Lately, many projects have been created as presents; the latest note pad was a gift to the boss of the house we work in. It is simply time to make something self indulgent. So, here is our toy aeroplane.Some of my friends will not be able to make sense of what we are making. Others…
Naughty Fun Making a rubber band gun is a bit of a dilemma. Is it an encouragement for naughty behaviour? Is it a precursor for violent solutions to problems? As a child, the rubber band guns I made were delicious! Mum didn’t like them; that made them more fun! I didn’t shoot dogs or people;…
A woodwork project with children led me to revisit Sam’s basket as an Easter project. Here it is with a bit of upholstery and a few eggs in side. Modifications Making this with dexterous children allowed a few modifications to the original method.The skewers that we laboriously drilled for and hammered in could be simple…
Inspired by a Grand-daughter Rites of passage require Grandma and Grandpa to stay overnight and be responsible parents again. We were responsible for a wondrous darling born at just 25 weeks, but now 20 months old, crawling with a formula 1 ego and on the brink of walking. Revisiting parenthood for 24 hours was a…
Three Variations of the Same Theme There is a tradition in Melbourne secondary schools that has twelve year olds in their first woodwork lessons making a pencil case. Regardless of how ordinary the results may be, these things end up with magnificent decoration. During boring lessons they are canvas for expression of everything from undying…
What Do You Like? Not liking hammers doesn’t make you a freak. It gives you the opportunity to like something else. One of my friends has trouble concentrating for more that a couple of minutes. He will stop work, stand up and walk away! Hammering, sanding and lacquering just don’t hold him. BUT, when he…
Sharing with Good People Sam is a wonderful helper in my disability woodwork lessons. This basket is her idea. She rattled her head until the idea came then generously passed it on to me. Woodwork is fascinating and sharing it is rewarding. BUT the reward is doubled when people in the workshop are enthusiastic. When the enthusiasm is…
The clock has been a gentle construction. However, it is about time my friends had some rattle, bang and thump in their work. Using a hammer to thump things together is lots of fun. But our giggles are really a response to mutual trust as we care for each other’s fingers and enjoy each other’s company. This is…
My friends were impressed by the notion that our train’s carriages could be hooked together and towed around. It failed, however, in that each woodworker could only take home a single carriage; they had nothing to tow. At the end of the train project, and experiencing a flush of overconfidence, I asked staff for inspiration. They requested a fire…
This project was perfect for batch production; the pieces are simple and can be cut in multiples. BUT, the coolest part of all is that when it was done we put our carriages together and created a train of inspiring proportions. We used our usual techniques of dowel hammered into holes that are 0.5mm too small….