No, don't rub soap on a wooden drawer to make it slip better. Soap is water soluble and will simply disappear with humidity. Use paraffin wax or candle wax. You can even find self adhesive Teflon tape (see photo) for a permanent slip on that sticky drawer -- after you have sanded it down to th...
James Connelly works at Masterpieces Studio in Toronto where they do some impressive things with paint, putty and special plasters and cement coatings. But since they opened their finishing school, they've also been teaching some of the secrets to the public.We followed James through the convers...
Before looking at resurfacing laminate furniture, I gave a small suggestion that a face lifting could be as simple as changing the door and drawer handles. If you haven't visited that isle at the renovation centre lately, you should stop by for a look-see.You can paint the plastic surface. Firs...
The mortise & tenon was the basic woodworking joint used before the advent of modern fasteners -- and since. It has been used in everything from barn building to fine furniture. If you have ever tried to make this matched pair by hand you might have been frustrated by simply not having the ...
We got this question from a store customer who was trying to decide which blade to buy?Wobble Washer Dado BladeThe first photo shows what we call a "wobble washer" blade. Actually the blade itself isn't wobbly, but the washers on both sides are bevelled. You can rotate them to skew the blade in...
You may have noticed that the chair I sit on every time I go to the computer has no back. We took a look at this chair which is designed to keep your back very straight. You don't actually sit on your knees as it may look, most of the weight is on the seat and just enough on the knees to keep y...
We visited with Peter Coulter at Harvest House Furniture in Toronto, Ontario and he walked us through what to look for in a quality piece of furniture, citing the examples on hand at Harvest House.Aside from the wood and the look of the finish, check out the overall fit of drawers and doors. Is ...
You can replace plastic anti-scratch pads on the bottom of table legs with adjustable anti-scratch pads. That means no more cutting the legs to get them the right length.A great tip: cut two very tiny pieces of a cedar shingle (the kind you always use as a wedging shim anyway) and carry them in...
Paul Ferro has made a business of making new things look old, and he shows us how in his ARCANE shop in Toronto..It was interesting to see how he made a finish appear worn with the years. He applied the finish, let it dry, and then carefully sanded it down where normal use would wear it off, lik...
Pros do most nailing, tacking, or stapling of upholstery to furniture frames with pneumatic guns. For the do-it-yourselfer, regular staplers will often not be able to drive the staples in far enough, especially in hardwood frames. Lifting the rear of your stapler off the wood and pushing down v...
