• Stanley Bailey number 4 smoothing plane sitting on a board with shavings on a Roubo workbench with a forged holdfast

    How to Make Workbench Dogs, Dog Holes & Holdfast Holes

    By Joshua Farnsworth In this video I show how to make wooden bench dogs for your workbench. I also show my fast & accurate method for boring benchdog holes and holdfast holes in your workbench. This article goes along with my popular Workbench Guide, which you can read here. The last two videos that I published were about choosing a workbench design and choosing important workbench accessories. If you missed them, you can watch

  • Portable Moravian workbench holding a board with a holdfast on the flush legs

    All about Holdfasts for Workbenches

    By Joshua Farnsworth In this video I talk all about metal holdfasts for woodworking on your workbench. A holdfast is a historical metal workbench fixture that wedges into a workbench top, holding your workpiece down firmly as you cut joints. In my woodworking school, I own 10 workbenches, and about 30 holdfasts, so I've got a lot of experience with using and troubleshooting different holdfasts with different styles of workbenches. You can read about

  • Beautiful blond woman sitting on a Viking camp chair with a camp fire in the background

    Making a Collapsible Viking Camp Chair

    By Joshua Farnsworth This past fall I was camping with my friends, Ervin & Willie Ellis ("The Ellis Bros Builders"...see them here) at their new beautiful property in Southwest Virginia.  Ervin let me sit in a surprisingly comfortable wooden camp chair, and he told me that it is called a Viking Camp Chair (I'm almost certain it isn't of Viking origin). We immediately took measurements, because I wanted to make one too. The chair

  • Joshua Farnsworth painting a shaker bench with black milk paint

    How to Make Milk Paint from Scratch

    By Joshua Farnsworth In the above video I share a tutorial on how to make historical milk paint from scratch! The article below shares the same information (in case you're reading this at work...). In a previous video (here) I showed how to build this shaker bench from just three pine stair treads, and I asked my viewers to let me know if they wanted a video on making milk paint from scratch. Well,

  • Stanley 45 combination plane box with three combination planes or universal planes on a woodworking workbench

    Choosing & Buying a Combination Plane for Woodworking

    By Joshua Farnsworth In video 1/3 Bill Anderson talks about what to look for when buying a vintage combination plane, like the Stanley 45 or 55. This excerpt comes from the 4.75 hour video “Choosing, Refurbishing, and Using Joinery Handplanes with Bill Anderson”. The HD download is on sale for a limited time here. You can find vintage combination planes on Ebay here (affiliate link): https://ebay.to/3855VM4 Subscribe below if you want to

  • Joshua Farnsworth woodworker using a block plane while building a shaker bench from woodworking plans

    Make a Shaker Bench from 3 Stair Treads!

    By Joshua Farnsworth In this video I give a detailed tutorial on how to build a Shaker bench. I chose this design because I absolutely love the look of the lapped dovetail braces, and I felt that the lap dovetail joints and the through-mortise & tenon joints would give beginner woodworkers a challenge without overwhelming them. And the project is really fun for experienced woodworkers as well. The most exciting thing about this bench

  • David Ray Pine using a scratch stock on a piece of wood

    How to Make & Use a Scratch Stock for Woodworking

    By Joshua Farnsworth In the above video David Ray Pine stops by my woodworking school to demonstrate his method for making and using a traditional scratch stock to cut a decorative profile. Below I'll share the steps mentioned in the video. See David's upcoming classes at the bottom of this page. And if you want to see a tour of David’s workshop, click here. What is a Scratch Stock? For those

Workbenches in a traditional woodworking workshop

“Wood & Shop is a place for Woodworkers…

…of all skill levels to come learn how to use a mix of traditional hand tools and modern power tools to make heirloom-quality furniture that will last a lifetime.”

– Joshua Farnsworth

Kaare Loftheim at the Colonial Williamsburg Hay Cabinet maker's shop with a jointer hand plane

WOODWORKING WORKSHOP TOURS

Watch video tours of traditional & modern workshops, and other fascinating places for woodworkers.

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Row of antique scottish infil handplanes for sale

HAND TOOL BUYING GUIDE

Joshua’s buyer’s guides for which hand tools to buy for traditional woodworking.

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Joshua Farnsworth jointing the edge of a board on a Grizzly power jointer

POWER TOOL BUYING GUIDE

Joshua’s buyer’s guides for which power tools to buy for woodworking.

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Joshua Farnsworth putting together a mitered dovetail joint

TRADITIONAL WOOD JOINERY

Learn how to cut different joints, like dovetails and mortise & tenon, to create strong furniture.

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Figured white oak end table with hand cut dovetails

WOODWORKING PROJECTS

Woodworking projects for beginners and more advanced woodworkers. Build your hand tool skills!

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Sharpening a chair maker scorp on a grinder

SHARPENING & REFURBISHING TOOLS

Learn how to sharpen & tune different woodworking hand tools & power tools.

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Handplaning wood with Stanley No. 5 Jack Plane

DIMENSIONING WOOD

Learn how to four square wood so it is square, true, flat, and smooth.

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Joshua Farnsworth choosing lumber from a stack of wood with painted end grain

CHOOSING LUMBER

Learn how to choose & buy lumber that is stable, beautiful, and useful for furniture.

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Woodworking hand tools spread out on a woodworking workbench

20 BEGINNER’S HAND TOOLS

See the most basic list of tools to buy first when  starting traditional woodworking.

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David Ray Pine in his woodworking workshop

FORUM FOR WOODWORKERS

Ask woodworking questions & share photos of your furniture & tools.

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JOSHUA’S BLOG

See a full chronological list of Joshua’s woodworking video blog posts & articles.

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Wood and Shop traditional woodworking school with Moravian workbenches and Roubo workbenches

WOOD & SHOP SCHOOL

Come take classes at our woodworking school that focuses on hand tool woodworking.

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Yellow jar of wood finish with beeswax wiping on walnut board

WOOD FINISHING

Learn different methods for creating beautiful finishes on your furniture.

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Swiss made pfeil wood carving chisels in a box

WOOD CARVING

Watch our wood carving tutorials & recommended tools for carving wood.

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