Blog — Apprenticeship Series RSS





“Foundations” DVD Back in Stock

  OK, OK. We give up. After almost two years of fielding email requests for DVDs of our Apprenticeship: Foundations instructional video, we finally decided to do another run. When we ran out, we assumed that everyone who wanted a DVD rather than streaming would’ve purchased already, but it turns out we were wrong. Streaming is not for some folks. So, at long last, the Foundations DVD is back in stock. We also have our other Apprenticeship videos in DVD: Tables and Greenwood. We believe that with these three videos, you should have ample instruction to build most any item of furniture. Yes, each form has its own construction, but all the basic skills are laid out in these three...

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“Apprenticeship: Greenwood” Now Available!

  Yeeesss!!! Mike’s new instructional video Apprenticeship: Greenwood is now in our store for immediate streaming and download! We are also offering a DVD version, but please note that those are still in production and will not be shipping for at least a few weeks. Mike’s been working his tail off on the production of this third installment in our Apprenticeship series for the past couple months, and the filming has taken place over the past few years. (We wanted to cover all four seasons.) He’s made an incredible film that we are delighted to be offering to you all. It’s not only a totally new type of content from us (working outdoors, bucksaws, shaving horses, using carving knives, steam bending,...

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The Apprenticeship DVD Bundle

We’ve never been on-the-ball when it comes to bundling our products. When we started our Apprenticeship video series, we intentionally designed the instruction to build on the previous videos – meaning, they’re meant to be taken together. Recently inspired by the first class in our shop last week, we’ve decided to offer our two instructional DVDs bundled for a discounted rate. Being able to expose students to another way to work that is human-powered, human-guided, and deeply fulfilling is the reason we keep at this thing. Want to learn efficient hand-tool-only woodworking but not sure where to start? Looking for advice and wondering if the way you’ve cooked up yourself is the best way to do it? We hope these...

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“Tables” Video Now Available!

  At long last, this “Tables” video is done and in our store. Mike has been laboring over this thing for a long time now perfecting each transition and tweaking each clip to get everything just right. I am blown away. It turned out better than I even envisioned. If you enjoyed watching our “Foundations” video, we think you will love this sequel. This “Tables” video focuses on pre-industrial table construction. Rather than simply demonstrate each different operation of table making and its variations, we decide the best way to teach is in the context of a build. For this reason, I chose a table that has many of the construction variables one is likely to find in period work....

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"Tables" Shaping Up

  Today began the second week of the Apprenticeship: Tables video shoot. It’s taking us longer than the Foundations video because I am doing more than showing techniques – I’m actually building a full piece.   The table I’m building is loosely based on one I fell in love with at Old Sturbridge Village. It has the back legs angled beneath the table’s single drop leaf. It also has ‘H’ stretchers between the legs. On the original, the drawer is at the end rail but I decided to put mine at the front. It is a wonderfully quirky table that incorporates so many of the features of period table construction. It’s perfect for this video.   The first five days...

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Next Apprenticeship Video: Tables

  After shipping out orders yesterday morning, Mike and I spent time reviewing the outline and logistics for a video shoot next week. We’ve been discussing this second video in the Apprenticeship series since we released the Foundations video last year. The idea behind this series is to bring you into the shop to learn the skills every pre-industrial cabinetmaker learned. It is designed to teach you the skills and mindset to approach any project without elaborate full-scale plans or expensive (and dangerous) machines. Rather than show you how to build one specific special piece, we decided to approach this series the way you’d learn in a real apprenticeship setting: you learn the form. This teaching model is perfect for...

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What Should You Expect to See From Us in 2017?

  As we’re only days away from the packing party to ship out Issue Two, I can’t help but reflect on the year (11 months actually) since Issue One was released. 2016 has been a wild ride for me. Before M&T launched, I spent my work week alone in my studio regluing chairs and refinishing dining tables. I ran a little blog documenting some of it but, for the most part, I was pretty much in my own little world. This leap-in-the-dark magazine idea was simply the culmination of my many thoughts and observations working on period furniture. I never knew if it would resonate with anyone else. Mortise & Tenon has completely flipped my life upside down. The interest...

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