Now you can read about all things Don by visiting donsbarn.com – the web site of Don Williams. For those of you who aren’t frequent visitors here, Don is the mastermind behind the A.J. Roubo translations and the author of the forthcoming book on H.O. Studley.
He’s a former conservator for the Smithsonian and expert on all things waxy and shellac-y.
His new site will feature lots of the public-domain articles he wrote while at the Smithsonian, plus a blog on the things that go on at his extremely huge barn and a store for buying some of the things he makes – like the polissoirs from Roubo.
So bookmark the site, add it to your reader and enjoy the articles that are already there. Don says more are forthcoming.
— Christopher Schwarz
I look forward to reading Don’s blog, and I can’t wait for his store to go live so I can buy a polissoir!
On a negative note, I find that I can no longer post a comment here using my Google sign in, as I could in the past. I refuse to use a Facebook account, as I strongly oppose their cavalier attitude and carelessness over the privacy of their users. Twitter is just too darn time consuming for someone who would rather be in the shop working with wood. So, my only choice was to sign up for a WordPress account. Unfortunately, I need another blog account like I need a hole in the head!
Those articles will keep me up past my bedtime reading all week. I just took delivery of two polissoirs and they sport nice tags now in keeping with the barn theme and striking the balance between marketing and revival of lost arts.
In other news, Don’s beard is only going to compound the ORGP “Oak Ridge Boys” Problem while on the road with Chris (https://blog.lostartpress.com/2008/11/17/woodworking-in-america-country-and-gospel/). Except, he is named Don Williams – so that will compound the problem even more. I predict that Chris will end up singing backup to “Amanda” at a truck stop along highway 218 in route to Handworks 2013 later this month.
Facebook – sigh. Our national shame (along with the reemergence of skinny ties and face tattoos). Of these three only skinny ties can be removed and thrown away. I think a way was needed to police comments more – as a possible part of the problem I am hereby swearing off double entendre henceforth.