Blog

  • June 21, 2024

    The end of the school year feels like a time for change and renewal. It’s when the last ten months is freshest on your mind, despite the fatigue. It’s now when I think about what I want to do next.

  • June 20, 2024

    I’m looking forward to reading this summer. I just don’t read enough.

  • June 19, 2024

    I don’t know if it’s the heat but I’ve been incredibly irritable lately. Working in a 100-year old building, without AC, and about 700 students running through it likely isn’t helping. The air feels like breathing through Parmesan flavoured cotton candy.

    Everywhere I go, in all aspects of my life, I’m frustrated. I’m annoyed. I’m perturbed. Tonight at the workshop, I felt better only after pulling out my hand plane, sharpening the blade, and pushing it along the wood. The thin strips of Walnut were small reliefs from my agitation.

    I had to be careful not to go too far with it, so as not to ruin my work.

  • June 18, 2024

    I gave my grade eight class some pencil boxes today. I often feel like giving gifts to my students at the end of the year, so I do.

    It was amazing to watch them try to put them together. For the most part, they struggled, providing every reason for more STEAM programming. I was shocked at how long it took some of them to figure out. Then, too, why they put the lid on top of the rails instead of between them.

    I made some smaller gifts for my grade seven class tonight, which I’ll give them tomorrow. Students are starting to leave for the summer and I don’t want to miss them.

  • Pen Turning | Brown Mallee Burl with Crushed Flower Petal Inlay

    In today’s video, I turn a Cigar pen using Brown Mallee Burl. This one has a special inlay of crushed flower petals from a wedding we went to last year. This pen is a gift from the wife to her husband on their anniversary. I have got to say, I’m quite pleased with this one.


    Shopify: https://www.sanastationerygifts.com
    Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sanastationerygifts

  • June 16, 2024

    I’m having to remind myself to slow down. I keep rushing to get things done, making costly mistakes.

    I’ve noticed that I’m not looking for the most efficient way to do something, but the fastest. What I need to focus on is doing things well, in a reasonable amount of time.

    Going to the shop over the last few days has been great. I like getting a little bit done each day, often leaving with a problem to think over during the drive home. The time away is important for this.

    I just need to remember to slow down and let things take the time they need.

  • June 16, 2024

    I’m having to remind myself to slow down. I keep rushing to get things done, making costly mistakes.

    I’ve noticed that I’m not looking for the most efficient way to do something, but the fastest. What I need to focus on is doing things well, in a reasonable amount of time.

    Going to the shop over the last few days has been great. I like getting a little bit done each day, often leaving with a problem to think over during the drive home. The time away is important for this.

    I just need to remember to slow down and let things take the time they need.

  • June 15, 2024

    Things were going so well at the shop last night that I didn’t get home until 2! Tonight, I’m struggling a bit more and fighting to get things right. I might leave soon.

  • June 14, 2024

    I’m milling wood today.

  • June 13, 2024

    The end of the school year is just two weeks away, plus a day. This year, more than any other, I’m ready for the summer to be here.

    We went and got ice cream today. We each got a pint, and a cup to eat while walking home. Everything is forgiven until the summer.

  • June 12, 2024

    Last week, I bought a fair bit of wood. If nothing else, I spent a good bit of money on felled trees. That was an entirely new experience for me.

    Because I got the wood, I bought new tools, the big one being a router and router table. I’m having to learn how to use them all.

    I bought a miter lock router bit and I spent a good three hours messing around with it until I ended up with a decently jointing edge.

    I tried milling the Black Walnut on the table saw tonight. It produced a lot of smoke, so I’m going to have to figure out how to fix that.

    All of this to make boxes. I drafted a plan on paper, created a CAD model, and have dreamt of these boxes. It feels like I’m having to learn a lot to get my vision to come together and to do it well. That’s a big part of the challenge that I enjoy so much.