Hobby to business – making money
We look at how to make money with your woodworking hobby.
Hendrik Varju
The owner of Passion for Wood, Hendrik is a fine furniture designer/craftsman. He also provides private woodworking instruction and woodworking seminars.
Articles by Hendrik Varju
The jointer
Get practical tips on how to use the jointer safely and effectively.
Benchtop Mortisers
As your woodworking interests evolve, it isn't long before you want to make mortise-and-tenon joinery. But how to cut those mortises?
14.4 Volt Drill/Drivers
One of the most useful tools you can own is a drill that can both drill holes and drive screws.
Belt sanders: tips for selecting
If your main need for a hand plane is to flatten glued-up panels, you just might get by with a quality belt sander and a sanding frame.
Jig Saws
Nothing beats a jigsaw for on-site portable curve cutting.
Corded Circular Saws
You can't beat the convenience of a circular saw for some of those rougher cuts, like when cutting a small piece off the end of a long board.
Shop Vacuums
Whether you use an official dust collection system in your workshop or not, you are bound to need a shop vacuum.
Gluing techniques
In this article we give you shop proven techniques to glue like a pro.
Random Orbit Sanders
If you've never tried a random orbit sander (ROS) before, you'll be amazed. It is the one sander I use most in my workshop for finish sanding.
13″ benchtop planers
Once you decide to try your hand at some finer woodworking, you soon realize the need for a jointer and thickness planer.
Mid-sized routers
Everything you need to know about routers.
Easy steps to gluing
Successful gluing depends on many factors. Learn the basic steps to successful glue-ups.
Stationary drill press
Bench top drill presses are nice machines and can certainly drill accurate holes. But their heavier counterpart, the stationary drill press, will allow you to do so much more.
6″ stationary jointers
Owning a jointer and thickness planer frees you from buying pre-milled lumber with fixed dimensions. You might want to build a project with ⅞" thick stock when only ¾" is readily available.
Glues
Each glue has a specific purpose. Knowing which glue to use, and how best to use it, comes with understanding and experience.
Contractor style table saws
A "contractor" saw is generally a 10" table saw with an open stand and outboard motor. The motor hangs out the back and drives the arbor with a belt.
Tuning a block plane
Table saws, jointers, planers and other machines are vital tools in a furniture making shop.
Scrapers
A card scraper is a thin piece of hard steel that can cut small wood shavings using a sharp corner.
Waterstones
The key to proper sharpening is to use good quality waterstones. These versatile synthetic stones can repair mildly damaged cutting edges and take you right up to razor sharpness.
Hobby to business – what do clients want?
Get practical advice on what clients for quality furniture projects are looking for.
Pricing your work
Pricing your work is one of the most difficult things to do, especially in the first year or two of operation.
Hobby to business – what will I build?
If you are considering the idea of starting your own woodworking business, the first question you have to ask yourself is: "What will I build?"
Hobby to business – business basics
Before you can hang out your shingle, you will need to decide on the form of legal entity that you want your business to be.
