Forums
Tommy and Al Face Down the Blizzard of 2010
Tommy and Al receive an unexpected addition to their stock pile, thanks to the December Blizzard of 2010.
A Special Holiday Greeting
Happy Holidays, from everyone here at ThomasJMacDonald.com! To prove that they're taking the Season 2 preparations seriously, here's Tommy and Al with a special holiday message.
Multi-Leg Tapering Jig and Curved Leg Jig Videos
Two more videos in Tommy's Basic Table Construction Series are now up! Check out how to use a multi-leg tapering jig for mass "production" of tapered legs on the thickness planer. The other video is how to use a curved leg jig, similar to the curved jig for the rail...
Steve Brown to Host A Second Demonstration at MFA, Boston
In case you missed the first one, North Bennet Street School instructor and Rough Cut guest Steve Brown is scheduled to host another demonstration at the Boston Museum of Fine Arts tomorrow (Wednesday), from 5:30-8:00pm. Steve will be demonstrating techniques used in...
Gift Guide for Mere Mortals!
Our friend Steve Ramsey over at Woodworking for Mere Mortals put together this helpful video intended for the spouse of the family woodworker struggling for gift ideas. Steve's suggestion? Leave this window open on your computer for the spouse to "stumble upon." Then...
Two New Table Construction Videos
Be sure to check out the two new videos on the Basic Table Construction project page! In the videos, Tommy walks us through cutting a nice curve into the rail for the table and using a tapering jig to create tapered legs. Enjoy!
Steve Brown to Hold Demo at Boston MFA Sunday
Steve Brown will be holding an Artist Demonstration tomorrow (Sunday) at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, from 12-3pm. Steve is the Head of the Cabinet and Furniture-making Department at the North Bennet Street School, Tommy's alma mater. He's also a guest of Tommy's...
Tommy Featured in Fine Woodworking Magazine
Congrats to Tommy for making the cover of next month's Fine Woodworking magazine. Subscribers will be greeted by Tommy's mug in the mail around December 21st. The cover story delves into Tommy's Early American Blanket Chest project with router-carved panels. Want to...
Growing as an Amateur Woodworker: Chapter 3
Chapter 3: Researching Full Blind Mitered Dovetails The Internet has lots of information out there on cutting Full Through and Half-Blind Dovetails. Tommy’s “How To” has a nice tutorial on the subject within his videos for the Step Stool and Tool Box projects....
What Does a Chair Know?
I stumbled upon this editorial piece on the Furniture Society website that I thought worth sharing. The writer ponders the question,"What do artists know?" but the more interesting notion explored is that of the artist passing on knowledge through the object or piece...
Up From the Ashes
Like the phoenix she is rising. In an earlier Blog post I recounted my episode with oily rags and the damage the resultant flames cast upon my garage workshop. It’s been four months now and things are starting to get back to normal. After moving all of my major power...
Happy Thanksgiving!
We hope everyone has a great Thanksgiving with family, friends or both. Remember: You're carving the turkey, not milling it. And there's no need to have a #4 bench plane at the dining room table. It has no place in the setting. Keep it in the shop! If anyone out there...
Growing As An Amateur Woodworker: Chapter 2
Chapter 2: Self-Imposed Limitations Have you ever had the thought,“If I had this particular tool or this size shop, I could build this project?” I know that I have. Many times I delayed or decided to not build a project because I felt that I needed a special tool or a...
Woodworking and the Dunning-Kruger Effect
Originally I had planned this blog post to be about the Dunning-Kruger effect and how it manifests itself in woodworking forums and woodworking conversations in general. (Before you continue reading, check out the above link for a quick primer on the Dunning-Kruger...
Glass Panel Contest – Win a Trip to Italy
Want to take a paid trip for two to Italy? All you need to do is win the Woodcraft and Freud Creative Glass Panel Contest. The contest entry must be a customized glass panel rail & stile project with extended tenons. Detailed photos are to be submitted to...
Growing as an Amateur Woodworker: The Comfort Zone
Chapter 1: Stepping out of the “Comfort Zone” Are you stuck in a rut? Do you build the same thing over and over again, using the same joinery techniques, afraid to venture into uncharted territory? Are you resting in your Comfort Zone or do you try to learn and...
Happy Veterans Day
A quick note to wish everyone a Happy Veterans Day. A big Thank You to all the men and women who served, and continue to serve, in our armed forces. If you missed the latest episode of Rough Cut in which Tommy visits the USS Constitution and makes a Flag Box, you can...
Tommy Visits Woodcraft Store Opening
While in Ohio for the WIA, Tommy found time to check out the grand opening of a new Woodcraft store in Cincinnati. Surrounding him are store staff members. That funny wood carving on his left leg is a bust of absent employee Dusty Hillman, carved by Norb Hartman. Nice...
Shop Safety Question: Why Worry About Oily Rags?
One of the Forum users emailed me this short narrative and asked to put it up in the blog. This is pretty much everyone's worst nightmare. A cautionary tale that all should take the time to read: This past summer, after applying some Danish Oil to a project, I made...
The Dragon of Good Luck
Tommy watches as a dragon, symbolizing good luck, opens the 2010 Woodcraft show in Hawaii.
Chair Building Skill Challenge
Tommy visits the Woodcraft store in Hawaii where one of their events is a chair building competition. Take a look as Tommy inspects the work and talks with the organizer.
Revisiting a Classic
There's a restaurant I like to frequent with a large, framed poster in the bathroom that is strategically positioned to allow a visitor a solid minute to take in its contents. I always linger when I'm in there, as the poster is of a truly amazing piece of woodworking:...
Tommy in Hawaii!
Tommy, the jet-setter, makes his way to Honolulu, Hawaii for a local Woodcraft show. Have a look!
A Frightening Woodworker Parody
Want a good Halloween scare? Check out Steve (of Woodworking for Mere Mortals fame) Ramsey's "Celebrity Woodworkers' Halloween Episodes" video below. Steve "does" Norm and Tommy (not a bad job on the accent) as well as a couple others you might recognize. Even Eli...
The Powers of Ten: A Reflection
On Sunday we observed an extraordinary date that called to mind the Powers of Ten. It was the 10th day in the 10th month in the year 2010: 10-10-10. That’s a lot of Tens. Charles and Ray Eames--20th Century designers, furniture makers and artists--produced a short...
Tommy Meets Youngest Woodworker In America?
At the recent Woodworking In America show, Tommy and the folks at the Woodcraft booth were paid a special visit by woodworkers Sophia Barry and her father Ed. What made the visit so special was the fact that Sophia--with two years of woodworking experience under her...