Publisher’s note: For the release our new video “Build a Stick Chair,” I’ve written this short essay that explains one of the many reasons these chairs are first in my heart. I apologize if it sounds like I’m on a soapbox. Or, worse, that I am trying to sell you a time-share condo in Monkey’s…
Read moreEditor’s note: Surprise! (we are also surprised). Our video “Build a Stick Chair” was completed early and is now available for purchase. The introductory price is $50 and includes a lot of extras (patterns, notes etc. – see below). After Aug. 31, the price will increase to $75. Learn to build a stick chair using…
Read moreThis delightful 1935 film documents several aspects of the chairmaking trade in Great Britain with a knowledgeable narrator and some great shots of people at work in the forest and the workshop. Titled “Chair Bodging and Chair Making in the Chiltern Hills,” the film begins in the woods as bodgers break down tree trunks into…
Read moreThere are many ways to mark centerlines on workpieces that are square, round or octagonal. But we wanted a simple, compact, dedicated and beautiful tool for this everyday job. The Crucible Center Square is based on a vintage tool owned by a bodger friend. His tool was compact but had a weight and shape that…
Read moreFor the last five weeks we have been shooting and editing a long-form video on how to build a stick chair using simple tools (plus a few – mostly inexpensive – specialty tools that make the job easier, which are covered in the video) with wood from the lumberyard. The video clocks in at more…
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