I recently finished two small projects for my uncle’s house. An artwork frame to begin with, then a patio staircase. Two weekends well spent, with excellent bengali food prepared by aunty.

Both were first-timer projects for me but things went well with the little experience I gained in one year. What I like the best in doing these is the design part. Even for making a simple frame there are many easy ways to spoil the work. The staircase took me a couple evenings to finalize the design and a few back-breaking hours on a cloudy saturday morning to finish. The satisfaction is just the tonic I need every time.

Lathe machines always awed me since I worked with one during freshman year at college. At that time we had a machine shop course and did only metal works. Now having woodworking as an active hobby, I badly wanted to see the wonderful world of wood turning. There are a whole lot of stuff that can be done on this one piece of machine. From spindles for furniture legs, to bowls and even wooden pens that can make excellent gift items.

I got a killer deal of an almost new 14×40 central machinery lathe for beginners (worth $140) for $50, including a set of turning chisels. The best part is that the lathe is whisper quite which meant even late nights were no bar for working on it.

I am gonna make a whole gallery of turned items very soon.

A workshop, even a small one, should be the heart of every household. Doing regular maintenance and building own furnitures is not only a way to save in the long run, it is one of life’s most important lessons combined with quality time and loads of fun.

Every visit to HomeDepot is a pain to me. Not only that I get stuck over and over again at the tools aisle, I somehow can’t come out without lightening my wallet. According to my friend John, this “common-with-men” behavior signifies I passed the manhood test. For the female species, the same is true with JCPenny/Macy.

I have more or less a compact and functional workshop now, packed within a 5′x12′ storage room. A portable table saw takes most of the space and is the king of my workshop. A powerful shop vac keeps the place clean. A homemade router table with dust collection system added a lot of utility. And just today I added a long awaited drill press.

My workshop is now the most peaceful place for me in the house. I can unleash all my creativity in that space and kill a bunch of time whenever I wish. The big difference of this and my other hobby of photography is that the latter has a lot of dependence on light/timing/events/subjects. In my workshop, any idea can materialize at any time.

I can’t wait to finish a small toy I am making for my 5yr old niece, the game of Abalone. The shape of the board begs to be made out of wood. There are so many gift items that can be made, and I hope it will keep me excited for a long time to come.

Needed some more space efficiency in the shoe-cupboard for the helmets. A simple design for a wooden cloth hanger was in my mind for a few days so I thought that would be an useful thing to do.

Helmets are heavy, so a little modification to my original design was necessary. Firstly, I put two round wooden sticks an inch apart for load sharing. Secondly, I drilled the holes for them at an angle so the helmets don’t fall or come to the edge easily. The project seemed to come out well after several hours of labor on friday night after work.

Always wanted to have a pegboard setup like I did today. Feeling very satisfied to have a proper tool storage now. Next, a basic workbench and I will have a fully functional mini workshop for a variety of complex carpentry projects.

I really need some basic furniture and dont feel like going to IKEA when Home Depot is behind my back and ideas are bubbling inside. Looks like the following projects are in short order: shelves, wooden hook array, workbench and a computer desk.

One very good side effect of this hobby: time just flies.

I finished my first carpentry project here just now. The result is rewarding though not too exciting. I just needed to practise my skills of cutting, joining and sanding a small piece of wood. The shelf I made is 24″x8″x5″ and is entirely made out of one 2′x2′ sheet of 1/4″ thick block wood. The circular saw cut it like butter. I joined the pieces by small right angle brackets. It was difficult to get small screws so I had to sand out the extended part of the screws by a dremel tool. The rounded top part was the suggestion of my apt mate Piyush who supported this whole idea of making own furnitures. This shelf is going to be hung beside our main door to keep mails, keys and miscellaneous stuff.

I will be quite ambitious about the next projects. I desperately need a couple of shelves/drawers in my room. Havent yet decided how to go about it. In the meantime I will be making small corner shelves for various uses.

Now that my student (dorm) life is over, I have the freedom and means to settle down. And that means having my own room, own furnitures and a zillion choices to make on how to lead a life that is simple, frugal, and as much creative as possible.

While hunting for furnitures online at craigslist with Piyush, my apt mate, I just had this idea of doing my own woodwork. It might cost a little bit to setup, but the reward of being creative and learning in the process matters a lot to me, basically this creative motivation has been the driving force of my life. I can attribute most of this to my father who bought me a real carpentry set at the age of 6. The first attempt to work with that was using the saw and cutting my finger badly. I still vividly remember that day.

Home Depot being right behind my house is like living at the foothills of paradise. Regardless of how many times I visit a Home Depot I can’t really decide which aisle to spend my time at. Today at the tools section I had a hard time choosing a cordless drill/driver, a tool in my dreams for a long while. I chose a professional 18v kit of RYOBI. It has many other compliant tools like circular saw, reciprocating saw, sander, impact gun etc which take the same battery. Also picked up a 90-pc drill accessory set. An ubiquitious tape. Carpenter’s pencil. Sharpener.

When I went to check out the section for wood pieces it was another wave of confusion. I was looking for simple wooden pieces like those used to make small racks and shelves. Instead I found varieties of woods to choose them from – birch, poplar and even redwood ! Poplar being the cheapest is the one for me now. Need to measure up the house and design some basic stuff. And quick.

Tool time has finally arrived.

UPDATE (23-Jan): John pointed out that Home Depot offers a RYOBI 3-pc combo kit that includes the circular saw worth $60. I paid $100 for my 2-pc kit and this 3-pc kit cost $120. definitely worth the upgrade and I did that today. Can’t be happier. The saw cuts wood like a steel knife goes through butter. After I get done with the simple shelf I am making, I will go for more serious projects like a low custom dining table and a computer desk.