Highland Staff

Am I a Woodworker?

Nov 192019
 

In the November 2019 issue of Wood News Online, Jason Hicban asks a question many of us might have asked ourselves while standing in front of a workbench: “Am I a Woodworker?” Is there a threshold you cross at some point where you have learned enough skills to officially call yourself a woodworker, or is it just the attempt to assemble something with your hands out of natural materials all you need to qualify for the title?

I never considered myself a woodworker. Growing up, I had always been creative. I quickly learned and loved to draw and paint, but was never exposed to anything like woodworking, BUT, I always liked to “tinker”.

Click to read the rest of Jason’s article

Videos: Western & Japanese Style Hand Saws

Nov 152019
 

Are you not sure of the differences between Western-Style Hand Saws and Japanese-Style Hand Saws, or can’t figure out which one is best for your woodworking?

Watch the videos below, and learn the types of Hand Saws you should consider for hand cut joinery woodworking, including dovetails and tenons, carcass work, and regular crosscutting and ripping of boards. You’ll get an overview of the differences in blades and types of saw teeth so you can better understand the choices available and choose the perfect hand saw for your shop.

November Poll: When it Comes to Woodworking, What Are You Thankful For?

Nov 012019
 

It’s November and that means at the end of the month it’ll be Thanksgiving. Here at Highland Woodworking, we are very thankful for our customers. It is thanks to YOU that we have been around for over 40 years and are able to provide woodworking resources and education to you all.

As we all know, woodworking takes patience, skill, and sometimes good ol’ blood, sweat and tears. If you have the patience to spend an hour hand sharpening a new set of chisels, that is something to be thankful for! You haven’t even gotten to start on the “fun” part of actually making something, which will likely also take patience and time before you have a final product.

This month’s poll asks “what are you most thankful for when it comes to woodworking?” The answers listed are just a few we thought of, feel free to add your own as an “other” comment!

Down to Earth Woodworker: The Future of Woodworking

Oct 312019
 

In this classic series by Steve Johnson, the Down to Earth Woodworker, Steve looks at some possibilities for what woodworking will be like in the future, and how we can all help keep our craft alive.

Click to read The Future of Woodworking

Upgrade Your Shop with Festool’s New Releases

Oct 242019
 

An updated Kapex KS 120 REB Sliding Compound Miter Saw. A new Festool Cordless Angle Grinder AGC 18. A cordless version of the Festool Vecturo Oscillating Tool. And more!

Festool has come out with some great new releases this October. Watch the video below to learn more about the new Kapex, and click to find out more about the other new tools from Festool.

A New Episode of The Highland Woodworker!

Oct 222019
 

We are excited to announce that the latest episode of The Highland Woodworker was just released. This one features an amazing master woodworker and woodturner named Al Christopher. You won’t believe the work he has produced. He even offers a demonstration for how he turns a handled pitcher out of one piece of wood!

Andrew Zoellner from Popular Woodworking offers a couple of great tricks for making complicated workshop calculations easy to figure out.

And Chuck sits back with the newest issue of Mortise & Tenon magazine, a woodworking magazine that belongs on the shelves of every woodworker.

Sit back and take a look at another great episode!

Book Review: The Difference Makers

Oct 182019
 

For the October issue of Wood News Online, Norm Reid reviewed Marc Adam’s new Lost Art Press offering, The Difference Makers:

This book is much more than a collection of superlatives of the creative arts. It is, rather, an exploration of the creative spirit itself, of the lives, the life influences, the motivations of a group of master creators in the medium of wood. Ultimately, it seeks to uncover the forces that have driven these artists to succeed at artistic perfection.

Read the rest of the review

Purchase your own copy of The Difference Makers

Click this link for more great woodworking books to read