I am interested in building my own furniture.

April 9, 2007 9:56 PM

I am interested in building my own furniture. How do I get started?

What are the specific tools you need (to make rounded edges, etc.). What is the best way to start and learn?

posted by amsterdam63 to home & garden (14 comments total)

To make rounded edges, you need a router with a round over bit.

What kind of furniture? Books like Nomadic Furntire and magazines like Readymade have plans for simple yet interesting stuff that doesn't require a lot of tools or experience. For more advanced stuff, there are tons of books. And magazines. And TV shows. But the best way to get started would be to take a class. You'll get hands-on instruction plus access to materials and a shop, which is a lot better than spending a thousand bucks on equipment (at least) just to try out a new hobby.
posted by hydrophonic at 10:23 PM on April 9, 2007

For all things woodworking, check out http://www.sawmillcreek.org/ It is a great community of woodworkers. I don't have much time to spend woodworking these days, but I still enjoy reading and looking at what others are building.
posted by peripatew at 10:24 PM on April 9, 2007

If you have no previous experience, you might look into local classes. I took a cabinetry class at my local Jr. College, but there are likely also local crafts groups or continuing/adult education programs in your community. Working with power tools is absolutely something a person should learn with supervision.

Once you've got the basic skills, you might check out Nomadic Furniture. It might not have what you want but it's filled with ideas that might inspire you. WARNING: Unrepentant 60's-70's hippy furniture within!

del.icio.us is filled with prime links for do-it-yourself plans (check out the diy, craft, and woodworking tags.

When all else fails, try googling free beginner furniture plans. There's a ton of stuff out there for free. People love sharing their plans. You can also find plenty of pay-for-plans sites, but if you're starting out you might find the free plans more your speed.
posted by lekvar at 10:25 PM on April 9, 2007

For old-school woodworking, which might be smart before you splash out on a router, there's always Roy Underhill's original Woodwright's Shop book(s). But I'd lean towards what lekvar said: spend a few hours in classes to get hands-on with the basic skills, and then decide whether you want to augment them with power tools or stay off the grid. It'll better equip you for adapting other people's plans to suit your needs.
posted by holgate at 10:38 PM on April 9, 2007

ANOTHER WARNING: The furniture shown in Nomadic Furniture is almost all really terrible furniture (I speak from experience), and it doesn't describe any of the techniques used to build anything (like making rounded edges). Don't bother.
posted by blasdelf at 11:17 PM on April 9, 2007

In the way of tools, you would probably want, starting from the basics upwards.

ruler / tape measuree, hammer, saw, chisels, plane, power drill / screwdriver, router, table saw.

Given those tools I can make pretty much anything. Throw in a few things like 90 degree angle braces and jigs for dowel joints, and I can make things straight and sturdy.

As mentioned above, local classes would be a great idea. If you haven't had much practical experience with the tools, a professional's point of view is invaluable.
posted by tomble at 1:08 AM on April 10, 2007

If you want a more organic look than you get with a router, you can round edges just fine with a rasp, then a wood file, then sandpaper.
posted by flabdablet at 2:35 AM on April 10, 2007

Do not start learning carpentry by building your own furniture or for family members either. ]unless you don't want to go to Sunday dinners[
Do not start buying tools, like a maniac. Do not buy anything. Yet.

Enroll in a Community College, night class. I don't know if there is a Continuing Education Program in your city, classes for everything held in the evening during the week in schools, very affordable. You need hands on experience. Without hands on experience it'll be a lesson in frustration. Or missing digits at worse. I kid you not./

You will start by maybe building a birdhouse, for instance. You may think a bookshelf on your own might be a good idea, but it wouldn't be. If you build it at the evening school, it'll turn out square at least. You'll learn what clamps are for.

By all means, do read books on the subject. You haven't mentioned if you have any experience, I'm assuming you have none.

Don't do what I did. I bought beautiful maple wood, 1.5" thick 7" wide on average, hand picked by a friend working at a lumber yard with the employee deep discount price....I enrolled. First day, took one look at the school planer, chatted with the instructor and took a pass joining those beauties. The duration of the course was too short and the equipment wouldn't cut it, so to speak. Don't bite off more than you can chew.
posted by alicesshoe at 3:48 AM on April 10, 2007

It was already mentioned, but The New Yankee Workshop is not only a great show to watch a master work, but they also provide measured drawings that come with videos.
posted by terrapin at 4:29 AM on April 10, 2007

Seconding The New Yankee Workshop. Occasionally Norm does shows dedicated to how to use a power tool. I've seen the shows Router 101 and Table Saw 101. Best info I've ever seen on the subject. And, as it happens, these two powertools are the most frequently used when building furniture.
posted by kc0dxh at 6:25 AM on April 10, 2007

Seconding a course first to get you started.

Shaker furniture is mostly easy to build, plus you can get decent results with lumberyard pine which is cheap and easy to work.
posted by LarryC at 6:26 AM on April 10, 2007

See also this previous AskMe
posted by exogenous at 8:00 AM on April 10, 2007

If you can take a course then by all means do that, speaking as someone who has six years of woodshop experience. Finding a course is the trick. Some vo/tech schools offer them. There are also some shops that will rent you time and have knowledgable personal on site. These have become exceedingly rare, I guess due to liability issues. As for publications, I really like Fine Woodworking. As you assemble your own shop do not scrimp on the quality of your tools. The frustration of ruined work due to crappy tools can kill your enthusiasm. After a birdhouse or two and some other simple projects one of the traditional first projects which also allows you to use a variety of tools and cabinet making skills is a work bench. Since it won't be on display in your living room mistakes here mean much less.
posted by caddis at 8:02 AM on April 10, 2007

The first post mentions buying a router "To make rounded edges". The first thing you need, in terms of tools, is a table saw to cut your edges straight so the furniture will be square. Worry about rounding off the edges later.
posted by Doohickie at 11:53 AM on April 10, 2007