Books

The Why & How of Woodworking

Posted on by 00heights

Michael Pekovich, The Why & How of Woodworking, Taunton Press, 2018

pekovich

When most of us say we’ve been working on a project for six months, what we probably mean is that we spent five and a half months of that time not working on it. When I’m asked how can I get so much woodworking done with such a busy schedule, the most important reason is that I make a point to go into my shop just about every day. That rarely means a full day and often means as little as 15 minutes or so. The important thing is to get in there. No matter how slowly a project may feel like it’s progressing, it will be moving forward if you continue to chip away at it.

Making Shoji

Posted on by 00heights

Toshio Odate, Making Shoji, Linden Publishing, 2000

makingshoji

Many craftsmen I know believe that the mechanics of exposed joints spoil the aesthetic value of interior woodworking. What I have mentioned here is a small detail of the Japanese woodworking tradition, but it is an important key to understanding Japanese aesthetic values and Japanese attitudes.

Greene & Greene Furniture : Poems of Wood & Light

Posted on by 00heights

David Mathias, Greene & Greene Furniture : Poems of Wood & Light, Popular Woodworking Books, 2010

The Greene & Greene design vocabulary is rich and varied with a number of well-recognized elements. Among the best known are cloud lifts, ebony pegs and bread board ends.

Greene & Greene were obsessive in their pursuit of detail nirvana. They would expend thought, effort and their clients’ money on elements that few but the servants would ever see. The backs of cabinets are prepared and finished with the same care as the fronts.

 

Classic Chinese Furniture

Posted on by 00heights

ClassicChineseFurniture

Wang Shixiang, Classic Chinese Furniture, Joint Publishing Co., 1986

In classic Chinese furniture there are two basic forms: that without an inset panel between the top and apron and that with an inset panel, known in China as the waistless and the waisted forms respectively. Waistless furniture, such as the narrow table and the recessed-leg table, is very ancient and already existed in Shang (16th-11th century BC) and Zhou (11th century-221 BC) times. Waisted furniture appeared much later.

Chinese Domestic Furniture

Posted on by 00heights

ChineseDomesticFurnitureGustav Ecke, Chinese Domestic Furniture, Dover Publications, 1986

No wooden pins, unless absolutely necessary; no glue, where it may be avoided; no turning wheresoever – these are three fundamental rules of the Chinese cabinet-maker.

One possible explanation to this particular joinery trend is the wood they used at that time. The most highly praised woods for Chinese furniture are Zitan, Huanghuali and Hongmu. They are all rosewood in some sense. One of the characteristics to tropical hardwood including rosewood is high oil content. Gluing oily wood is not an easy matter even with modern PVA glue. If gluing is not available, wooden pin could be useless due to seasonal wood movement. It would eventually loose and fall out. Hardware fastener is another solution here, but there were no screws at that time. Also, hand-forged nail could split the wood and be loosed over the time. Therefore, interlocked wood-only joinery could be a solution.