Woodworking Gift Idea

There is perhaps no better saying than, "Treasured are the presents from the heart." How do you show somebody that you rightfully cherish them? You placed your thinkings, time, vigour, and most of all your love into a hand-crafted gift. Do-it-yourself woodworked items are an excellent choice as they can be tailored to please the recipient you have in mind. Think to start building your project at least 2 months prior to the occasion in order to ensure that you will be up in time. Here are some special woodworking gift ideas:

Toys - Surprise a kid with a hand-crafted classic wooden toy from the "good old days". They are tougher, more durable than many modern plasticise toys on the mart today. You can even make a collector's item such as an old locomotive or a pony rocker for an adult who remembers and loves those old classics.

Child Items - Do you have a new child in the family, or know friends or relatives who have just welcomed a teen? Making a special infant keepsake can greatly enhance that elated event. Make a memory boxwood for the parents to safe-keep loved moments of the baby's life, or carpentry a picture frame with a great event carved on it such as "Baby's First Christmas"or "Baby's First Birthday." More advanced woodworkers can make a little automotive or a lovely piece of baby furniture for the nursery.

Home Items - There are a variety of common and not so common house items that you can make for just about anyone. A special and personalized letter box would offer a unique accent to any household. Outdoor decorations for the garden such as flower boxes and woody artwork are wonderful gifts. For inside the home, try producing a bread-bin or a mail holder. An encasement for a nation calendar adds heat to any room.

Vacation Items - There are literally endless gift ideas for the holidays. Some of the more odd ones include making a pressboard cutout snowman to stick outside when Christmas is green, or a grim but special coffin big enough to place a pop out Dracula that will scare those little freaks at Halloween.

Different, hand-crafted presents will affect the hearts of your loved ones, leaving a warm and long-term impression for the years to come, at a fraction of the cost of commercial store bought presents. How can you go wrong? You can see the plans for your woodworking gift ideas from books at your local bookstore, and sometimes you can get free plans online.

A word of advice: Be safe - wear safety gloves and goggles when working with tools.

Celtic Knotwork Border

This project shows you how to achieve the ribbon-like interlacing so typical of Celtic knotwork, which forms the basis of the designs in this blog. The simple but impressive border adds the perfect finishing touch to a room and, by using a variety of finishes, you can achieve a highly individual look.

Celtic knotwork, which appears on stone crosses of the sixth century AD and onwards, and in the intricate pattern-filling designs of the eight-century iiluminated manuscripts, can be made up of one, two or more interlacing bands. Some people believe that there is no symbolism attached to the different types of knotwork, and it is probable that meaning has been conferred in more recent times. It is easy to see, however, why other people believe that the unbroken bands of the knotwork represent a sacred path through life, with no beginning or end, an eternal journey of spiritual growth.

This project may look daunting but, because the design is worked in small manageable sections, it is not difficult to make. The main skill required is patience, and in my experience you wouldn't be a woodworker if you did not already possess this trait.

Once the sections are complete, they join to make a continuous border, as shown, which can be cut to fit corners. Alternatively, if you want to use the border to decorate small pieces of furniture, cupboards or boxes, simply reduce the design to the size required.

Materials

-Several photocopies of template, enlarged by 125%



-Pine strip wood, 6 x 68mm (1/4 x 2 3/4in) x length required
-Repositionable spray adhesive
-Double-sided sticky tape
-Paint, varnish or wax finish, as required

Tools

-Scrollsaw, electric jigsaw or hand fretsaw
-Drill fitted with small bit
-12mm (1/2in) straight chisel
-Craft knife or chip knife

Easy to Build Shelves

Here are a few, simple projects that add storage and style without taking up any floor place





This unique project combines an appealing design with some challenging woodworking. Best of all, it won't take long to build.

Make Your Own Furniture

There is little doubt that making your own furniture can be a rewarding experience. Seeing a finished piece in its correct place in your home and knowing that it is all your own work is a real pleasure :).

But there is one important proviso. It has to look really good. Most of us maybe, have seen pieces of furniture, usually designed with the home maker in mind, which lack all grace and delight and which, however well constructed, have that tell-tale amateur look.