Author Archives: Patrick
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
The “Veronica” 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
Opening Night!
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!
Finishing Touches
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
The Intarsia Comedy/Tragedy Masks
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
Building the “Wings”
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
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
Constructing the Frame and Panels
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
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
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!