Relationships

Sometimes I worry our students tire of me talking about the relationships in our work. Relationships between, the wood, the tools, and the details, yes, but it’s more than that… 

Its a cool, but sunny Sunday morning on the island. We have just finished our second week of the fall term, and Yvonne is out for her morning walk. I thought it a good time to talk about relationships. 

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She has been my partner in life and work for more than thirty years, and each day I feel so grateful for her presence in my life. Building a school together for a second time, it has been all about our relationship with each other, and our new environment. When we made the move late last fall, I wrote in my notebook that I hoped that the new school would be intimate and inspiring, which I think it is. Perhaps now I understand more importantly, that it has a good feel. Yvonne has put her work boots aside, with some hesitation I might add, and has begun the dovetail joinery on a small box of French walnut. The grain is very fine and a joy to work. We purchased the log a few years back and it has been used in a few very special pieces at the school.

Our students are making fine progress and discovering  their own relationships in their own work. 

James has all of the pieces for his chair selected, broken out, rotated and settling. The white oak he is using is the nicest I have ever seen. A few years ago we purchased two and then another three planks from a massive tree through A & M Wood Specialty in Cambridge Ontario. The tree was harvested locally there and has wonderful grain and colour, and was dried carefully, thus a joy to work.

Matt, finished the joinery on the upper rails of his side assemblies. He has selected, cut, shaped and has nearly dialled in the shoulder to fit the curve of the upper leg. This piece was underway when the lights went out last year. I find it can be difficult to get back into a piece after being away from it for a while. After some of the initial excitement for the piece has faded away. The progress made this past week has allowed him to reconnect with this piece, and the work shows it. The woods selected, both the gondola Alves and the pacific yew have aged so beautifully together.  

I began my week fitting my back piece to the case. I used my small vera jointer on its side on the bench, and gently sheered the sides and ends away to a fit. Enjoyable work.

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With the back piece fit. I came in the next morning and spent some time with Jim’s Stenberg tablesaw, since the move out here I have not used the sliding table, and was in need of adjustment. It really is such a simple, well made machine. I crosscut the doors to a not quite fit off the saw and returned to my bench. With the doors carefully supported in my tail vice, I planed them to a slip fit and with the back piece in place I marked the hinge placement. 

As I was fitting them to the cabinet I noticed a tiny bit of wind between them and how they relate to the cabinet. While this is to be expected given the wood, the time, and of course the very human element involved. Do I pull the two corresponding hinges ahead? And how does this effect the relationship between the door and the front edge of the sides? top and bottom? The side rabbet helps here yes, but will you see it? I am happy with the shape of my door, and the surfaces are fine, do I want to revisit the rabbet and plane the doors where they meet? Perhaps both, pull the hinges ahead just enough that adjustment of the doors will be slight. So much to think about on my afternoon walk in the woods.

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On Thursday morning, after my morning lecture, I feel relaxed and ready to set the hinges into the doors. While cutting the dovetails and cleaning out the corners of the rabbet I had discovered just how brittle the brown oak is. However, with a light touch, sharp chisel and bit of patience the work was almost mediative.
Be well and enjoy your work,
Robert