The Woodshop Shed

Entry Bench with Shoe Storage

Furnished content.
(from Lumberjocks.com)


We have been needing better shoe storage for our front hall for years (shoes are just stacked in bookcases now) and I finally decided to do something about it. After getting inspiration from projects on here and elsewhere I decided on a basic plan for a bench with 2 shelves for storage (1 adjustable) and went to planning the design. Little did I know at the time how long it would take me to tweak the design to something that I would want to build but at the same time be achievable with my limited woodworking skills (I started on my new hobby about 1 year ago). For example I had never done mortise and tenon before and cutting the mortises was more than I could handle no matter what technique I tried, so I hit on the idea of cutting a continuous groove in the legs and making the mortises by filling in the grooves with wood strips (walnut in this case) and leaving spaces where I wanted to mortises to be.The frame and shelves are made from red oak and the top from Peruvian walnut. I finished the frame using Watco Danish oil followed by 3 coats of Arm-R-Seal, and finished the walnut top using 6 coats of Arm-R-Seal.I think for a first furniture project it turned out rather well, and my wife loves it. I have thought about making a matching table for the other side of the entry hall (taller and shallower with more shelves) as a complementary piece and additional storage (we have WAY too many shoes!).Thanks so much to everybody on this forum that has helped by giving me tips and inspiration on this and other projects. I only hope that as I gain knowledge and skills that I can share the same with others like so many here have done for me.

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Christmas Crafts

Furnished content.
(from Lumberjocks.com)


I've been making all sorts of projects out of wood for 12 years and never made a dime, except for the time we made a Bear for our local funeral home. I figured I'd be resting on it one day so why not.
My wife and son have recently have gotten into laser engraving and cutting on an Epalog Laser owned by our public library. They made Christmas Ornaments along with college boxes cut out of 1/4” Birch Plywood to sell tomorrow at a church craft fair. The booth space is inexpensive and they drawn fairly large crowds. Along with my wife sisters they plan to become overnight millionaires. They asked if I wanted to make something so I could get rich too. I spent many hours making two items but decided to stay poor and donated them to their cause. At my age I'd be to old to enjoy all that money anyway.
I made the snow men out of scraps and turned them on my lathe. I'm not to good at making the hats look right on their heads so I cut them off with my bandsaw, sanded the top of the head flat and reattached the hat with a dowel. Painted, Polyed, drilled, and covered all my mistakes with glitter. It took forever it seemed till finally they were
done.
I turned the wand out of Cherry and sanded it to 3000 grit on the lathe, smooth as glass. Then used renaissance wax to protect and polish the wand. I used a wood-burner on the end to apply the initials HP. The base was made of scrap left over from a chess board I'm making.
I know this all sounds crazy but I have friends who pay for their tools and shop expenses doing Christmas Crafts Fairs starting around Thanksgiving up to the weekend before Christmas. They make a sizable amount of money. Hopefully my wife will become rich tomorrow and I can retire. Oh, I forget I'm already retired and love to play in my shop.
Thanks for Looking and Merry Christmas.

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Twin Family Tree Vases

Furnished content.
(from Lumberjocks.com)


Twin family tree vases 450 mm high turned from segmented Fijian Kauri. One each for the two family membersComments welcome

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