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Holy crap it is hot! I hope you all are staying cool and hydrated. Take breaks and naps as needed, for real. Heat can be dangerous, and, like all woodworkers, we believe in safety first, last, and everywhere in-between.

That said, there is a lot going on in the next few months that you all should take advantage of! Here is a quick list of upcoming things going on:

• Japanese Woodworking NYC Meetup at Nihonsan Tools and Hardware - This Thursday, July 11th, 6-8 pm, 300 7th Street, Brooklyn, in the basement of the BBFL building. Please note this is the new location, and the meetups will be held here from now forward. Also, for anyone interested, join us for tea or coffee and Japanese food in the new food court upstairs from Nihonsan from 5-6 pm!! Any questions let me know at info@nihonsantools.com.

• Maine Japanese Woodworking Festival - July 26 - 29, Mercer Maine. This annual event is chock-full of fun and educational hands-on opportunities to deepen your knowledge of Japanese woodworking and to become part of a growing community of folks doing the same. Folks might be carpooling from the city if needed, and registration is closing soon so check it out now if you are interested!

• Finishing AMA ("Ask me anything") at Makeville Studio - July 18th, 6-8 pm, free, 125 8th Street, Brooklyn. While not specific to Japanese woodworking, join woodworker Eddie O'Donnel as he hosts an AM on all things finishing! Bring all the questions you are afraid to ask about finishing your projects. 

Sign up now for our upcoming sharpening hand tools class!

• Introduction to Sharpening Hand Tools - Tuesday July 16th, 6-8 pm, Nihonsan Tools. Join Will O'Connor as he teaches participants how to sharpen their hand tools using Japanese water stones. The class is capped at 8 students so register now!

If you have ideas for other Japanese woodworking events you would like to see us focus on, just let us know, and hope to see you at some of those listed above!

-Joe Samalin
info@nihonsantools.com

Like many hobbies, hand-tool woodworking can demand a lot of focus, and it’s easy to get caught up in a kind of infinite regression. To make this table, I’ll need to cut joinery. To cut joinery, I’ll need to mark joinery. To mark joinery, I’ll need milled stock. To mill stock, I’ll need stock. Not to mention tools, sharpening, joinery techniques, etc. It can be hard to find a clear path through all these challenges, especially when you’re just getting started.

For me, this complexity can get even more overwhelming when it’s a client project. I find myself at the start of five different task lists, but now with added deadline and financial pressures. And so I have a mantra that I use again and again: ‘Begin at the beginning.’

Too many clamps? No such thing.

And, yep, you’ve got to start somewhere. I pick a task and get started. For me, the sequence goes: design, milling (i.e. stock prep), marking, joinery, assembly, and finishing. Each of these sequence steps can then be broken down into tasks, which hopefully are much more specific and concrete. The sequence stays the same, but the tasks are specific to the project, the tools at hand, and my knowledge and skills. If anything is lacking to get the task completed, then that’s another opportunity to hone a skill or learn a technique. Each project, each task, each day, they all represent beginnings, and so I get started.

The full quote that this little mantra comes from is from Lewis Carroll’s Alice in Wonderland, when the King of Hearts tells the Rabbit to “Begin at the beginning, and go on till you come to the end: then stop.” 

It’s comforting to know that, with all the subtlety and refinement of Japanese hand-tool woodworking, the practice never really comes to an end.

See you Thursday at the Meetup!

-Will O'Connor
will@makegoodwood.com