Hot Furniture & Woodworking Posts

How To: Build a gadget station

Most people have tons of gadgets laying around the house these days, and they all need to be charged. Let the Wood Whisperer take you through the process of building a gadget station for all your favorite electronics. From laptops to cell phones, this gadget station will hold them all. Be sure to watch the entire 12-part tutorial from beginning to end for the whole experience.

How To: Avoid accidents in the workshop

One thing you should do every time you approach a tool is think of the worst-case scenarios. Its a bit gruesome to let your imagination take you there, but there is a good reason for it. This simple mental exercise not only raises your awareness of the potential dangers, but essentially shows you exactly what you need to do to prevent injury. This how to video walks you through potential dangers in the workshop and how you can avoid each one.

How To: Use a tablesaw

Whenever I have a new student in the shop, I try to convey what if feels like when something is going wrong on the tablesaw. This may seem like an abstract idea, but knowing how to identify a problem before it goes too far could give you that extra second or two you need to prevent disaster. This woodworking video tutorial reviews common safety items for a table saw and how to use a tablesaw properly.

How To: Apply Edge Banding to Plywood

Plywood is flat, stable, and comes in lots of varieties. You can even use your plywood as a base for exotic veneers. But there is a consistent problem with plywood: how to treat the edges. This how-to video teaches you how to apply edge banding so it will hold up to wear and tear. All you need is iron edge banding, roller, sandpaper and an utility knife.

How To: Make a water based finish look like it's oil based

How do you make a water based finish look more like oil-based finish. Its a common problem since water-based finishes are "water-white", which means they don't impart any color to the wood. This can be great in certain situations, but not so great when you want your project to have that warm glow to it. In this woodworking tutorial, you will learn how to use dye, shellac, and boiled linseed oil to try to spice up our water-based finish.

How To: Apply a desert resistant finish door

Outdoor finishes can be one of the trickiest types of wood finishes to master. Why? Because there is never a one size fits all solution. As woodworkers, we are used to dealing with the seasonal wood movement of our interior pieces. But when one of our creations is destined to live outside, there is much more to consider. Depending on your region's climate, your project could experience anything from snow and ice to hot desert sand storms. How the heck do we prepare for that?!?! Well, it is st...

How To: Build wooden cabinet boxes

Do you want to learn how to build cabinets? Watch this five-part video tutorial for the basics of cabinet making using wood. Part one demonstrates the basics of making cabinet boxes from sheet goods while part two goes over how to cut the deck and stretchers for European-style frame less cabinets. Part three shows all the tools and some of the techniques you can use to apply edge banding. Finally, parts four and five demonstrates how to assemble to the cabinet carcass.

How To: Apply wood stain

Tim Carter demonstrates how to stain wood to get the color you want. Watching these video tips allows you to be able to apply wood stain to match almost any color. If you get the right color stain and apply it properly, your new piece of wood will match color-wise and allow the grain of the wood to show through.