I was asked by a friend of mine for advice on woodworking and after a couple of days of really thinking about it I thought I share some of them here
1 people too often focus too much on the pieces that they lose sight of the piece
Whenever I make a drawer or a box theres always a 1/8 lip left, because I know that can be trimmed down, nothing I make is perfectly dimensional when it first goes together, don’t focus too much on the pieces being the perfect dimensions from the start, if you over shoot and trim to fit you achieve the same result as cutting perfect pieces and assembling them except with a lot higher success rate, just like they say in the film industry, “we can fix it in post” focus on the piece not so much the pieces
2 be flexible
It’s always good to have a end result in mind but don’t let the end goal become so important you feel something failed Because of a mishap, some of the coolest design aspect have come about simply to compensate for a mistake or mishap I made somewhere along the build, so know what you want to build but be flexible enough to where when error demands a clever work around, you don’t see it as a dead end, when approached like that there’s almost no mistake that’ll be the demise of a project
3 use wood that excites you
The pieces you make reflect the excitement you had for building it, if poplar barley arouses a reaction in you, your piece will do the same. And it’s not about the most expensive or rarest, it’s about wood that you look at and just can’t wait to get going and make something from it, weather its soft maple or figured cocobolo, use wood that captivates you and your pieces will do that same in others eyes
4 there’s no such thing as being to meticulous about accuracy and precision when it comes to tools,
I know the gauge says 44.9 but that .1 degree is going to be very frustrating for you! Your calipers should be used equally as often as your tape measure! You may look like a loon checking all 3 axis are perfect square before making a cut but do that and that dumbfounded stare of onlookers, will be the same look they’ll have when looking at what you make
5 always challenge yourself
Sure it may get super easy and quick to build the same thing over and over, but you can lose the passion just as quickly as you can make Another one, always try to incorporate some aspect or technique you’ve never tried or thought of before in every new piece you make regardless of how small or simple, that way as you build the project the project also builds you and your skills and keeps the passion autopilot switch from being flipped on
Those are just what I feel I’ve picked up along the way, and have helped me, hope it helps guide anybody frustrated and looking for tips to guide them through that frustrating part
