My mother was a talented craftswoman.  Everything she made was museum quality, and I think her quest for perfection and detail runs in my genes.  Here is a selection of some of the baskets she wove – a mix of Nantucket Lightship, Mattapoisett, and traditional styles. The scrimshaw that adorns these is all her original artwork.  She wan’t my sole inspiration, though.  We have lived in Japan and Italy in addition to all four corners of the U.S.  Along the way, especially in Japan, I found talented craftsmen who fueled my own interests.

September 2018 – We purchased this heap directly from the UK.  It was completely bare on the inside and had been converted from a pickup version after serving as a farm truck for most of its life.  I rebuilt the four-cylinder diesel engine, refined the interior, and did everything else except paint the aluminum body.  This turned out to be a great land-based laboratory for practicing diesel engine maintenance prior to buying the boat.

October 2018 – Before we launched our sailing adventure Lexi was an enthusiastic gymnast.  She asked me to make her a balance beam for her birthday.  I made this out of 2x8s.  She wanted it low to the ground in case the cartwheels didn’t go this well.

January 2019 – Gavin asked me to make him a sword for his birthday, so I made this while I was a student at IYRS.  It’s solid mahohany with pine wrapped around the tang.  It has blood grooves routed into both sides.  Although this wasn’t a horribly complicated project, having access to a full shop made it pretty easy.

October 2020 – Both kids really enjoyed watching Lord of the Rings, so they asked me to make them swords for their Halloween costumes.  The challenge for me was that we were on the boat, so all I had for a workbench was a Yeti cooler, and I only had a few woodworking tools.

July, 1993 – Jewelry Box I made for my sister while in Pensacola, FL going through Navy Flight School.  It was my first attempt at using a dovetail jig and a router.  I had no idea what I was doing, but I had big dreams of becoming a craftsman.  The Navy, of course, had other priorities for me, so my desire to have a workshop where I could produce fine woodworking projects lost out in the near term.

June, 1999 – I took a continuing education course at the high school in Ridgecrest, CA while I was on my first shore duty assignment.  It was a three-week syllabus focused on shop safety and the use of typical shop woodworking tools.  I made a workbench while I was taking the course, then made this bookcase.

August, 2005 – I made this for my sister as well, but what this picture doesn’t show is that I made it in her garage with minimal tools and no workbench aside from a couple of saw horses and a few boards.  I had one weekend to do it, and just some scrap wood for materials.  I never let the lack of a comprehensive workshop get in the way of a project.  When there was time, I built something.  It’s what I love to do.