Reviews by Mark Gezella -- Jan 2004

I thought I'd try something a little different this month. Since this is our first issue of the new year, I came up with the idea of a list of suggested reading rather that spotlighting a specific library book. Perhaps you can refer to the list over the course of the year for any selections of interest?

As you're probably aware, we have many items available to borrow under a wide range of topics, anything from making toys to building houses. I chose to select several topics and elaborate a little on some of the books and/or authors I'm familiar with. I hope you find it useful.

There are quite a few selections available under this topic. Weekend Projects for Toymakers (Burke) and Easy to Make Wooden Toys (Forde) are two examples that have projects with a less demanding level of skill for those who may want to limit their involvement with toymaking. The Ultimate Wood Block Book (Bingham) was reviewed in a newsletter last year. Very creative stuff using basic building blocks (our president crafted a good example of a toy from this one!). Making Vintage Aircraft (Hicks) and Wooden Toys and Games (Parkinson) contain more involved projects with an increased skill level. Some of the games are especially interesting.

Here again the library comes through with some good entries. Using the Scrollsaw (Engler) is a reference geared directly towards use of the scrollsaw. A good how-to book with some decent projects. Small Intarsia and Scrollsaw Western Patterns (Roberts/Bocher) are excellent references for scrollsawn items as well as intarsia with a scrollsaw (I reviewed Judy's "Small Intarsia" book in last month's newsletter). Decorative Wood Inlay (Taylor) was also reviewed in an earlier newsletter. Though it deals more with inlay, the work closely coincides with scrollsaw usage for some of the patterns. These are all great entries for anyone interested in this type of work.

Maybe we can't boast about carving like the carver's club can, but we have some darn good entries in our library on the subject! The Complete Guide to Sharpening (Lee) is a comprehensive how-to for just about any blade you may own, including carving tools. Turning Projects (Raffan) is actually a book about projects for the lathe, but some folks consider lathe work to be akin to "spindle carving", so I thought I'd include it here. Whittling Simplified ( Reinecks) is a very basic offering on the simple pleasures of slicing wood with a knife! 1001 Designs for Whittling and Woodcarving (Tangerman) is a great source for carving projects, though illustrations in his books tend to leave me less than inspired. Basic Woodcarving for Beginners (Welnack) is an entry-level book for anyone wanting to take their first steps toward carving wood.

We have many fine examples of furniture books in our library, both instructional and illustrated. Mostly Shaker (Abram) is a no-nonsense approach to shaker-style furniture with modern-day power tools (and remember...he's my idol!). Desks (Charron) affords just about everything you need if you're interested in making your own personal desk. Encyclopedia of Country Furniture (Frankel) is a good resource for crafting casual, country-style furniture. Cabinet Making and Millwork (Feirer) offers exhaustive instruction on furniture construction, though designs are somewhat dated. American Colonial Furniture (Nye) is a great book on furniture crafted during the colonial period, much like you would see on a visit to Williamsburg. Making Authentic Shaker Furniture (Shea) is another example for shaker-style, perhaps a notch above the first book in this list. And for exemplary offerings of illustration and instruction, check out any of these titles; Frid Teaches Woodworking Book 1 (Frid), Fine Woodworking Techniques 1-9 (Guidice), Cabinet Maker's Notebook and Fine Art of Cabinet Making (Krenov). The Fine Woodworking Design Books also contain incredible illustrations of furniture made by novice and professional nationwide.

Housebulding - Do It Yourself (Cristoforo) could probably inspire just about anyone to tackle building their own home! Wood-Frame Houses describes in detail how modern wooden structures are pieced together using standard construction methods.

I'd like to stress this is just a sampling of what our library has to offer. There are many books available on these and other topics. Additionally, the library contains an extensive collection of magazines and a growing collection of videos on a wide range of topics. I hope you find one or more of these entries of interest. As I stated throughout, some of these I've reviewed in past issues of the newsletter, while others I hope to review in future issues. Most of these books are currently available for checkout in the Guild library.