Saturday, March 15, 2014

Analysis Paralysis... oh no, not again...



In one of my last posts, I mentioned a dresser I'd started. I actually had a few days off, so I spent some time making the various components. I couldn't decide precisely where I wanted to add this bottom stretcher, so I cut a few blocks at different lengths, and experimented until I achieved the look I wanted. 


If this were a house it, it would be considered "stick building" - which means something built on site, piece by piece.


That's the way dresser is turning out - I had a vague notion of dimensions and what I wanted the piece to hold, but no set plan for the details. 

It's not the fastest way to build a piece, but it makes you think, every step of the way. 




Once all the pieces for the main carcass were cut and domino-ed into place, I had a head scratching moment. Every time I worked out one design in my head, I'd discard it for another design. Too many choices!

Some woodworkers might be familiar with feeling like this - it's called Analysis Paralysis. And I had a bad case of it last week. I put the half-finished piece on a cart and rolled it into a corner - I needed a break!

Sometimes it's a good idea to just walk away. Grab a cup of coffee. Think about things. 

I've painted myself into a corner, and the best solution is to sketch my way out. The thing about sketching - some people hate it, or they say they're not good at it. But it's good way to work out design problems. And the cheapest way, too. Why waste wood?

So I took some measurements and came up with a scaled drawing of what I'd built.  I cut and pasted a few of these "blanks," so that I could play with some different designs. 


Then I sharpened my pencil...

Stay tuned....



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