Things I got wrong about finishing
· 2 min read
I design on paper first, then let the wood change my mind. The first nine weeks were chiefly about unlearning.
The middle part
I keep coming back to workbenches, chiefly because it rewards patience. Most of the work happens before any cutting starts. Hand tools are slower, quieter and strangely calming. If something here is unclear, that is on me, not you. For a long time I treated chairs as an afterthought.
If you only take one thing from this, make it the part about drawers. A sharp chisel is safer than a dull one, and much more pleasant. Little, repeatable steps beat big plans almost every time.
In January the light changes, and so does the work. None of this is new, and that is partly why it works. I would rather do one thing carefully than five things quickly.
Second thoughts
Good furniture should last longer than the person who made it. The simple part is seldom the hard part; consistency is. The shift showed up gradually, then all at once.
It is easy to overthink planing boards. It is harder to just start. Nothing here requires a chisel set, though it does make things easier. Somewhere between the sawmill and home, the notion finally made sense. I wrote most of this on a quiet Friday morning.
Below are a few jottings, roughly in the order I worked out them. A bow saw helps, but it is not the point.
walnutshavingsworkbenches