Lately I’ve been thinking that the spirit of Joseph Moxon isn’t so happy with me. Maybe Old Joe – a printer by trade – isn’t happy about being known by moderns as a vise sold at Woodcraft. Or he isn’t happy about being called out for stealing images from André Félibien. In any ca … | Continue reading
One of the most common questions I get is why I don’t use Forstner bits much in chairmaking. The bits are readily available, make flat-bottomed holes and cut cleanly. The answer is basically this: The Forstner’s lead point is too short*. That means if I want to drill anything oth … | Continue reading
The Florida School of Woodwork is holding a raffle and silent auction to raise money for woodworking scholarships. This week’s silent auction item is a Kentucky Stick Chair made earlier this year by Christopher Schwarz. Plus you can buy raffle tickets to be entered to win one of … | Continue reading
When you drill a hole with a 5/8” bit, then use a 5/8” tenon cutter to make the tenon, you should be golden…right? Nope – unless you get lucky. If you dare enter the fascinating world of boring you will quickly realize this truth: It is up to you to get your drill bits and... | Continue reading
Fred West was a modern-day Medici when it came to hand tools – a true patron of the fine arts, and a driving force behind the hand-tool renaissance of the last two decades. If you were into hand tools before 2014 and attended any woodworking shows, you likely knew Fred – or at le … | Continue reading
The following is excerpted from “The Joiner & Cabinet Maker,” by Anonymous, Christopher Schwarz and Joel Moskowitz, from the chapter on making the dovetailed schoolbox. In this chapter, as with the other projects in the book, Chris builds “alongside” young Thomas, the main charac … | Continue reading
People who make things are the best people I know. And that’s why I’m a fierce believer that the best way to help our craft is to unlock or open doors for anyone – anyone – who wants to step through. Recently a friend alerted me to a new Instagram account that highlights the wor … | Continue reading
Today Bob Mould is 62. That simple fact brings me great joy. As someone who has tried to remain creative into middle age, I am constantly worried that I will one day wake up and have nothing else to write. Nothing new to build. No areas of the craft or furniture left that I want. … | Continue reading
Back by request: Three sticker designs for your tool chest, nail cabinet or wall. These are available from my daughter Katherine’s etsy store. They are sold as a set, and yes, she ships internationally. Here are the stickers in this set. ‘Sharpen This’ Book StickerIf you have the … | Continue reading
“I do not get your weird chairs,” exclaim about a dozen messages or comments every year. I understand your bewilderment. I remember being a prospective student at Northwestern University in 1985 where I had been paired up with freshmen journalism students. We were supposed to sl … | Continue reading
During the last 25 years, all my sharpening processes have become simpler. And use much less gear. This has made me faster, and my edges are just as excellent. This evolution is most evident in the way I sharpen scrapers. I was taught the first step was to file the edge at a perf … | Continue reading
The following is excerpted from “Mechanic’s Companion,” by Peter Nicholson. It is one of the foundational English-language texts in woodworking and the building trades. First published in 1812, “Mechanic’s Companion” is an invaluable and thorough treatment of techniques, with 40 … | Continue reading
As I decided which bay of the Covington Mechanical Library to post for today, I realized I’d have to first do some rearranging. Can you believe that the many Stickley books were simply mixed in to the rest of the Arts & Crafts tomes, instead of being grouped together? Likewise th … | Continue reading
We now have back in stock all sizes (S to XXXL) of the Lost Art Press “skep” T-shirt. And I don’t know the weather in your corner of the world, but here it’s hoodie season (which fills me with glee – I despise hot weather); we have our heavyweight “Nothing Without Labour” zip-up … | Continue reading
When I finally got the honor of being Frank Klausz’s editor, I was curious as to what sort of manuscript he would turn in. I was curious because I had read almost everything out there with Klausz’s byline on it. Some of his stories sounded just like he talks. With his Hungarian a … | Continue reading
Because of the positive reaction to our “Build a Stick Chair” video, we decided to produce a new video on sharpening woodworking tools that delves even further into the topic than our new book “Sharpen This.” “Sharpen This (the Video)” is a 2-1/2-hour long video companion to our … | Continue reading
The following is excerpted from “The Woodworker: The Charles H. Hayward Years,” Vol. II – Techniques. This article was first published when “glue” was understood to be hot hide glue (or, as it’s called in The Woodworker, Scotch glue). Rub joints work with other glues, but in my e … | Continue reading
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