“Now, in order to have anything good made in stuff, or in hard material, we must seek out the artist to provide us with a design, and then a workman to carry it out as mechanically as possible, because we know that if he puts any of his coarser self into it he will spoil it.”
— Ralph Radcliffe Whitehead, founder of the Byrdcliffe Arts Colony, in “Grass of the Desert” (1892)
A couple weeks ago I got to look over Don Williams’ version of the Gragg chair, an incredible early-American example of a steam-bent elastic chair.
Made from oak that Don harvested himself, the chair is incredibly lightweight, flexible and comfortable. It’s like sitting in an exo-skeleton that is hinged in all the right places. And if I didn’t already know a good deal about Samuel Gragg’s chairs, I’d have guessed that the chair was a contemporary design.
OK, so if you aren’t up to speed on Gragg’s work, check out Williams’ article on building the chair in the current American Period Furniture journal, the annual publication of the Society of American Period Furniture Makers. Read this blog entry I wrote about the chairs as Williams was building them. And check out several kinds of Gragg chairs here.
Williams is considering making these chairs for market and is perfecting the tricky jigs and techniques required to make them. And he’s tweaking a couple joints to prevent the chairs from failing (he’s seen enough of those while at the Smithsonian).
Our shipment of “Grandpa’s Workshop” arrived late yesterday and – thanks to some help from friends – we got the first 400 packed up before bedtime.
The printing quality of the book is top shelf – it was worth the delays and headaches. I think you will be pleased by both the story and the physical object itself.
If you ordered the book from Lost Art Press, your book (or books) will be in the mail today or tomorrow. If you are waiting for it to arrive at one of our retailers – Lee Valley Tools, Lie-Nielsen Toolworks, Highland Hardware, Tools for Working Wood or Classic Handtools in the U.K. – their books are on the way.
After publishing four new titles in 16 months, I have decided what I want for Christmas: a loading dock. But that’s not gonna happen.
Our shipment of “Grandpa’s Workshop” arrives tomorrow morning. As soon as I get the books under tarps, I’ll start mailing them out to readers.
Apologies to everyone for the manufacturing delays. They were out of our control, and no amount of yelling could fix them. I think you’ll be pleased with the results and find the book worth the wait.
I do not accept free or discounted tools. I purchased every tool in my chest and have marked it with my shop mark. I do not accept free or discounted materials – lumber, glue, finish or hardware.
On occasion, a manufacturer will send me a tool for private evaluation. If I choose to keep it and use it, I pay full retail for it. If I don’t keep it, I return it to the manufacturer or donate it to a school or student who cannot afford it.
Why am I writing this?
Every time I write a blog entry and I mention that I paid for some item, I get a few messages from readers who advise me to stop adding that caveat. They are tired of reading it. And in truth, I am weary of writing it. I don’t mean to sound sanctimonious.
But here is the truth: New people encounter my blog every day. And if they don’t know who I am, it’s easy for them to assume that I get all my tools for free. Most woodworking writers are bombarded with free tools in the hopes they will write about them. Or they are given free machines or entire batches of workshop supplies in exchange for advertising.
I do not question the ethics of other bloggers. All I know is what I was trained to do in journalism school: Take nothing from the people you write about. (And if you think I’m hardcore, you need to meet my journalist wife. She won’t even drink from the water fountain at a corporation she writes about.)
To finish up, a few more important notes: I am not an “affiliate” at any web site. I do not receive a percentage of the sale of any tool or woodworking material I write about.
I receive income from only three sources: the schools at which I teach, F+W Media Inc. (where I am a contributing editor) and from you, the Lost Art Press customer.
From this point forward, any time I review a tool or woodworking material, I will add a link to this statement of ethics. In that way, I won’t have to waste any more words on this topic, and you will not have to read them.