worn from decades of restless shoes and boots. With this design, the lower stretchers would support and triangulate the frame without getting in the way of the sitter’s feet or knees. Cool. Let’s draw it up. I noticed right away that the design still offered plenty of joinery to challenge students.

Braced down low. Lower stretchers that sit directly on the floor allow sitters to place their feet upon them, letting them pull in tight to the table to drink, eat or work.

A drawing on paper is still my favorite method of exploring a design, but two dimensions always lack the flavor of the real thing. To see the table better, I made yet another scale model. This time, it looked like it could work on a functional level while still maintaining the floating-top effect.

Is the new design a success? Most likely. But you never really know until you make something full size. Stay tuned.

Modeling the real thing. A scale model of the new design reveals there’s plenty of room for sitters while the top still appears to hover above the frame.

Too small for eating? The design of this table works great for a low coffee or side table, but how will it translate when blown up to a full-size dining table?

It all started innocently enough. I wanted to build a small coffee table that would serve as a class project for my students. The design parameters? The table had to be in suitable for beginning woodworkers, buildable in less than a week in a classroom scenario. There would be lots of cool joinery to spark students’ interest as well as heighten their skill levels. And, for aesthetics, I wanted the top to appear to float above the frame. I also wanted to offer students the choice of not gluing up the joints so they could pack the table flat for transport home. Plus, it gave me the opportunity to build a table and then take it apart to show woodworkers how the joints go together.

To this end, I came up with the little coffee table shown here. At roughly 15 in. wide by 24 in. long by 16 in. high, it’s a good size for a small apartment or bedroom. I started by sketching some rough ideas on paper. The sketches gave me a sense of the look and style, and it also provided ideas about how to work out some of the joinery details.

Two-dimensional view comes  first. Pencil to paper lets you jot down ideas that may be floating around in your head.

Once I had an idea of the look, I built a small model using an architect’s ruler to scale the parts to precise size, only smaller. This gave me a proportional look, helping me decide on the thicknesses and widths of the various parts. I highly recommend making scale models: It’s easy to do using scrap wood. You can nail or glue parts together very fast, then alter the parts on the fly if you wish. The end result is a much clearer game plan when you go to mill parts for the real thing, which means fewer mistakes later.

A model helps see the real thing. Some scrap wood and an architect’s ruler help scale the table to a small size.

The joinery on this table is perfect for beginner woodworkers because it involves two of the most common joints used in furniture making: the dovetail and the mortise and tenon. In fact, there are three different varieties of dovetails: hand-cut through dovetails join the legs to the upper frame; sliding dovetails join the top to the braces underneath it; and stopped sliding dovetails join the slats to the lower frame. A wedged through tenon secures the lower stretchers to the legs.

Cut by hand. Traditional through-dovetails join the legs to the top stretchers, and are a great way to practice sawing and chiseling skills.

Slide ‘em home. The cross stretchers (left photo) join the lower stretchers with stopped sliding dovetails, a joint easily cut with a router.  Dovetails on the top of the braces (right photo) slide into sockets routed in the top, supporting the top and keeping it flat.

I cut all the joints, but didn’t glue anything together. This gave me the chance to assemble the table so students could see how it looked, and then disassemble it to show the joinery.

Let it protrude. A pair of wedges tighten the through tenon that pierces the legs.

Take-home option. The design offers the ability to stack the completed table parts relatively flat, easing the burden of shipping.

All well and good. A nice design: challenging, but easy enough to build, and one that will really teach students a lot about designing and building a small table. I was happy with the result and, as far as I was concerned, the project was complete. Or so I thought. That’s when I got a visit from one of the editors at Fine Woodworking.Com, who had seen the table and was interested in the design process.

“Do you think you could enlarge the design so it works as a small desk or dining table?” he asked.

“Umm. Sure. No problem,” I replied.

But there was a problem. I just didn’t know it yet.

Next installment: Trying to make a good design work in a larger size.

For the past 21 years, in late February, an event has come to town unlike any other. Housed in the historic Grove Park Inn on a hillside north of Asheville, the annual Arts and Crafts Conference  is a four-day affair that includes an antiques auction, a host of seminars and demonstrations, walking tours of the area’s Arts-and-Crafts buildings, and juried craftspeople showing and selling their wares. It’s enough to make a woodworker dizzy with delight.

Up on the hill. Held at the Grove Park Inn, Asheville’s well-known Arts-and-Crafts hotel, the annual Arts and Crafts Conference staged its 21st show this year. 

Founded in 1988 by local author, collector, and furniture finisher Bruce Johnson, the conference has been recognized for two decades for its dedication to the education of the Arts and Crafts collector.  Spread out along hallways and in seminar rooms in the east wing of the hotel, the conference was a feast for the eyes and ears. There were numerous examples of Arts-and-Crafts goods, from pottery, rugs, lighting and accessories to books, magazines and periodicals. If you’re a collector, this is the place to find practically everything you need for the home. And if you want the real thing, the Antiques Auction can net you an original Gustav Stickley—assuming you have deep pockets.

A man with a mission. Founder Bruce Johnson, a respected woodworker in his own right, keeps the conference alive and well year after year.

A gamut of crafts. Ceramics, rugs, lighting and accessories represent a large portion of the show.

The real thing. Vendors at the conference give you your pick of authentic hardware. I counted at least eight vendors displaying everything from door knobs and hinges to cabinet and furniture hardware.

Of course, what always draws my eye at the conference is the furniture—and the craftspeople that make it. This year saw a crop of high-quality woodwork you won’t find anywhere else. Some are repeat exhibitors; some came for their first year. Either way, there’s fierce competition to be at the show, and only juried makers get the green light to come and display their work. One of the featured furnituremakers this year was Debey Zito, a woodworker and designer from the California Bay area who fuses Asian, American and European Arts-and-Crafts traditions into a distinct style . Her seminar, “Elements of the Arts and Crafts Furniture Design” sparked a lively discussion on design, and her work on display in her booth backed up the talk. Known for her rich woods, custom hardware, and the carved details (executed by partner Terry Schmitt), Debey’s work stands out even in a room full of other exquisite designs.

Carved wall. Zito’s booth showcased an entire wall paneled in mahogany, including highly detailed cravings on the frieze panel.

Wonder in walnut. This impressive armoire in walnut by Zito included intricate flower carvings on the door panels (photo left).

Other makers abounded. In the main aisle, I ran into Stewart Crick,  a Virginia woodworker who specializes in pieces made from fumed, quartered white oak, a wood near and dear to the traditions of the Arts and Crafts movement. Crick’s hinged chest displayed a level of craftsmanship seen only in fine art galleries—an example of the quality seen throughout the show.

Inside and out. Furnituremaker Stuart Crick shows off his white oak blanket chest. Attention to detail marks even the inside of the piece, which is lined in aromatic cedar.

In one of the side rooms, I ran into Peter and Marcie Maynard, makers from New Hampshire who work in domestic woods such as oak, maple, and cherry. We chatted about their Morris chair, a beautiful example of a standard Arts-and-Crafts design. Looking around their booth, a stunning side chair in curly maple caught my eye, with clean lines and a sit-on-me look. It didn’t disappoint.

Modern craft. Inspired by the Arts-and-Crafts tradition, Peter Maynard’s side chair in curly maple with chenille upholstery displayed an updated look and proved comfortable to boot.

At the very end of the hall was a lounge chair made from curly red oak. An untraditional wood for sure, and not your everyday Arts-and-Crafts piece, the chair was nevertheless an interesting example of what you’ll come across at the conference. The maker, Dennis Bertucci, based the piece on an original Westport chair from the Adirondacks in upstate New York. Originally from New York, and now hailing from Utah, I asked Bertucci if it was worth the long drive to North Carolina every year. “For me, it is," he said.  "I bring furniture, but I also teach. My specialty is in furniture restoration and finishes. My first conference was in 1988. This year, I gave a few 30-minute presentations on furniture restoration, as well as a three-hour hands-on workshop using dyes. People loved it.” Bertucci is a good example of how the educational aspect of the conference goes hand-in-hand with all the sales going on.

Updated Adirondack. This modern Adirondack chair by Dennis Bertucci in curly red oak shows that diversity is encouraged at the conference. Through tenons on the arms (photo right) give the chair visual impact.

On my way out, I spotted a dark chest sitting all alone in the hallway. Upon closer examination, I realized the piece was a stunning advertisement for Craftsman-style hardware, with beautiful hand-hammered copper hinges, braces and latches adorning its surface. The company, Arts and Crafts Hardware  from Mississippi, creates a line of hardware for Arts-and-Crafts furniture that would have made Stickley, Limbert, Hubbard, the brothers Greene—and all the other fathers of the Arts-and-Crafts movement—proud.

Hammering it home. The hammered, copper hardware on this frame-and-panel chest is hand-made by Gerald Rucks, owner of Arts and Crafts Hardware.

Next year’s conference is slated for February 20-22, 2009.

Old is beautiful. A hammered copper sign lets attendees know that the Craftsman style is more than a passing fad, and takes time and energy to create.

Last August, a new hardware store with a decidedly woodworking slant opened up along the main drag here in downtown Asheville. Although you can get your keys cut and pick up the odd carriage bolt or two, Asheville Hardware  is much more than your typical hardware store.

A new kind of store. Owner Tom Gholson (right) stands proudly at the door to Asheville Hardware, a new store in town that offers one-stop woodworking shopping. The slogan on the t-shirts he sells sums up his philosophy.

Step right up. Old tools embedded in the front stoop greet visitors. Inside, there's a huge range of modern woodworking tools and supplies to be found.

Housed in a revamped auto repair shop (I used to get my car worked on here), the main floor is packed with woodworking goodies, from machines such as Steel City and SawStop tablesaws and Rikon bandsaws, to hand-held power tools with brand names such as Fein, Festool, and Triton, to high-quality hand tools such as Japanese pullsaws, Stubai carving tools, and Lie-Nielsen planes. A full line of layout and marking tools, router bits, clamps, and accessories fill entire walls, with names like Veritas, Starrett, Bessey, and CMT, to mention a few. And that’s just the tool part.

Take your pick.  A special case houses high-end hand planes and other woodworking exotica (left). Router bits, carving tools, and layout and marking tools fill one wall (right).

Want some wood? Asheville Hardware stocks local domestics, from cherry, white oak and walnut to specialty cuts of spalted maple and quartersawn sycamore. There’s also a selection of veneers and tropical woods. Working with a local sawyer, they’ll be happy to supply you with custom-cut lumber and slabs of your choice. Want hardware? They’ve got it, from contemporary to the hottest Arts-and-Crafts designs. Walk in the front door of the store and you’re greeted by a team of woodworking enthusiasts. Many of the store’s employees are graduates of the woodworking program at Haywood Community College, a well-respected craft school in the area. These guys—and gals—really know their stuff, and are ready to help the novice or pro with their woodworking wisdom.

Knowledge up front. The main desk is staffed with knowledgeable woodworkers, many who have graduated from area woodworking schools.

So why did we lucky western North Carolina stiffs get a woodworking store in Asheville? Owner Tom Gholson, a former high-end home remodeler who runs the operation with his wife Rebecca, says there was little in the way of decent tools and supplies for the home builder, woodworker, and general do-it-yourselfer. “There was no place to get quality tools. And because there are so many woodworkers in the area, it made sense to open the store. I knew I could cater to them,” he says. True enough. I’ve been a happy customer ever since the store opened last year.

If you get tired of tool-drooling, you can sit and browse through the extensive woodworking book collection, watch a woodworking video on the big flat screen, or pull up a keyboard and surf the Web for woodworking lore.

Sit down and learn. Books, DVDs, and woodworking programs on the flat screen TV offer a chance for visitors to bone up on their knowledge base—or just rest their dogs for awhile.

If hands-on learning is what you’re after, look no further. On the lower level is the Asheville Woodworking School, a 1,000 square-foot machine room and a separate 1,000 square-foot bench room. The school is just getting started, and already there’s a full complement of woodworking machines filling the machine area, and a bench room that sports heavy-duty European-style workbenches and abundant natural light.

Ready for students. Separate bench and machine rooms give students a chance to master their skills, with courses ranging from woodworking fundamentals to cutting dovetails by hand.

Class size is limited to eight students, which means more individual attention from instructors. Gholson’s goal is to offer “well-rounded courses for beginners as well as experienced woodworkers who want to hone their skills.”  Those are precisely the kinds of classes I like to teach: Hands-on workshops where the aim is to improve knowledge and expertise. Of course, there will be project-based courses, but they’ll be designed around skill-building exercises. Take home a chair, for example—and a lifetime of chair-building aptitude.

Come March 28th, I’ll be teaching the very first class at the school (a one-day workshop on sharpening). Other teachers include local instructors as well as national woodworking stars. Some of the classes on tap so far: Fundamentals of Woodworking, Learn to Turn, Learn to Carve, Master Your Bandsaw, Advanced Architectural Carving, Tuning & Using Hand Planes, Hand-Cut Dovetails, plus classes on finishing and furniture restoration. A Women in Woodworking series will be launched this summer. (Check the website for dates and details.) And on most weekends there are free woodworking demonstrations. It’s a busy scene.

Asheville Hardware is the kind of place where you’ll find resources—from tools to teachers—that the big-box stores can’t provide. In that sense, it’s like the good ol’ mom-and-pop hardware store your dad grew up with: Lots of tools and supplies, with the local wisdom to back it all up, and a friendly atmosphere where it feels like family. These days, that's unique.Where else can you cut dovetails while a clerk cuts your keys?

At the home where I installed curved mahogany paneling (scroll down for my previous entry, “Curves… and more curves”,) I also installed a wooden mantel above a fireplace surrounded by a tiled wall. It has a series of niches set in at random spots along its surface. The effect is very modern.

In keeping with the sleek look, I wanted to install the mantel so it spanned part of the wall, with one portion nested into one of the larger niches. I wanted to wrap a portion of the mantel around the corner. And I wanted to leave the wane, or natural edge, on the wood I chose for the mantel. And I didn’t want any visible means of support: No brackets, no visible hardware, just a strip of wood, stuck to the wall as if by luck. Cool.

Fitting like a glove. The mantel hangs on the tiled wall and fits into the niche, all without the clutter of brackets or any other visible means of support.

OK. Now that I knew what I wanted, how was I going to achieve it?

To make the mantel fit, I would need an accurate template of the wall with its niche. I visited the house equipped with some 1/4-in. plywood, a jigsaw, a compass, and a hot-melt glue gun. By placing a long piece of plywood against the wall, scribing it with the compass, then cutting it to shape with the jigsaw, I made sure it fit the broad, flat area of the wall and was the correct length, including the portion that wraps around the corner. Next, I glued shorter pieces of plywood at right angles to the long piece precisely where the recess went into the wall. Armed with this template, I went back to the shop and laid out the shape on my stock.

Build it with hot glue. Left photo shows the blackwood mantel and the plywood template I made to fit it in place. Right photo shows one of several smaller pieces of plywood glued at right angles to the longer piece to locate the hangers. I wrote important information right on the template itself.

The stock for the mantel consisted of a piece of natural-edged blackwood, a jet-black, dense African wood with clearly delineated yellow-white sapwood along both edges. After tracing the outline of the template onto the stock, I cut the mantel to shape on the bandsaw. Back at the bench, a few licks with a plane, chisel, and rasp ensured that I had the outline precisely to the shape of the template. And that meant it would fit the wall without a hitch.

My plan for supporting the mantel was a bit unusual: I chose rod shelf supports from Lee Valley Tools modified to suit my purposes. Originally designed to hold glass shelving, the shelf system consists of metal rods tapped to receive hanger bolts. By installing the bolts into studs in the wall, and then drilling corresponding holes in the back edge of the mantel, I could slip the mantel onto the posts and secure it with epoxy.

Invisible hardware. Bottom left photo shows steel rods, cut to length, that fit into holes drilled in the back edge of the mantel. The threaded end of each hanger bolt secures each post, while the opposite lag-screw end threads into the stud in the wall. Bottom right: tightening the rod onto a hanger bolt. Top photo: the hardware in place, ready for the mantel.

First, I located the studs in the wall, and drilled holes in the tile at the stud locations using a carbide-tipped bit chucked into a hammer drill. Then I drilled pilot holes in the studs and installed the hanger bolts.

During the template-making process, I marked the centerpoint of each post directly on the template. Once the mantel was cut to shape, I transferred the centerpoints to the back edge of the mantel and drilled holes for the posts. I used the drill press, clamping the stock to a tall fence to keep it 90 degrees to the bit. I drilled the holes a bit oversized to provide some wiggle room during assembly. Since some of the posts weren’t at precise right angles to the wall, I compensated for any tilt by shimming under the fence when necessary. Again, notes on the template told me which holes needed tweaking.

After smoothing the mantel and applying multiple coats of finish, I was ready for installation. First, I did a test-fit to be sure the mantel fit in the space. A few strokes with a rasp had it perfect. Next, I installed the hanger bolts and the posts onto the tiled wall, using a wrench to pull the posts tight to the tiled surface.

With all the posts on the wall, I was ready to mix up a batch of epoxy and mount the mantel. To prevent the adhesive from running out of the joints, I used a hand-moldable, two-part epoxy (available at most home centers or at any automotive supply), which has the consistency of bread dough and won’t sag or run. Once it was mixed, I wiped the adhesive around the ends of the posts, then pushed the mantel onto them. A few blows with a rubber-tipped mallet drove the mantel tight to the wall. Once the epoxy had cured, I had a secure connection, and a mantel that hung on the wall as if by magic.

 

Curve it with kerfs. This veneered panel is easy to bend thanks to a series of evenly-spaced kerfs
on the back side. The material goes by the trademarked name Kerfcore and is made from MDF,
with a smooth exterior face ready for the veneer of your choice.

A local job here in Asheville saw me puzzling my head over how to create a series of panels for some curved walls. The work was for a new house under construction, and the owners were very supportive of hand-made things, and had a fondness for beautiful wood. That’s always welcome news to me!

The panels needed to be fitted to the walls of a small, curved elevator shaft, as well as a 22-ft.-tall stairwell for a circular stairway. The answer? My approach was twofold: I used a bent-lamination technique to make some of the curved trim (more on that later), and I used a product called Kerfcore, a sheet product that can be bent along its long or short axis thanks to a series of kerfs cut in its back face.

Kerfcore panels come in standard sheet sizes, as well as in oversize dimensions (although you’ll pay more). Make sure to specify which direction you want to bend the panel, either along its long or short axis. And don’t think Kerfcore is only suitable for architectural work: The panels can be used anywhere you want to add curves. In fact, I’ve used it very successfully for all sorts of high-end furniture with a modern flair, such as round cases, table bases, and the like. You can either paint the surface (because of its smooth, non-porous surface, MDF makes one of the best substrates for paint) or, like my work here, cover it with veneer. For most projects, it makes sense to veneer the panels before you bend them. One word of advice, though: Plan on applying a finish to the panels after bending them, as any severe bends may stress a pre-applied finish and result in small, hairline cracks.

To begin the job, I first had my customer pick out a veneer from a series of samples sent to me by Certainly Wood. They chose a figured log (an industry term for sequenced sheets of veneer from the same log) of plum-pudding mahogany, a classic figure that exhibits a swirling, ‘pudding’ effect dotted with dark ‘plums.’ Delicious stuff.

I debated laying up the veneer in my studio using my vacuum-bag setup, but with more than 2,500 sq. ft. of veneer to handle, I knew such a large job would pose serious space issues in the shop. Thankfully, one of my suppliers had the facilities to do the veneer work,. They were able to match and sequence the log to my specifications. Most of the veneer was laid onto 1/4-in. MDF panels (for a flat ceiling application), while the rest was glued to panels of Econocore, the trademarked name for a specific type of Kerfcore panel that’s 3/8 in. thick. Once pressed, the panels were shipped to my shop, where I cut them to rough size before trucking them to the job site.

On site, helper and fellow woodworker Gabe Aucott and I took measurements and cut the panels to finished size. This involved a lot of back and forth to fit the panels, and also meant using a shop-made jig to do most of the cutting. Although I used a block plane to fine-tune some of the final fitting, I knew that cutting the veneered panels with a jigsaw, circular saw or other similar tool would risk tearing the fibers and leave ragged edges. The only way to get a good cut was to use a router and a straight bit. To guide the router, I made a simple jig from 3/4-in. MDF. The jig was a bit longer than my longest panel, and had a fence attached on top to guide the router’s baseplate. For the cleanest routing action, I mounted a spiral upcut bit in the router. With careful setup and an even feed speed, the cuts were flawless, even when crosscutting the delicate and highly-figured mahogany.

Rout it to size. Woodworker Gabe Aucott guides a router and a spiral upcut bit
along a shopmade jig equipped with a fence that guides the baseplate.
To use the jig, simply clamp the edge along the desired cutline.

With a panel routed to size, we spread a flexible mastic onto the walls, pushed the panel into the curve of the wall, and secured it with 1-3/4-in.-long 23-gauge pin nails into the studs behind the drywall. The pin nails, which are practically invisible, act like clamps until the adhesive sets, holding the panel to the curve. Where the edge of one panel met another, we simply spread yellow glue on the edges and butted them together, being careful to keep the seam flush as we nailed the adjacent panel in place.

Push in the curve. Once an adhesive is spread onto the wall,
it’s a simple matter of pushing the kerfed panel into position.
Pin nails secure the panel to the curve while the adhesive sets.

From the bottom up. In the circular stairwell, we worked on the lower panels first,
securing them up to a height of about 11 feet. Then we worked on a platform
to secure the next run of panels, eventually reaching the top of the 22-ft.-tall opening.

Once all the panels were in place, I wanted to add some trim pieces to conceal the raw edges and protect the fragile veneer. Most of the trim was straight, and simply required some careful measurement and cutting to size. But in a few areas, I had more curves to deal with where the two stairwell landings curved around the floor openings. For these areas, I decided a two-piece bent lamination would do the trick. Since the radius was rather large—about 6 ft.—I knew from experience that two laminations, each about 1/4 in. thick, would be thin enough to bend to the curve without breaking.

To glue up the laminations, I needed to build a form. This entailed laying out the curve on a sheet of MDF using a shopmade trammel (a long stick with a pin on one and a pencil on the other, spaced apart equal to the radius), and then sawing out the curve in two sections on the bandsaw. Once I had the curves cut, I mounted them onto a sheet of melamine.

Next, I ripped and thickness-planed enough strips for the curves I needed, testing them by first pushing a pair into the from to ensure they would bend without breaking. Satisfied, I spread glue on the laminations and pushed them into the form, using a spare laminate on the outside to help spread clamping pressure. Clamps every 6 in. or so ensured the laminations were tightly drawn to the curved form.

Bending to a form. I cut the desired curve on the bandsaw from two pieces of MDF, then screwed them
to a sheet of melamine. To make the lamination, I spread glue on the strips and then
clamped them into the form, using a third, unglued strip to distribute clamping pressure.

Since I had several curved strips to make, but only one form, I glued up one lamination per day, leaving it to cure overnight. When the lamination came out the form, there was a significant amount of springback, but it wasn’t a concern since I knew I would be gluing and nailing the strips into place. Before moving on the to next lamination, I mounted the previous strip to a holding form, which was simply a sheet of MDF with the curve drawn on it and screw blocks to hold the laminate in position. The holding form allowed the glue joint in the laminate to fully cure while holding the curve. After a few days of resting in the holding form, I was ready to install the trim in the house.

Lesser curve. Most bent laminations have a tendency to spring back towards flatness after gluing.
Springback is even more pronounced if you use a small number of laminates, such as the two-part laminate shown here.

Hold that curve. After the glue had dried, but before it was fully cured,
helper and son Zy Rae moved the lamination from the gluing form and clamped it into a holding form,
allowing the glue to cure without stressing the glue joint.

The installation of the straight and curved trim pieces went very well. Like the kerfed panels, a little flexible adhesive and a few pin nails did the trick to hold everything in place. The last step was to apply a finish. I chose a wiping varnish for protection and ease of application, which I made by diluting an oil-based polyurethane with mineral spirits. Four coats were sufficient to highlight the figure in the veneer, give the wood a warm glow, and protect the panels from daily wear and tear.

Ending a curve. The floor opening required a piece of curved trim to clean up the bottom raw edge of the veneered panel.
A bent lamination, made from two pieces of solid wood and curved to the radius of the opening (see inset), was the answer.

Sand and re-coat. In the elevator well, finisher Joey Bourn sands the surface between coats,
smoothing out the finish and readying it for another coat of wipe-on varnish.
The last coat gives the wood a nice shine and an even sheen and makes the figure really pop.

In early November, I took a trip north to York, Pennsylvania, to work three days at a woodworking show, ensconcing myself into a couple of breakout rooms to give seminars on various woodworking topics. I had a great time checking out some of the latest woodworking tools and supplies, my seminars were well received (at least that’s what some of the attendees told me!) and, best of all, I got to hang out with some of my favorite woodworkers.

Woodworking on the go. The WoodWorks show, held in early November at the York Expo Center
in York, Pa., was a three-day event packed with woodworking tools and supplies
—and plenty of big-name woodworkers.

Like most woodworking shows, the WoodWorks event  was held in an easily-accessible city inside a large arena-type building with convenient parking outside, in this case at the York Expo Center in York, Pa., a stone’s throw from the capital, Harrisburg, and neighbor to the rolling valleys of Lancaster County and Amish country. Woodworking tools and supplies were the main draws, and the vendors didn’t disappoint. In addition to the big boys, such as Delta, Steel City, and Lee Valley Tools,  a number of smaller specialty vendors plied  their trade right beside the big guns.

For the hobbyist and small-shop woodworker, these smaller businesses offer the opportunity to find out about some really cool woodworking stuff that you normally don’t have a chance to see—or get your hands on. For example, Japanese Tools.com, a small internet-based tool company, was displaying a plethora of really high-end chisels, planes, and layout and marking tools, as well as a top-notch sharpening system based upon the Shapton line of ceramic bench stones. Getting up close to the tools and handling them was enough to convince you of the quality. A quick walk down the row brought you to furniture designer-turned toolmaker Geoffrey Noden, who makes, sells and markets the Noden Adjusta-Bench, an amazingly versatile bench that quickly raises and lowers to suit any working height you might need. And, as with most woodworking shows, vendors offered show discounts on their products, making it an opportune time to buy.

Try ‘em before you buy ‘em. Lee Valley had its full complement of hand planes at the show,
tuned and ready for you to make shavings.

The Eastern art of tools. At Japanese Tools.com, an impressive rack
of chisels and planes let you see and feel the quality first-hand.

Up or down. Furnituremaker Geoffrey Noden and his wife, Suzette,
manufacture and market the Noden Adjusta-Bench, a clever
height-adjustable workbench that makes customizing bench height a breeze.

There was plenty of wood for sale too. I saw some really nice, super-white American holly ( yummy), and a few matched, live-edged planks of super-wide black walnut (a bit pricey). There was also an ‘instant gallery,’ where area woodworkers brought in some of their best work to show off—a nice touch to round things out and provide some perspective on why we work wood in the first place.

Where it all starts. Some very nice shorts, boards and planks for sale
reminded us of why we need woodworking tools in the first place.
This vendor offered both domestic and tropical species.

Where it all ends up. A gallery at the front of the show hall displayed a variety of work
from area woodworkers, from looming grandfather clocks and dainty lowboys
to one-of-a-kind turnings and hand-made stringed instruments.

What really made this show stand out was its educational aspect. The show organizers brought in some major woodworking talent, the likes of which is rarely seen at the same time under one roof. There were three tiers to this bonanza of woodworking wisdom. First, sprinkled around the show floor were highly respected woodworkers giving free demonstrations all day long. Interested in woodturning? You could take your pick from two world-class turners: Lynne Yamaguchi was transforming wood into art—all in an accessible way that made it look easy. Harry Memelink, a well-known turner from New Zealand, was spinning massive blocks of figured wood and delicately hollowing them with long-reach tools. Want to see how a classic Windsor chair goes together? Head for the booth stocked with 18th-century tools and supplies, including a foot-operated lathe, all run by enthusiast, teacher, and builder Mike Jurnigan, a traditional chairmaker from Suffolk, Virginia. Feel like rubbing elbows with a master? Amble over to Frank Klausz’s booth and workbench, and watch while this acclaimed author and third-generation cabinetmaker showed how to lay out and cut dovetails by hand in what seemed the blink of an eye.

Learn at the lathe. Harry Memelink, a well-known Kiwi turner and manufacturer
of the Exocet line of turning chisels, was busy spinning it up at his booth,
turning large chunks of wild-grain wood into incredible hollow forms.

Work in the past. Chairmaker Mike Jurnigan’s work area was chock-full of traditional
18th-century tools, including a treadle lathe, a joiner’s bench, and an impressive tool cabinet.

Hang with the master. Cabinetmaker Frank Klausz was on hand to dispense
woodworking wisdom, all the while making moldings using a hand-made plane
and sawing through-dovetails lickety-split.

The second level was a variety of hands-on workshops, held in closed-off areas around the hall. The fee was reasonable, and class size was limited so you were guaranteed lots of attention by the instructor. Topics ranged from building boxes on the bandsaw and routing frame-and-panel doors to sharpening essentials, using scratchstocks, and turning basics. One class had attendees leaving with a complete, full-size frame-and-panel door tucked under their arms—made entirely on the router table. Impressive.

The third educational opportunity, and again for a moderate price, was a series of woodworking seminars held in rooms located along the perimeter of the show hall. Instructors spoke and demonstrated on various topics, such as my own seminars on milling wood, understanding sharpening, and advanced router work.

Want to know more about shapers? Take a class with Steve Latta, contributing editor to Fine Woodworking and shaper expert, and watch as he demonstrated the ins and outs of this big-performance machine. Or perhaps you’re itching to learn some savvy tablesaw tricks with Frank Klausz, who had a Steel City cabinet saw plugged in and ready to go. If hand tools were your thing, no worries: A few hours spent under the tutelage of hand-tool aficionado and FWW contributing editor Garrett Hack had your learning curve flattened out a bit.

The seminars were truly a chance to get your groove on, and to hang out with guys that really know what they’re doing. Since I know most of these woodworkers from my editorial and journalistic work over the years, for me this was an opportunity to re-connect with many of my woodworking pals. Time was short, and we often only got to huddle over a late-night dinner together, or perhaps grab a short break between classes to gab and catch up, but the trip was worth it on this basis alone. After all, where else can I hobnob with some of the greatest woodworkers on the planet, all under one roof? For that matter, where can any interested woodworker do the same? My advice? Don’t miss these shows if they come to an area near you; you might find that hanging out with and getting tips from world-renown woodworkers gives you good reason to buy the woodworking tools and supplies you need. At the very least, it might provide you with a reasonable excuse to your significant other for spending all that money!

Boxes made easy. Woodworking author and general problem-solver Fred Matlack
showed how to make super-simple boxes using a single blade on the tablesaw.

Learn to curve. Author and FWW contributing editor Garret Hack
held sway during his seminar on adding curves in your work.

Shaping up nicely. Steve Latta, another FWW contributing editor,
sets up the shaper to show how to get the most from this versatile machine.