Category: Make a Joint Stool from a Tree

When the new book “Make a Joint Stool from a Tree” finally hits the streets, I think its most lasting effect will have little to do with joint stools or trees.

I’ve read this book – front to back – more than nine times now. And already it has changed the way I approach the craft, even when I’m not building joint stools from riven green oak.

I’ll let the authors say it.

“You could use winding sticks for this step, but now we’re in a larger realm. If you can’t see a problem by eye here, then there’s no problem. Don’t go looking for trouble.”

This approach to the craft surfaces again and again in the book. It’s not borne of sloppiness. The goal is to make a stool so well that it does not need glue, it should last through 300 years of abuse and it should still have joints as tight as the day it was made.

The approach of Jennie Alexander and Peter Follansbee is to focus instead on these three things:

1. The fit and mechanical interlock of the parts.

2. The front and visible shoulders of the joints.

3. The overall form of the piece.

If the inside shoulder of a tenon is undercut, that’s OK. If the four stiles (legs) have slightly different turned profiles but look the same, that’s OK. If the assembled frame is slightly out of square but looks square to the eye, that’s OK.

In the end, Alexander and Follansbee strive to create an object that is immensely pleasing to the eye and incredibly resilient to the ages. The micrometers can go home dissatisfied.

I simply cannot wait for this book to be published.

— Christopher Schwarz

Editing “Make a Joint Stool from a Tree: An Introduction to 17th-century Joinery” has been an eye-opening experience. Sure, I’ve followed Peter Follansbee’s blog for a long time, listened to him at Woodworking in America and even read John (now Jennie) Alexander’s landmark book ”Make a Chair from a Tree.”

But following the construction of a joint stool from felling the tree to mixing your own paint has presented a surprise at almost every turn.

Take, for example, drawboring. I’ve been drawboring joints for years – I think I did my first one in 1999. But I’ve always added glue and clamps to the equation if possible. Not Peter and Jennie. They use robust offsets between the bores and make pins that have a long taper and are quite beefier than I typically make.

What else is interesting is that the techniques used by Peter and Jennie differ slightly at many times. Peter shaves his pegs at the bench with a chisel. Jennie uses a drawknife in a shave horse.

In the end, what is most enlightening is how much trust they put in the joint itself. After reading their experiences during the last two decades, I’m going to change my own drawboring methods.

So even if you don’t ever think you’ll build a joint stool, the book is filled with interesting techniques from two people who have devoted their lives to unearthing the techniques used for building this classic furniture form. Heck, I am even going to mix my own paint now that I know how Peter and Jennie do it.

In case you are wondering, we are closing in on getting this book to the printer. The layout is, with the exception of the index, substantially complete. Unlike previous Lost Art Press books, “Make a Joint Stool from a Tree” is going to be printed in an oversized format – the page size is 9” x 12”. The book will be full color throughout and features illustrations from Eleanor Underhill.

And much like other Lost Art Press Books, it will be hardcover, casebound, Smythe sewn and printed in the United States. We don’t have a price or an exact release date yet. But as soon as we do, we’ll announce it here.

So sharpen up that hatchet. The oak trees in your neighborhood are going to be very afraid after you read this book.

— Christopher Schwarz

I am pleased to announce that Eleanor Underhill is making the drawings for the new book from Jennie Alexander and Peter Follansbee that is titled “Make a Joint Stool from a Tree.”

Eleanor is indeed the daughter of Roy Underhill – proud father — and the illustrator for her father’s latest book: “The Woodwright’s Guide.” It is Eleanor’s skilled hand that drafted all the illustrations in Roy’s latest book – my favorite, by the way. And one of the reasons I adore this book is that the illustrations harmonize with all the text.

So when we were choosing an illustrator for “Make a Joint Stool From a Tree,” Eleanor was the natural and obvious choice. We considered lots of other illustrators, but once Eleanor’s work was passed around, it was a done-deal.

She has been a joy to work with on these illustrations, which are remarkably challenging. Not only do they need to show the forms correctly, they also need to show the grain in a way that is not distracting and is accurate for riven oak stock.

So things have, at times, gotten weird. At Jennie’s suggestion, Peter sent Eleanor some stool parts in the mail, which always results in raised eyebrows from a postal carrier. And the discussions about the illustrations have devolved into an intense debate about medullary rays and how to draw them.

In any case, please welcome Eleanor to the team. And rest assured we are fast closing in on a press date for “Make a Stool from a Tree.” More details to come this week.

— Christopher Schwarz