Hey, if you’d like to read the latest on the Crucible lump hammer, check out this brief blog entry.
— Christopher Schwarz
Hey, if you’d like to read the latest on the Crucible lump hammer, check out this brief blog entry.
— Christopher Schwarz
There are lots of vernacular stick chairs styles out there if you do a little digging. Researcher Suzanne Ellison has been turning over a lot of rocks lately to find stick chairs in countries such as Sweden, Germany and Italy.
Today she sent over a load of images of Irish chairs, and this one stuck in my head. It’s a fairly common form and common paint scheme. Interestingly, these chairs were referred to as “fool’s chairs,” “famine chairs” or “hedge chairs.” Sometimes this form is called a “Gibson chair.”
I need to do a lot more digging to learn about the names of the chairs. I couldn’t find much on the origin of “fool’s chair,” except for a reference in “A Dictionary of English Phrases: Phraseological Allusions, Catchwords” (1922). That book defined “fool’s chair” as:
A chair with a leg missing, on which fools attempt to sit and consequently fall.
The origin of the name “famine chair” is said to relate to the Great Famine in Ireland (1845-1852), during which the great poverty of the country resulted in furniture that was made by tenant farmers that was on the crude side.
I haven’t been able to dig up much on why it would be called a “Gibson chair.” So more research is ahead.
While this particular chair doesn’t grab me as much as some Welsh designs, it does have its charms. I particularly like the front-on view and the dramatic lean to the back sticks.
— Christopher Schwarz
Lately someone anonymous has been sending artisanal cured meats – charcuterie – to the Lost Art Press storefront. Addressed to “Professor Bespokus,” each small package has contained two lovely sausages but no indicator as to who sent them.
The meats aren’t poisonous (I had Megan and Brendan try them out, and they suffered no ill effects). And the meaty delights have become an important part of our lunchtime ritual at the shop.
So whoever you are, oh meat patron, we thank you.
— Christopher Schwarz
P.S. And if you don’t get the “Professor Bespokus” joke, read this blog entry and it should make (some) sense.
The printing plant says that “Welsh Stick Chairs” will leave the dock on Thursday and head to our warehouse in Indiana. As soon as it arrives, we’ll start shipping out all the pre-publication orders.
If you haven’t ordered yet and would like to be among the first to receive it, there’s still time to order. The book is $29, which includes domestic shipping, and can be ordered here.
Why is This Book Only for North America?
Meghan, who handles our customer service inquiries, has been swamped with emails asking why we can’t ship this book outside North America (not even to Wales, which I know is wacky).
I promise you this: We would if we could.
Lost Art Press was able to obtain only the North American rights to the book. The remainder of the rights are held by a U.K. publisher. We dearly wish we could obtain world rights for this book. And perhaps someday that will happen.
But until that day, we take our contracts and agreements seriously and have no plans or desire to skirt our agreement. So sorry, we can’t ship you a copy (or 100) on the sly with a wink and a nod. We just can’t.
I’m sure someone will smuggle some copies of this book outside North America – it happens with music and books all the time. But we won’t be the ones to do it.
We will have copies for sale at the next Lost Art Press open day on July 14. I’ve never heard of people taking a holiday just to buy a book, but if you are that passionate, here’s a list of other things you could do on vacation in Cincinnati.
— Christopher Schwarz
I’m teaching two courses in Munich this October at the new and expanded workshop for Dictum GmbH.
Today I visited the new workshop, and it is impressive. Located by the Munich Ostbanhof (east train station), the new facilities are flooded with natural light and have beautiful new German workbenches. And downstairs is Dictum’s Munich store and a huge array of choices for food, culture and lodging.
The classes are taught in English (with German expletives). If you are interested in handwork or getting started in chairmaking, here are the details:
Staked Furniture: 3-legged Stool
Oct. 8-9, 2018
I taught this class for the first time this summer, and it is a fun couple of days. In the class I explain how to do compound-angle joinery without math or even numbers. Plus, all the chairmaking techniques I have compiled and refined during my time as a chairmaker. If you do flat work and right-angle projects, this class will open up a new world for you.
Build a Sawbench
Oct. 10-12, 2018
This three-day class is great for new woodworkers. The pace is relaxed, and we get to explore all sorts of odd corners of the craft. The last time I taught this class, we also made winding sticks, straightedges and other useful workshop appliances.
Munich is a great city – very easy for international travelers to get to and navigate.
Some of you might be wondering if this new round of classes at Dictum indicates I might teach more in the coming months and years. And the answer is: kinda. I’ve resolved to keep a limited teaching schedule until my youngest daughter has graduated so that I can be a good father.
After her graduation in May 2019 I hope to teach about four weeks a year. (Teaching 18 classes in a year turned out to be a bad idea for my psyche.) I’ll probably teach a couple short courses at our storefront and maybe a week-long course somewhere else (if anyone will have me).
— Christopher Schwarz