sutton046

Creating things with our hands is good for the body, mind and soul. It's good for the brain too. In a former life, I was a Youth & Community Worker. So I love working with people, and have done a lot of work with those who are disadvantaged in some way. Amid the many people I work with today, teaching traditional woodworking hand skills and techniques, there are a number of people who have Acquired Brain Injuries - mostly as a result of road trauma. Car and motorcycle crashes. So we use woodworking as a therapeutic tool to help them rebuild their lives. Dean Kennedy of Francisco Films here in Perth, Western Australia, recently crafted this beautiful little 4 minute video about this aspect of my work. I invite you to view "Woodworking for Life" . Nathan was pretty happy with this lovely table he made!

What is it about the dovetail joint that it seems to have such mystique these days? In the past, it was just a standard every day method of jointing timber. Maybe it is the prevalence of new technologies and techniques better suited to mass production, man-made panel products and flatpacking which has lead to the growing fascination for this traditional joint. Most woodworkers creating dovetail joints nowdays use screaming routers aided by finely machined metal router jigs to cut these joints. Sure, they are sharp and crisp joints, but the journey is just not the same... there is something wonderful about using your hands and traditional hand tools to make a nice dovetail joint. If you are interested in how to cut these joints by hand, I invite you to follow through the process and come with me on the journey. Half-blind dovetails on the top edge of some sheoak bedside cabinets under construction. I am one of those people who does not own a dovetailing rout...