We have just finished our first week of the new spring session at the school. With five returning students in the advanced programs, collectively known as the Apprenticeship program, it is shaping up to be an exciting term with many different projects in the mix.
Jesse and Danielle on their Perfect Boards
For the Upward Spiral students, this week has been focused on reacquaintance with their hand planes, flattening and squaring a piece of Eastern Hard Maple by hand in the Perfect Board Exercise. It is a challenging and often frustrating task, but pays off with a deeper understanding and skill with our most essential of hand tools.
Jesse scrubs a piece of English Walnut for his cabinet
At the same time, material for projects is being pondered and selected, with the graphics of grain and colour the foremost consideration. It is a very exciting time with boards being opened up, first cuts being made. I am so looking forward to seeing these beautiful woods transform.
Rotating the grain – “Impractical Millwork”
As a central focus in our work, we introduce the concepts of grain graphics to our Impractical Studies students in their very first week at the school – how the different cuts of wood display their grain in various ways, and how to rotate the grain to yield graphics that work with our intentions for each piece.
Grain following the curve of the Gumby Leg
In the Gumby Leg exercise, the students straighten and rotate the grain of their leg blank, then cut the curves on two faces. The resulting grain lines flow with the curve, gently accentuating its shape. The leg is now ready for shaping with spokeshaves and chisels, a story all of its own…
Robert rotates the grain for a crest rail
Robert topped off the graphics lecture with a demonstration on the Vidar’s Chair crest rail. This part, though slender, curves up and back simultaneously, and was thought to require 12/4 stock. Several years ago, a spark of ingenuity led Robert to discover in his own shop that he was able to obtain the crest rail with just 8/4 stock while preserving ideal grain graphics – a moment of great creative triumph, the fruits of which we are very lucky to enjoy!
Thank you all for a great first week back in the shop!
Recently we received some welcome inspiration in our favourite form – some amazing planks of wood!
Robert splits a plank of Doussie along an existing crack, for easier storage
From A&M Wood Specialty in Ontario, we acquired three majestic planks of Doussie, a couple of Swiss Pear, a most special of all, an extraordinary plank of English Brown Oak.
English Brown Oak
This 8/4 plank had been set aside for Robert for some time, a wonderful surprise as we were expecting 4/4!
Many of us felt drawn to this wood, with its unique curl-ish grain, somehow reminding one of wool… it has cloud-like depth and texture, and shines with warm, true brown. A very special wood, hard to describe.
Granadillo
We also received some amazing Granadillo, Ipe, and Agathis from Westwind Hardwood on Vancouver Island, where the class visited on a wood run. Despite not being able to make the trip this time, I celebrated with our new acquisitions, and Robert and I began to plot how to expand our wood storage…
This week the Impractical Students have been practising cutting dovetails by hand, one of my favourite parts of our craft. The mood in here has been peaceful and focused… lovely.
Jesse, my new benchmate this session, working on a small box in Pear Roger perseveres – the consequences of a pillow fight with his young son
I’ve been having a great time working with such determined and enthusiastic students.
Lavi cuts a plank of Pear
We were delighted to welcome back our friend Lavi to the Upward Spiral program. He has begun work on a dovetailed cabinet in Pear wood, rough milling, selecting material, and practising dovetails in this very friendly but unforgiving wood.
Danielle, Tim, and Refael at work
Refael has been making good progress on his Vidar’s chair, completing his rear assembly on Friday.
Chad mocks up a leg
Chad is Composing a desk of European Sycamore in his final session here, based on JK’s writing desk in Italian Walnut. The top will have a slight curve to it, as in the original, and he has laminated curved aprons to follow the shape.
Spencer checks out how it stands
Our resident craftsman Spencer has been building a substantial cabinet in Sipo, Western Maple, and Spanish Cedar. This session he has been working hard on the stand, which features veneered aprons and dowel construction. This week he cut the tapers in the legs, and bevelled them in the front to match the curve of the cabinet.
Twin mortise and tenons
I finished up a small stand in Ash with twin mortise and tenons. It was quite a bit of work fitting these joints, and it reinforced what I already know – a good fit off the saw is critical. The final result I will share with you in my next post.
Tiny dovetails
I picked up again a tiny box I started months ago but left unfinished… The sides here are just about 4 millimetres thick – an offcut of my Boxwood cabinet – I remember it was quite challenging to cut such small joints! I ran the grooves for the bottom and sliding lid, dangerously close to the joinery, but it was all good in the end.
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We finished the week with an inspiring evening with Gary Kent, who shared about his life and work with the school and friends from the community. His thoughts on serendipity in his life stirred up much intrigue and also for many I think, some resonance and curiosity about our own lives…
Afterwards, in my little cabin, a small gathering around the fire with some lovely people and lots of tea…
Next week, perhaps, I will start on something new.
I have been away from this journal for a long time – though still very much at the school – and now I’m back. I would like to thank you who have been reading these words here, and for the many kind words I have received in response. It’s lovely to hear you have been following the school and connecting with the thoughts and feelings behind our work. I will be renewing my efforts to share here each week or two, and hope you will continue on with me. Past entries may be found in the archive, from our Notebooks page.
Finished cabinet, in Robert’s shop
So much has happened in this last year, full of joy and struggle. I completed my Boxwood cabinet in the fall and presented it to the class at our final Elephants in Robert’s shop, along with two exceptional Upward Spiral students and their cabinets.
Raf and Andi check out each others’ work
You will soon be able to view the studio photography for these pieces and other recent work, on Our Work page and my faculty page.
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In my presentation to the class I found it difficult to talk about my cabinet as a whole, or some finished object… The work spanned a long time, so it is hard to pinpoint specific moments of discovery, or triumph, or despair, though I know there were many. The emotional memory has faded somewhat along the way. But here at the end of it, what has come through is this knowing, that I was working how I wanted to. For that I look back on my work fondly, and can say that I am very proud of the work I have done.
Crack. A moment of carelessness
Things happen, but they can be fixed.
Flipper floppers and levellers
I so enjoy using this small sweet knife, with its handle of Vera, made by my dear friend Brad. I received it just in time for carving latches and consoles. Thanks, Brad!
A built-in stop for the left door
For these fittings I kept to Boxwood as well, but selected from the darker section of the plank – I wanted the interior to stay calm.
Consoles shaped before splitting them up
The back panel is of Yellow Cedar, out of a piece I acquired on that same wood run where I took home the spalted Chestnut that started this whole thing. The colour is a beautiful match for the Boxwood, as is the tight grain and silky soft texture. As some of you at the school have noticed, I have quite a few planks of Yellow Cedar stockpiled behind my bench – it has become one of my favourite woods.
I love Yellow Cedar! First fitting of the doors, before attaching the panels – still too tight to close
The fitting of the doors was perhaps the most challenging part of the process, but I sure learned a lot here. There was a bit of wind in both doors that I hadn’t accounted for when mortising for my hinges, so it was tricky to get them to meet flush in the middle. I will know better next time.
Through and wedged tenons on the pulls
After attaching the glass and panels for good, my last step was making and attaching the pulls. I took my sweet time carving these, out of a small piece of Olive wood from JK, given by Robert. The smell of Olive is one of the best in my opinion. It carves beautifully under a sharp knife. The tiny wedges I cut out of some darker Afromosia. Gluing these up next to finished surfaces was nerve-wracking, but successful, I flushed off the backs and then hung the doors for the final time.
Wordless gratitude.
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Wabi Sabi again – drawer front of French Walnut
In the midst of work on this cabinet, I took the summer away from it to take the Impractical Studies program again. Here is my Wabi Sabi cabinet from this summer, which I am very proud to have hanging on the wall here, as a reference for our students (and my personal enjoyment.) I love this little cabinet dearly, so different was my approach than with my other cabinet. I had a blast making it!
Fun as it was, I had a more serious goal in mind as well. I went through each exercise in the program in preparation for the coming sessions, where I would be taking on a greater teaching role at the school, and Robert would be spending more time in his own shop. Over the last year Robert and I have been exploring different arrangements that this role would take, and in the fall we finally settled on the current schedule of me teaching two days a week at the school. I want to say a word of thanks to our students over the last year for your patience and encouragement as we worked through this transition.
Now two weeks into the winter session at the school, I think we have established a good rhythm and balance, and I am enjoying each day with a great group of eager new students. We’ll be continuing to dial things in as we go, and welcome your feedback and ideas on how we can improve.
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A final word to you my friends who have come and stayed and left and returned – you have been the best part of my journey here, and many blessings on your journeys ahead.
An evening with Gary Kent photography Bronwyn Kent
Inside Passage School of Fine Cabinetmaking is proud to present a slide show and talk with Gary Kent. Gary, who has served as our relief teacher since the inception of the school, will reflect back on his life as a fisherman, craftsman, teacher, author, grandfather and as one of the founding members of Roberts Creek co housing. The talk is open to students, family and friends. Join us for what we hope will be a quarterly event at the school, with one of my favourite people.
“What can I say about my year at this amazing school…this was one of the best decisions I’ve ever made and one of the most rewarding experiences in my life. Robert is not just a true master craftsman, he’s an excellent teacher and a wonderful man.
I came to this school with the intent of building furniture as a career and Inside Passage has more than exceeded my expectations. I started with almost no experience and I’m still sometimes shocked at what I was able to build for my final piece.
Composing Piece ‘Homage’ by Jake Maughan photography by Ingeborg Suzanne
It’s quite an amazing thing to be surrounded by people from all over the world who were all drawn to learn woodworking in the tradition of James Krenov. Robert and Yvonne have created something truly special with this school and I consider them, and the faculty, my family.”
