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Author Archives: Patrick

Building an Acoustic Guitar

This entry is part 1 of 6 in the series Building an Acoustic Guitar

A few years back I was conversing with a co-worker and fellow guitar player. Aware I was an amateur woodworker, he suggested I build a guitar. “Luthiery requires special tools and skills…training. Naw, I couldn’t do that,” I said. Google search. Fast forward to last year when essentially out-of-the-blue I recall this conversation and start … Continue reading »

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The “Veronica” Puppet Theater

This entry is part 7 of 7 in the series Puppet Theater

Upon seeing the version I built for my kids this past Christmas, my brother-in-law suggested that his daughter, Veronica, might like one as well. I’d already fielded a few requests for these and figured I really needed to come up with a more practical design — something a bit more portable/shippable and lighter weight. The … Continue reading »

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Opening Night!

This entry is part 6 of 7 in the series Puppet Theater

Rehearsals are over, costumes and makeup finalized, and last minute script changes incorporated. On Christmas morning, the curtain went up on the new Jaromin Family Puppet Theater!

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Finishing Touches

This entry is part 5 of 7 in the series Puppet Theater

An Old Coat Rack When I was a kid, I used to spend a fair amount of time in the garage playing with my dad’s “tools.” I use quotes because I believe his entire collection consisted of little more than a handsaw, an old bright orange Sears power drill, and a few random screw drivers. … Continue reading »

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The Intarsia Comedy/Tragedy Masks

This entry is part 4 of 7 in the series Puppet Theater

A New Technique When I first designed the theater, I knew it needed something in the top arched panel. To me, the most natural thing would be the traditional comedy/tragedy masks. Although I’ve done a number of inlays in the past, it seemed like this called for something more dimensional, like a carving. Unfortunately, the … Continue reading »

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Building the “Wings”

This entry is part 3 of 7 in the series Puppet Theater

Now We’re Getting Somewhere The front came out so nice, I’ve updated the design to include frame-and-panel side wings instead of plain edge-banded cherry ply as I had originally envisioned. It’s been a busy couple of weeks and there hasn’t been much shop time available, but I’ve scraped together enough hours — usually after bedtime … Continue reading »

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Their First Woodworking Show

The annual woodworking show is this town weekend and I was determined to stop in to pick up some basic supplies that I can’t typically find locally in bulk. I thought it might be fun to bring the older two kids along. This turned out to be a great idea as the show ended up … Continue reading »

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Constructing the Frame and Panels

This entry is part 2 of 7 in the series Puppet Theater

Birdseye Maple on Cherry The design for the top panel calls for birdseye maple. It seemed a shame to use my only piece of birdseye maple up on just one project. I decided to resaw the board. A few passes through my old Grizzly G1066 sander later and I had a beautiful 3/32″ sheet of … Continue reading »

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Puppet Theater

This entry is part 1 of 7 in the series Puppet Theater

The other night my wife’s best friend’s daughter stopped by to help out with the kids while we ran some errands and completed some chores. She showed them a new game. They spent the evening in the basement hiding behind a blanket draped over a couple chairs, putting on puppet shows with the numerous dolls … Continue reading »

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DuPage Woodworkers Pay a Call

I had the distinct honor of hosting the DuPage Woodworkers as they toured my shop this past weekend. I had a great time talking about the shop and sharing ideas with the club members. I had a blast meeting you all! Thanks!

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