Mies van der Rohe said it best- God is in the details. I might be the least religious person I know (too many years of Catholic school) but there are times when I can't help think of that quote when working in my studio.

When I'm designing a piece of furniture, I try to think beyond the nuts and bolts of it. Sure, a desk is just a desk, but I like to include a few details that make a piece a little more special for the person who uses it. If I know someone likes a cup of coffee or tea, I might inlay a small tile into the top of a piece, functioning as a built-in coaster. I once built a media cabinet for a photo journalist, and incorporated a hidden drawer into her piece, perfect for storing some of her prized negatives and prints. (This was before we entered the digital age.)

So I wanted to include something different in this simple table that I've been building. Nothing beats a hidden compartment, and in this case, the compartment is actually a small box that locks into place, but can be removed.

The hidden box is variation of a simple pencil box, with a lid that slides across the top. There are dissenting opinions about whether a box like this should be finished. An oiled box often imparts a slight odor, and can possibly bleed some finish over the years. This doesn't happen often, but because it can occur, some makers prefer to leave their drawer boxes unfinished. So for this piece, I chose to leave the box unfinished.



I like to "lock" these boxes in place, so that it can't fall out when the housekeeper moves it the when vacuuming. A low-tech method for keeping it in place is a small wooden handle. Swing it down, snuggled up to the side of the box, and it's held in place. Even the shape and curve of this little handle lends itself to the task at hand. There is a slight flair at the end, allowing it to be easily grabbed.



When I'm making a commission, I like to send current status photos to the buyer. A shot or two during the process allows for some slight tweaks, if desired. And frankly, I've had some people remark that they've never seen a piece of furniture in various stages of completion. So it allows them to have a better understanding of how it all goes together; it might seem trivial, but it helps explain what I do.



Finally- the top. In this last picture, you can see the slight dip in the tile that I made. It's not much, perhaps a half inch or so. It's as if someone pressed their thumb down into the center, causing that impression. It's perfect for burning a small candle, or placing your watch or ring during a workout. Like the eBay commercial, it's meant to hold "it" - whatever "it" is for you.

One of the most popular pieces I've ever built is this Mahogany table. Many people comment about the legs, in this case, the legs have Oak "socks" on them. It's an interesting little detail, and well worth the trouble.

Gluing end-grain to end-grain (like this) is often risky. End grain doesn't hold glue very well, instead it soaks the adhesive up the pores of the wood, and starves the joint. With this kind of lamination, I use a polyurethane glue, and pre-treat the wood for better adhesion.



Polyurethane glue is moisture activated, so dampening the surfaces that will be joined ensures a better bond. Notice the spray bottle on the left. A quick spritz of water dampens the wood, and later, when they're surfaced and trimmed to length, I'll strengthen that joint even further with a long screw.




I finished the top yesterday, using one of the tiles that is shown below in the last blog post. This photo of the top shows it installed in the top, as well as the additional carving that I did around the perimeter.

Once the legs are finished, I'll make the aprons and assemble the base. This particular table will have wider than normal aprons, as I am planning on installing a secret compartment in this table. I guess it's not so secret any more!

I've been making these small Ritual Tables for a while, they're usually about 16" square and about 36" tall. In the top, I inlay a handmade tile. I used to work with flat tiles, but over time, I found myself bored with them. Experimenting with some plaster molds, I started making tiles with a slight impression in them, perfect for burning a candle or incense, or perhaps holding your watch at the end of the day. Here's a typical table, in fumed White Oak.




I've started experimenting with some more colorful glazes on the tiles, here are a couple of examples of some newer pieces.

These are some lovely test tiles that were unloaded from the kiln yesterday. The blues are vivid and gorgeous, and best of all, this doesn't seem to run on vertical surfaces.

I tested this on 3 different clay bodies, it looks best on a dark clay. On porcelain, it's muddy and yellowish, and reminds me of bodily functions that are best forgotten.

I've been getting some amusing e-mails, asking why I keep writing about ceramics on this wood blog. Let me try to explain...

I love woodworking, but in an attempt to add color to the pieces I build, I've found that the best way is by adding ceramic tile. While much of my focus has been on tile making, I'm discovering that the process of glaze making is quite interesting.

Who knew!?

Formulating my own glazes allows me to add a dimension to my work that is simply amazing. It compliments the wood, much like adding paint to a canvas. Speaking of that, if you look on my website, on the "Custom Tile" page, you'll read about "Doug's Table," one of my favorite pieces. It's pictured here.

Doug was a painter who commissioned me to build a table to display a painting of hers. The painting is protected by a sheet of tempered glass; the table is completely functional. Complimented by the colors in her painting, the mahogany glows. This piece is stunning.

So adding tile isn't the only way to add color to furniture, there are many options. I've experimented with milk paints, worked with aniline dyes, and dabbled in inlay, but I keep going back to the one I like best - handmade ceramic tile.

#7 - RIO 12.5
Rutile 1
Cop. Carb 1.5

#8 - RIO 12.5
Rutile 1
Cobalt Carb .5
(This one runs the least)

#5 - RIO 12.5
Rutile 1
Cop. Carb .5

#6 - RIO 12.5
Rutile 1
Cop. Carb 1

These glazes are all based on the formula for WaterFall Brown, in the book Mastering Cone 6 Glazes by John Hesselberth and Ron Roy. It's an incredible book, worth every penny spent on it.

In fairness to the men who came up with this original glaze, I won't include the base formula. It's hard enough to sell books as it is, so posting their recipe isn't fair. But in their book, they challenged everyone to play with their recipe. I am posting the modifications I tested.

All of these tests were applied to a medium color clay (Long Beach) and like the authors suggest, it runs like crazy. In my next tests, I will experiment with flux levels, to try and
lower the amount of flow on vertical pieces.
All numbers below are based on percentages.







#1 - RIO 5
Rutile 1

#2 - RIO 0
Rutile 1
3195 +3% (29% total)

#3 - RIO 10
Rutile 3

#4 - RIO 10
Rutile 2

While I've never considered myself a ceramist, I have to admit I've learned a good deal about the subject. There are cycles to my madness, I'll read, read, read, only to head to the studio for a month or two of tests.

And then.....more tests!

These glaze samples were recently done, and are quite interesting. The color balance seems to be a bit off when I transfer the images from my camera to this blog. But - the close-up of glaze #1 (below) reveals the merits of slow cooling.

Many thanks to John Hesselberth and Ron Roy for getting me started down the right path. And to the crew at Aardvark Clay for their guidance.

There comes a time in every artist's life when they have to make some decisions about the direction of their work. It's often a hard, confusing time, where financial matters are offset by artistic expression. In some circles, it's known as the big sellout.

Or not.

If attention is paid, an artist will probably remember the piece that sent them to this precipice. I remember mine; it's this newspaper/magazine holder that I made in the late 1980s.

I opened Wood It Is!, a small gallery near Akron, Ohio. My original concept was that we would only feature work from woodworkers. No paintings, ceramics, prints or glass....only wood. And while it was marginally successful, it attracted many woodworkers, who would stop by to chat and check out the competition. It morphed into a woodworking supply store; I sold far more lumber, veneer and inlays than I ever sold furniture. But custom pieces became commonplace. Customers would venture in, look around, and see a piece they wanted, like a desk or a cabinet. But they would want it in a different wood, or a different finish. To stay afloat, I found myself making (and selling) custom pieces, exactly they way the customer wanted them to be made.

The defining moment for me came when a customer commissioned me to build them a small newspaper holder. I came up with a few sketches, none of which they liked. So they came up with their own drawing, I'm not sure who designed it or sketched it on the napkin on which it was presented. And WHAM! the moment was at hand- to build or not to build?

Rent was due, business was slow, and ... and ... I built it.

The big SELL OUT was initiated...

To be continued...

Still in a ceramic mode, but I'll be starting a new piece of furniture shortly.

Meanwhile, enjoy the latest sushi ware.

Couldn't resist putting one more platter here, this is my favorite.


I'll return to writing about wood shortly. Meanwhile, the top image is a porcelain sushi set, complete with serving platter, dishes, soy bowls and sake cups.

The bottom is an individual sushi plate, with it's own soy bowl incorporated into the design. This plate has three feet; I've finally eliminated most of the sagging that occurs during it's final firing in the kiln.

Here are a few results, the top plate is porcelain, and the rest are stoneware. The porcelain did some interesting things, glaze wise.

It's a clay body I've been "auditioning" to become my west coast clay.


Previously, I've only used a clay from ART Studio Clay Company in Wisconsin. I've used their Speckled Brownstone (#125) for over 15 years. It's warm and groggy, and adds something to my tiles that I haven't found in other clays.

Unfortunately, shipping has become so expensive, it's not feasible for me to ship the clay here. I'm lucky, there are some excellent sources for clay right here in Las Vegas.

For the past few years, I've become very interested in making dinnerware sets. I use slump molds for most of the tiles I make, where a slab of wet clay is draped over a plaster shape. It's an easy transition to go from tile making into making dinner plates. Our cupboards are filled with handmade dishes, bowls, mugs and serving pieces. And our love of sushi has led me down another path- making the perfect sushi plate.

Japanese food is the epitome of simplicity, yet requires a good deal of "stuff" at the table. Beside a dinner plate, you'll need a small dipping bowl for soy sauce, and perhaps a small rest for your chopsticks. And let's not forget the sake!

So even a meal for just two people can fill up a small table top.

The plaster mold I use to make a dinner plate involves a small recess, which creates a perfect place to pour a bit of soy sauce. To create that recess, I needed a way to create a shallow recess in the plaster mold... hence... the drill bit I developed and wrote about in my last post. I have a few of these molds, some even include a long groove that forms a chopstick rest. I haven't decided if I like the look of that yet, I'm still playing with it's location depth.

Notice on the plaster mold above, there is a blue line marking where the slot is located. Once the slab of clay is applied, it's difficult to find the slot. So everything needs to be properly marked before the clay goes on it.

Here is one of the sushi plates, awaiting glaze.


There are several of these plates cooling in the kiln right now. Resisting the urge to peek inside is quite difficult! You're not supposed to open the kiln until it's cooled to under 200˚. I've found it's best for me to stay away from my studio, and find something else to do.

A few years ago, I attended a seminar given by Garrett Hack. Anyone who reads Fine Woodworking magazine is probably familiar with Garrett's woodworking, as well as the articles he writes on tools and techniques. In some circles, he's as well known for his custom tool making skills as he is for the Federal-style modern furniture he builds. He spends a lot of time traveling the country, giving seminars and teaching. A true Renaissance man.

Inspired from his seminar, I've spent more time lately with handtools, enjoying the process as much as the end result. Owning good tools shouldn't be a luxury; quality tools make working with wood much easier. When building a set of eight dining room chairs, I machined roughly 60 tenons per chair. While the Powermatic Mortiser made easy work of the mortises, the tenons required a little touchup during the final fitting, especially the shoulders. Lee Valley Tools makes a wonderful shoulder plane that worked perfectly for all the tenon clean up.

Which brings me back to Garrett Hack and his toolmaking. If I took nothing away from his lecture, it was this: if you can't find the tool you want, figure out a way to make one. He includes many simple inlays in his work, and often builds handtools that help with this process. It's fascinating to see the steps he goes though, and the end result is simple, yet adds a formality to work.

I recently had to drill some wide but shallow holes in plaster. There was no commercial bit available for the profile I wanted, so my next thought was to alter the shape of a spade bit. Still, the sizes of spade bits available to me weren't going to be big enough. I sketched a few shapes, and made some full sized patterns to decide which profile worked best for me.

By attaching a cutter to a spade bit, I was able to accomplish something important to the design of this bit. The length of the pilot tip on a standard spade bit was too long, so positioning the cutter lower (to the tip) allowed me to shorten the pilot length considerably. Here are a few versions of the bit I made; they perform beautifully, and I'm now experimenting with some different shapes to add to my tool arsenal.

Next post... you'll see where I used these bits.

Whenever I see stories in the news about people who have to evacuate their homes, I wonder what I would take with me. Sometimes people have advance warnings, like with hurricanes. But in the case of wildfires or tornados, there is little time to pack. News programs show people throwing clothing in suitcases, along with family photos and valuable paperwork.

I know what I would take - my sketchbooks.

Ever since I was a college Art major, I've kept a sketchbook. I don't remember which college professor gave the lecture about sketchbooks, but his ideas have stuck with me over the years. He had a few tips about sketchbooks- like attaching an envelope inside the cover, so that you always have a place to keep random important bits of paper. It's an easy way for me to keep track of business cards, pictures of interesting things, receipts, etc. And he suggested using a hardbound book as a sketchbook, rather than a spiral notebook, where you might be tempted to rip a page out if you didn't like something you'd drawn. That makes a lot of sense; a drawing of something today might not interest you, but in a different situation, it might work perfectly.

I've kept all pf my sketchbooks since 1980. The collection has gotten so big, I've had to place a sticker on the outside of them, dating them, to keep them in order. I keep all of them in a bookcase in my woodshop, where it's easy to locate something in them.

Over the years, my sketchbook has become a "filing cabinet in a book." When I finish one book, and start with a new one, it takes a little preparation. I paste a sheet with phone numbers of all my suppliers, so that no matter where I am, I can make a quick call to find a price or learn about availability. I also keep a current price list of the woods and hardware that I often use. (I keep it stored in my computer, and update it periodically.) This makes it really easy for me to come up with a price when a client asks me to design something. The list includes current lumber and plywood prices, as well as hardware, like hinges, lid supports, levelers, drawer glides, and so on. So the sketchbook isn't just about sketches, it stores a lot of current information that I need.

Some of the students that used to take woodworking classes with me have complained that they can't draw. I used to think it was a talent you either had, or didn't. But I've had a change of mind. When I was younger, I could barely draw a simple sketch. It's a skill I've learned, and one that needs to be practiced in order to get better.

A few years ago, I attended a design seminar at Anderson Ranch, in Aspen, Colorado with Rosanne Somerson. The first couple of days, we did nothing but sketch, sketch, sketch, and sure... we all groaned about it. But one particular drill that we did was fantastic.

I nicknamed it the "60/60" drill.

You take a simple object, anything will work. I used a plastic case that holds drawing leads for my mechanical pencil. Using a minute timer, you do 60 quick sketches, allowing only one minute for each one. Yes, that's 60 drawings in 60 minutes.

If you're groaning, don't. It isn't as bad as it sounds. Oh sure, I struggled with the first 15 or so drawings; I was trying to put too much detail in them. Just when the drawing was taking shape, the timer would ring and we had to stop. I'd start up again with that same level of detail, only to be stopped again. But when I hit the 20th sketch, something magical happened. All of a sudden fluidity and abstraction crept into my drawing. There were about 10-20 sketches in that middle period that brought out something I can't even describe in my drawing skills. A freedom, if you will.

Every now and then, when I'm stuck on a design that I am working on, I do that same exercise with a photograph of something similar to my design. It frees up my design mind- I don't get stuck on the minutia of joints or dimensions, but rather- this allows my eyes and my sense of scale and proportion to take over. It's liberating.

You should try it- I promise it's not as bad as it sounds.

It's all about the playlists.

Anyone who owns an iPod knows what I mean. This is the most important shelf in my studio- the one that holds my iPod (and a few first aid items).



You set up playlists for various situations, for moods you want to create. Personally, I have about 8 different playlists, corresponding to various shop tasks. Lay-out, measuring and gluing boards all require mellow music, so that my concentration isn't interrupted.

But when it's time to sand, you can probably hear the music playing from a block away. It can't be loud enough, nor fast enough.

Here are a few tunes on some various playlists:

Mellow stuff

• Heartbeats - Jose González
• 9 Crimes - Damien Rice
• Send in the Clowns - Judy Collins
• Safe and Sound - Sheryl Crow
• In the Deep - Bird York
• Car on a Hill - Joni Mitchell
• Jung at Heart - Master Cylinder
• Rain - Patty Griffin
• Venetian Blue - Shawn Colvin
• Because I told you so - Jonatha Brooke
• Breathe Me - Sia

Sanding music

• Run to you - Bryan Adams
• Lose Yourself - Eminem
• She's a Bitch - Missy Elliot
• It's getting Hot in Here - Nelly
• The Long Way Around - Dixie Chicks
• Don't Fear the Reaper -Blue Oyster Cult
• The Middle - Jimmy Eat World
• Middle of the Road - the Pretenders
• Ain't Nobody - Chaka Khan
• Brown Eyed Girl - Van Morrison

What are your top ten?

What do coffee mugs have to do with woodworking?

There are two things that I can't do without in my studio- good music, and a good cup of coffee. When my favorite mug was recently broken, I wrote to the potter who made it, asking if there were any more that I could purchase. No luck.

So I've been on a quest to make the perfect mug. Here are a few recent ones, the kiln is cooling as I type this and there should be another batch of mugs tomorrow. You can see the glaze samples hanging on the back wall, offering some ideas about color combinations.

To me, working with clay is MUCH harder than working in wood. Wood is forgiving, and any mistakes made along the way can be corrected as a piece is being built. Not so with clay.

If you're lucky enough to have a pot that survives making and trimming it, you still have a couple of firings, not to mention the glazing process itself. It's often frustrating, but completely addicting.

I like my mugs without handles, there's a pleasant interaction between holding the mug and enjoying what it holds. In cooler temps, it's a nice way to keep your hands warm. And I like my mugs to be big, much bigger than most coffee cups. Once my coffee slightly cools to that perfect temperature, I often find myself at the bottom of the cup. So a larger mug works out well.

Next... we'll talk about music in the woodshop...

Stella, the Official Woodshop Guard Dog