Many of the visitors to our shop spend more time checking out the books in the back than the books in the front. In front are all the books Lost Art Press publishes (along with our Crucible Tool offerings). In back is what we call the Covington Mechanical Library – the very large … | Continue reading
The lipstick making machine that Katherine uses to make Soft Wax 2.0 has been on the fritz. One of the toggle switches started to feel mushy-mushy. Then the heating element wouldn’t turn on. When it comes to machines and tools, I find that switches are the weakest link. So I took … | Continue reading
Today is the last day to get a free PDF with your print order of “Sharpen This” by Christopher Schwarz and/or “Euclid’s Door” by George Walker and Jim Tolpin. After midnight tonight (Sept. 30, 2022), the combo of the hardcover books and pdf will cost more. “Euclid’s Door” is Jim … | Continue reading
I am happy to tell you that my daughter Katherine is now selling the following stickers in her etsy shop. This sticker set features three images on 100-percent waterproof vinyl material. The stickers are sold as a set. We cannot sell individual stickers (sorry). The Return of “Sh … | Continue reading
We are filming a full-length video to complement my “Sharpen This” book. Megan is filming it, and I am editing it. The video will be available next month. One of the film’s many segments is about my personal sharpening kit. You might find the information interesting. Plus, this s … | Continue reading
Touching a surface that had been gently used for hundreds of years is something that cannot be easily replicated. And so, for the most part, I’ve never attempted it. Why? I’ve seen hundreds of new pieces of furniture that have been “aged” through chemical and physical abuse. And … | Continue reading
I clock my screws, meaning I orient the slot in the screw heads so they are all vertical or horizontal. But I don’t think it’s a mark of superior aesthetics. It’s just something I do, like lining u… | Continue reading
More than 43′ long and 5,000 years old, the top of the table made by The Fenland Black Oak Project is the culmination of more than 30 years of research, trial and error in milling and drying … | Continue reading
For the most part, I try to live by the mantra: Show, don’t tell. But when people ask me questions about the business side of Lost Art Press, I sometimes have to straight up tell people how we work… | Continue reading
During the last five years, I’ve had more than my share of intimate contact with the famous H.O. Studley tool cabinet. And so wherever I travel I get asked this question: “What’s it like?” So I lie… | Continue reading
I had the great privilege of working on David Savage’s new book, “The Intelligent Hand” – yet I confess it flummoxed me on my first several editing passes. After years of writing and editing straig… | Continue reading
Jennie Alexander was born John Alexander on Dec. 8, 1930. She has lived in row houses her entire life, and their vernacular architecture defines, in part, not only the city she has always called ho… | Continue reading