Sneak Peek

I am planning on shooting a video of all the interesting woodworking that's gone on behind the scenes in our new house. There is some great timberframing and some fantastic wood. But for now, I figured I'd show some partial shop shots.

And yes, I know that that this is the cleanest it will ever be. I can't wait to get in there and chew up some wood!

You can click on the photos to see larger versions.

Coincidence?

Those of you who have followed the blog for a while know how much work Sue and I put into our old house and workshop. I'm sure it came as a surprise that we left it, and yes, it was in many ways difficult. So I'm very happy to report that we've bought a house and if ever there was a nod towards destiny, here it is.



The house caught my eye because the photos of the interior were so reminiscent of our old place, and sure enough, it is exactly the same layout, only the new house was built in 1800. Basically, it was the house I was trying to build. Plus, it has an attached carriage house and garage that will finally give me that separate space for my dusty tools that I've always wanted.

But here is where it gets weird. This house was part of a chair making operation in the 19th century. There was a mill in the nearby pond and a chair shop across the street. The chair maker lived in the house and to commemorate this, the carriage house walls are lined with the boards from the old chair shop.

Here is the carriage house, as I'm putting down a new floor. The timberframing is done with hand hewn chestnut beams.

And who better to help me finish the floor than Chairnotes pal Seth Weizenecker! Seth came for a visit just in time to help me with the floor and move my shop over. Thanks and sorry Seth!

And yes, this is the last time this floor will look so clean.

Here is the Chairnotes covergirl with the maple in the front yard.

Besides being surrounded by conservation land on all sides, the property has maple for sugaring and of course, room for the goats and chickens.

Here is the new portable goat shed.

While we don't have a pond here, there is a brook that runs across the street where the chair shop was.

We set up the shop and I'll be posting shots soon. Ok, perhaps it's not fate, but it sure feels like home.

The Other Side of the Coin

A former student of mine, Pat Tipton, who has become a great friend has started a blog of his own. In this entry, he talks about taking a class with me many years ago. Pat was in the old basement shop of mine with a pal of his from Texas (that made three Texans in the shop) and they squeezed me for every dime. They stayed every night until 9 pm and on the last night of the class, I finally just went to bed and told them to shut out the lights. They left around midnight. But that's Pat, every day an adventure.


Pat is the guy you'd love to hate. He's good at everything. He's a highly educated and successful professional, has a beautiful family, plus he's a virtuoso musician, a stunt pilot, a farmer, a mechanic and an outstanding craftsman, just to name a few. The problem is that he's so humble and his enthusiasm is so boundless that he's just plain fun to be around. I often say that teaching is the hardest work that I do, but the mere fact that it brings fascinating folks like Pat into my world means that I'll always do more of it. So, lend him an ear, it's good stuff.

If this peaks your interest, there are still openings in the course that I'll be teaching at Highland Woodworking in early November.