giant Cypress: Japanese woodworking tool punk • Here’s one last item for Get Woodworking Week. The...

Here’s one last item for Get Woodworking Week. The woodworking club that I belong to, the Central Jersey Woodworker’s Association, recently started group build projects. These are not exactly like a traditional woodworking class, but instead are a way for CJWA members to take advantage of the experience and talents of other CJWA members who lead these Group Builds. The way that these builds are structured is that each small group of people meet on a regular basis at the leader’s shop to go over each step of the project, and then go home to their shop to work on the project. Each project is designed to take a relatively short period of time, and are usually at an intermediate level of difficulty.

How effective are these group build projects? Here’s an example of what can be learned and accomplished. This Arts and Crafts table with a turquoise inlay in the top was made by one of our members. This table was the first woodworking project she had ever made. And she made this table out of pallet wood, no less.

This will be ironic considering that Get Woodworking Week is an internet-based initiative, but one of the most effective ways of getting started in woodworking is to find a local woodworking club and meet real live woodworkers in person. The club member who made this table said that she had learned a lot from videos and the internet, but there was so much more that she picked up in person that there would have been no way she could have done this without hands on help from someone else. If you go to a local club, there will be a lot of people eager and willing to help you get started, and all it will cost you is the time to go there.