My start to woodworking
For the longest time woodworking was an interest and a necessity. I have always enjoyed building things instead of buying them. The first project I ever completed by myself was my bed frame in college. I was going into my senior and moving into an unfurnished house. The search for bed frames led me to expensive options I could not afford or cheap options that did not seem like they would last. So thus began my first project.
So as a poor college kid I started to drop hints for Santa that I needed woodworking equipment. I was fortunate to receive, what I believe to be the two most essential tools in woodworking, a circular saw and a drill. Now, these did not come from Santa but my loving parents as Christmas and Birthday presents. My new toolbox now consisted of a Dewalt Cordless Drill and a Hitachi Circular Saw
To complete my tool box I added in two more tools, a Swanson Speed Square and a Kreg Jig Pocket Hole Kit. With my new tools I was ready to go. I followed the same steps I use today for any project.
- Research and Sketch
- Dimension and Design
- Parts List and Cut List
- Build!
More on these later!
After a good bit of research I decided to go with a platform bed. A simple design that would be easy to execute with limited resources. I drew up the design and headed off to Home Depot. As I said before I was a poor college kid so the material for this project was pine. Easy to afford and easy to work with, pine was an obvious choice. I decided to use the Kreg Jig to create pocket holes. Even though it was a budget project, I wanted it to be aesthetically pleasing. The Kreg Jig would allow for a secure joint without the presence of exterior screws.
Fast forward a couple of years and woodworking has grown into a passion and business. After the birth of my first daughter I had to adjust to a new sleeping schedule. Like clockwork she was asleep at 8:00 and would wake up at 12:00 for her first bottle of the night. These new late nights created a lot of free time and I decided to pick up woodworking.
Over the past two years I have continued to add equipment to the shop. I already had a few staples collected over the years and then added in a few that are a must for woodworking – especially when working with rough cut lumber. I picked up a new jointer, table saw, and planer. With these three alone you are capable of creating quite a bit of projects and I would put them on a must have list for any project you plan to use rough cut lumber or create jointed edges.
New tools meant new capabilities that meant new projects. I began to tackle bigger and bigger projects leading up to what I consider my favorite projects – table builds. Tables are a great way to showcase craftsman ship and design. You can make them as simple or as intricate as you want. You can stick with simple pocket screws and create a rustic pine table or use biscuit joints and create a beautifully jointed table with no additional hardware. That is the beauty of woodworking – there is something for everyone. Either creating beautifully hand crafted pieces or simple bed frames as long as you can walk away accomplishing your goals and are proud of what you created it is all worth it!
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