“For all the benefits we’ve gained from mechanization and automation, it is high time we take a step back to consider afresh if our shop work is actually any richer when our tools are Bluetooth-compatible. There is no doubt that “information technology is changing the nature of human work in industrial production. The machine operator has become the machine overseer. [But] whether this change is making work more humane is another question.” In Pye’s day, he saw his contemporaries’ appetite for antiques as a “sign of an unsatisfied hunger for diversity and spontaneity in the things of everyday use.” Our fenced tools and highly jigged operations give us precise, quality work. But they cannot give us technophiles what we so...
Wow. Thank you all so much for your encouraging feedback these last 24 hours. When we decided to leave social media, we assumed a few people would sympathize with us, but we also expected a generous slather of negativity (because that’s what these places are so good at). But it turns out we were not alone. Since that post yesterday, we’ve been buried in comments and emails from deeply appreciative readers who have long shared these concerns. (Please be patient – it’s going to take some time to respond to all the feedback.) Some of them told us they left social media awhile back, others said they might soon follow suit, and a good number of people told us that...
When I started Mortise & Tenon in 2015, I knew I needed to find a way to reach woodworkers beyond my local community. And so, after some research I decided I’d replace my “dumb” phone with a shiny new smartphone and learn how to use Instagram. This platform felt invaluable to me, because it was helping me to make connections with so many other people who have similar interests. I made new acquaintances and learned so much from their daily postings. As M&T’s reach grew over the next few years, my involvement in social media grew along with it. I spent more and more time posting and commenting on others’ photos. And even when I wasn’t on the app, I...
In this episode, we tackle the question of “how” one approaches studying a handmade object to learn from it. There aren’t too many tools (all of them are inexpensive), and there are a few basic categories of things you should be looking to. We talk about color consistency, inexplicable holes or notches, and how to find things no one ever saw before, even though it was right in front of their faces. This episode was recorded in honor of our good friend, the late Phil Lowe. We’ll miss you, Phil.
Mentioned in this Episode:
Neewer CN-160 Light
We’re excited to launch the Mortise & Tenon Research Grant! As we shared last month, the goal of this program is to create opportunities for new voices and passionate research to emerge in the realm of pre-industrial craft. We want to hear from you – If you or someone you know has a dream of diving into a particular area of study for deeper understanding; if you’re smitten by the work of some obscure pre-industrial maker; if you’ve been bitten by the bug of exploring the folk arts practiced by your ancestors but have hit a wall of financial limitation, we may be able to help. The M&T Research Grant is now accepting applications for two grant recipients for the...
This is Part Two of the fan bird tutorial I posted last week. I’ll pick up where we left off. We were just about to slice the feathers… First, put the bird’s body into a handscrew clamp and pin it with your waist into a stop of some sort so that it doesn’t slide around. Use a small drawknife (this Flexcut 3" model was designed for this exact operation) to carefully slice the feathers. Fan carvers call step this “riving” the feathers, but don’t let that make you think you should follow the grain wherever it wants to take you. Really, you should be thinking “slicing,” not “riving.” If you mess up a few feathers along the way, don’t worry,...
This Christmas, I made a handful of fan birds. The fan bird is a traditional European carving of a bird formed from one block of solid wood (or in more elaborate examples, a few blocks of wood). The feathers are profiled as one block, then are sliced and fanned apart in order to form wings and a tail. I first learned how to do this from Mike, but I recently refreshed my knowledge at Sally and David Nye’s excellent website. Once you get the hang of it, this is a quick project – the bird I show below took just under an hour to make. This is green woodworking, so use relatively fresh stock. Some folks have had success with...
“Children are hard-wired to create. Any parent who has discovered a fort made of couch cushions, waded through a pile of Legos, or swept bits of paper, glitter, and dried glue knows this well. When kids are offered time in a full-blown woodshop, most leap at the opportunity. Our children need to learn to work with their hands. They need the freedom to work in the shop, to saw boards (with real saws), and nail together whatever they can dream up. When kids learn to work wood they develop manual dexterity, yes. But more than that, woodworking is an opportunity to cultivate the patience, discipline, and independence that distinguishes a well-balanced individual. These experiences often have lasting effects. Most every...
I love it when snow blankets the ground because it prevents me from getting to many of the chores I’ve spent the last nine months chasing. I always have so many irons in the fire between the animal and homestead responsibilities that a winter’s respite is dearly welcome. I usually use this time to explore something that’s been in my sights for a long time. Last week, I finally blocked out some time to make a few additions to my spring pole lathe so that I could dip my toes into bowl turning. I’ve accumulated a few of the necessary pieces over the past year or two but never could quite find the time. I bought the two centers from...
Recently, woodworker and podcaster, Matt Boutte, graciously invited me to join him on an episode of his new podcast, The Deckle Edge. Matt was interested in particular to dive deeper behind-the-scenes into why I am passionate about working without machinery. We also waded into territory that is much more personal than I usually divulge, including my former obsession with Marilyn Manson. (Bet you didn’t see that coming.) The interview was fun and Matt did a great job putting it all together after my rambling. You can give it a listen here.
Thanks for having me, Matt!
– Joshua
