Try Every Day #24
I make things. A great many things. Ever since I was a child, I had tools in my hand. My dad taught me to swing a hammer with accuracy, use hand saws, drills, screwdrivers… and I started bolting wood together. I made tree houses, go carts, furniture, toys… just about anything I could create out of wood, I tried.
I still make things today, and when I do, I almost never use plans. I just come up with a design, and start making it. Usually, this doesn’t hinder me., but there are many times I have messed up by cutting something out of order or the wrong length, etc. If it’s something complex, I might make a sketch like this and record some rough dimensions.
This is a shoe bench Em asked me for. She has lots of shoes and no convenient place to put them. I drew this for my reference more than anything. I won’t be using any measurements for this one. I’ll just be cutting things referentially… but this bench is going to use a few techniques I’ve never attempted: dovetails on the front rails, and wedged mortise and tenons on the shelves. I’m pretty confident I can make this and it’ll be nice. That’s unusual for me.