Smitty's BBQ

Wood is by far the most fashionable material in the world for home items such as chairs, benches, doors, windows, cabinets, tables, wardrobes and jewellery boxes. Wood is still extensively used to make houses in many countries and not even only poor countries either. So it follows that woodworking is one of the most sought after skills in the world too.

Even though there is always a high demand for articles made from wood, there is always a shortage of good wood workers, carpenters and cabinet makers. This makes woodworking in any of its various forms a good trade to enter. Previously, there were shuttering carpenters, joiners, carpenters, ships’ carpenters, furniture makers, cabinet makers and wood workshop workers. These various varieties have melded to a certain extent.

So, what do you do if you want to enter the trade? Well, the traditional course was to become an apprentice to a tradesman, but that practice largely died out in the 1970’s and 1980’s. The route now is more likely to be through school and technical college, coupled with short term placements in industry until the ‘apprentice’ has passed his or, more and more often these days, her, final exams.  Read more...

Wood is the worldwide preferred material for making furniture for the home. This means that wood workers are always in demand and can find employment literally anywhere in the world, if they have enough ability. Therefore, if you have an interest in wood working, you could easily turn your hobby into a flourishing business.

If you are a novice at wood working then you will need to learn the necessary skills at woodworking before you can begin a business. The easiest way to do this is by making things. That is obvious, but I mean get hold of a collection of woodworking plans and start making items from the simplest upwards.

You could start with straightforward items like swing seats, bird tables and dog kennels. After you have mastered the skills necessary for these popular items, you can already start selling them or taking orders to make them. Once you have got to this stage, you could progress to garden furniture like benches, recliners and tables.

You should have no trouble selling hand-crafted, unique wooden furniture. Woodworking is one of the few occupations where you can make money from day one. Cash in hand. I am not saying that you should not keep proper accounting records, but until you really get going, you will almost certainly be trading in ready money.  Read more...

Are you a woodworking hobbyist, who is seeking to make money in the woodworking industry? If you are, you can make money, no matter what your level of ability. It is a great business to be in, because of the fact that you can make money as a woodworking novice making simple items and selling them and, when you become skillful, someone will offer you a job or you can remain self-employed..

Even a complete beginner woodworking amateur can make clothes pegs and clothes hangers. These can be sold around the neighbourhood or to a local shop, if you do not like the idea of selling yourself. After a few weeks, as you gain confidence, you can move onto swing seats, chess boards, stools, bird tables, dog kennels and wine racks. After a few months of that, you could try a garden bench. After that, you are off.

The key to any woodworking project is the woodworking plans. A set of drawings or even just one drawing, an exploded diagram, of the thing to be made. The plans will give a clear, exploded diagram, all measurements and angles, a narrative, explaining what to do first and possibly suggestions too.  Read more...

If you are going to create a stick of furniture, especially if it is fairly complicated or you have never made anything like it before, it is a good idea to get a set of wood working plans. These furniture plans are not dear and free woodworking plans can be found too.

However, it is prudent to be wary of free wood working plans as they may not be accurate and you will have little recourse to complain if they were free or even pirated. Free wood working plans could be fine, but you do not want to find out that they are not half way through the job.

A good set of wood working plans, free or not, will give a clear exploded view of the item to be made and a narrative explaining the various steps and procedures. The plans may also make suggestions about the timber and tools to use, the length of time it could take to make in man hours and the complexity level.

If you want a large collection of wood working plans, there are CD’s around which have 14,000 on them for $30-40. They are a good bargain. Other places you could look are online forums, the library and craft or DIY shops. Shops are almost certainly the dearest alternative.  Read more...