Coat Hooks and Art?

Posted on February 26, 2016 by Greg Merritt

I consider art to be something that is created explicitly to satisfy an aesthetic or to fulfill a deep-seated vision of the artist.  It takes a certain quality of vision to create true art.  As such, I don’t consider myself an artist.  Sure, I skirt around the edges, but I simply do not have that certain vision needed to create actual art.  I do have some artistic ability, but tend to only be able to employ it to enhance (subjective) my practical applications.  Technical drawings and furniture projects top the list. Continue reading →

Posted in Coat Hooks-Wall Art, Design | Tagged , , | 20 Comments

Honey Do-Kitchen Island-Part 2-Complete

Posted on February 13, 2016 by Greg Merritt

I spent the week just as I predicted in my last post.  Several evenings this week were spent filling nail holes, sanding and applying three coats of Minwax Polyshades.  I have to admit that this Polyshades goop is a decent product to work with and results in what appears to be quite a durable finish.  While not my usual way of finishing, its perfect for something such as this kitchen island, where durability and resistance to moisture is of paramount importance. Continue reading →

Posted in Finishing, Kitchen Island from Workbench | Tagged , , , | 18 Comments

Honey Do-Kitchen Island-Part 1

Posted on February 7, 2016 by Greg Merritt

My wife has wanted a kitchen island for a lot of years.  A lot of years.  Its been my ongoing shame that I have yet been able to provide her with one.  The kitchen in our old house was just far too small for me to come up with a workable design.  The new house however, has plenty of room.  So the discussion of a kitchen island came back to the forefront of conversation. Continue reading →

Posted in Design, Kitchen Island from Workbench | Tagged , , , , | 23 Comments

Dishwasher Install Followup

Posted on February 5, 2016 by Greg Merritt

In my last post I told you about my dishwasher install project.  The process involved shifting the entire face frame, and associated drawers and doors, 6″ to close up a gap at the side of the dishwasher.  This of course left me with a subsequent 6″ gap where the cabinets met the adjoining wall.

Milling up a piece of stock to fill the gap was a simple enough process.  Measure, cut, plane and scribe to fit against the wall (nothing is ever truly plumb in a house).  I then nailed it into place and filled the nail holes with a little wood putty.  With the easy part done, I was faced the more daunting problem Continue reading →

Posted in Dishwasher Install, Finishing, Thoughts-Views | Tagged , , | 10 Comments

Honey Do-Dishwasher

Posted on February 1, 2016 by Greg Merritt

The life of an amateur/hobbyist woodworker is fraught with perils that conspire to steal the precious little time that can be devoted to woodworking and furniture building.  If you happen to be married than the risk to that time is exponentially increased.  The dreaded “honey do” is always lurking just around the corner.  Almost always posed in the guise of a request, but the seasoned among us know better.  It is just such a “request” that has been taking up all of my shop time as of late. Continue reading →

Posted in Dishwasher Install | Tagged , , | 34 Comments

 Extrapolation 

Posted on January 25, 2016 by Greg Merritt

Extrapolate…extend the application of (a method or conclusion, especially one based on statistics) to an unknown situation by assuming that existing trends will continue or similar methods will be applicable.

Edit 01/25/16

My reference to “plans” in the following is referring to 3rd party plans.  I fully support working from plans that you create yourself.  I also advocate for the creation of full-scale shop drawings before starting a project.

Detailed woodworking plans can be a great learning tool.   Continue reading →

Posted in Design, Thoughts-Views | Tagged , , | 15 Comments

Two Distinct Paths

Posted on January 17, 2016 by Greg Merritt

Following up on my post “Perpetual Beginner Mentality“, I encouraged the amateurs/hobbyist woodworker to be bold in their woodworking.  This post is also written for the amateur/hobbyist. Continue reading →

Posted in Thoughts-Views | Tagged , | 25 Comments

Hillbilly Tsuitate Screen-Part 6-Complete

Posted on January 12, 2016 by Greg Merritt

Winter showed up over the last couple of days and the temperatures plummeted into the teens.  Even so, I couldn’t resist getting out into the shop and assembling my screen.

Assembly was quite easy and quick.  I first installed the cross rails into the uprights along with the center panel.  Then the uprights were secured by driving the tapered pins into place through the feet. This is a draw pin setup.  Same as draw bore, except with a square pin, and I used a 3mm(~1/8″) offset do to the high compression rate of the fir that I’m working with. Continue reading →

Posted in Hillbilly Tsuitate-000 | Tagged , , , , | 21 Comments

Hillbilly Tsuitate Screen-Part 5

Posted on January 10, 2016 by Greg Merritt

I didn’t manage as much shop time this weekend as I had hoped.  The original plan was to have this project completed by Sunday evening.  Alas, I came up a little short, but I’m close. Continue reading →

Posted in Hillbilly Tsuitate-000 | Tagged , | 10 Comments

Hillbilly Tsuitate Screen-Part 4

Posted on January 3, 2016 by Greg Merritt

At some point since my “Part 3” post I managed to sneak enough shop time in to shape the feet for this screen.  My original plan was to create a cloud type detail on the feet, as indicated on my drawing.  But the more that I looked at the emerging assembly, the more that I realized that the feet needed an angular detail.  So that is what I went with. Continue reading →

Posted in Hillbilly Tsuitate-000 | Tagged , | 17 Comments