posted December 2, 2019
My 68th birthday was October 25th and I decided to give myself a gift. The gift was to give myself the time I needed to create a vessel from this gnarly piece of Buckeye Burl that I had purchased well over a decade and a half ago but I hadn’t had the time to create anything …
by David J. Marks
posted August 1, 2019
I last shared with you my progress on the “Ocean” Wall Sculpture commission in the April 2019Â newsletter.
On this commission I made the huge leap to attempting to veneer on a dome, which means all of the veneer is getting glued and pressed onto compound curves!
Working on flat surfaces requires …
by David J. Marks
posted June 30,2016
In December of 2014 my friend Rik Lawrence, a furniture maker from nearby Sonoma (check out Red Cloud Furniture), called to offer to sell me a Big Leaf Maple tree which blew over in a storm on his property.
I saw this as an opportunity to get some large pieces of Maple for …
 posted May 21, 2015
An old friend of David’s called him the other day and asked him if he could fit some resawing into his schedule. David had resawed some of James’ quilted mahogany 10 years ago for furniture projects that James was making. They discussed the various options.
David could use his 36 inch bandsaw set up with a …
Posted by David Marks Oct. 30,2014
Burning Man is an annual week-long festival, dedicated to community, art, self-expression, and self-reliance, held at the end of August in Nevada’s Black Rock Desert. This summer, I had the pleasure to work with artist David Best on the construction of the Temple of Grace, envisioned as a spiritual and sacred space.
Here I …
Posted October 20, 2014
We recently received a very impressive customer review of our WoodWorks Season 5 DVD. His feedback gives a great overview of the DVD and of what he feels our DVD offers to fellow woodworkers. He starts off comparing WoodWorks Season 5 DVD to our Marquetry & Inlay DVD.
From Gary Bell, Kansas:
I must say that …
Posted September 29, 2014 by David J. Marks
I received an excellent question from a woodturner who had read my article Turned Bowl with Ebony Rim in our September 2014 newsletter:/
I was just getting ready to turn a bowl from a blank that is not much thicker than the desired depth. This was leaving me nothing for the usual …
Â
Â
Posted by David J. Marks August 30, 2014
David was recently interviewed by Dan Farnbach for his August 12,2014 Blog in Popular Woodworking. Dan’s first question for this informative Q & A:
“What are the most notable changes in the studio furniture world during the course of your career?”
To read the full Q & A “We’re all climbing the …
Posted by David J. Marks August 30, 2014
Unlike most turners who prefer to turn green wood (freshly cut wood that is still wet) I prefer to turn dry wood. One reason is that I have collected a lot of highly figured and unusual wood during my thirty plus years of woodworking, most of which is dry now even if …
We now have posted pictures from David’s recent 3 days hands on Gilding & Chemical Patination class he taught on July 18 – 20, 2014. Take a look at the wonderful work the students created: 2014 Gilding & Chemical Patination Class Photos…
Posted by David J. Marks July 31, 2014
I believe that design is the ultimate frontier in woodworking. Â We live in a time that finds many people with the resources to set up a shop at home. It is amazing to see how many people are able to outfit their shops with a lot of the tools they need …
Recently a client who purchased WoodWorks Season 5 DVD and is working on building the Contemporary Dining Chair (episode 507) emailed David about his recommendations for a vacuum press. This project involves bentwood lamination for the curved chair back. The vacuum press is necessary for the glue up of the numerous laminates.
What vacuum press make/model does David recommend …
I often get inquiries from fellow woodworkers about finishing products, particularly about the best way to extend the shelf life of various products:
Hello David,
 Speaking of finishes, I was never a fan of poly but I tried the wipe on poly you recommended by General Finish.  The sealer is very good and lasts a long time in the can, …
Question from a Client
David,
I bought this very old Chinese tray with half the lacquer worn off. I want to preserve what is left and use it to work on.
Can I paint or spray some kind of clear finish on it? You are our guru for surfaces on wood. All I know is textiles.
Thanks for your help.…
Olive wood from California orchards is prone towards developing cracks and checks very easily. It is a beautiful wood and it is stable once it has dried.
Here is what has worked for me in dealing with olive wood for turning. I recommend that you have some Green Wood Sealer on hand.
I brush green wood …
Last weekend I demonstrated at the Desert Woodturning Roundup in Mesa, Arizona. I had 6 rotations, 2 on combining metal with wood, 2 on gilding turned vessels and 2 on creating patinas on vessels.
There was a great line up of Demonstrators :
J. Paul Fennel who lives in Scottsdale and does some amazing pierced and carved hollow vessels.
Richard …
I had a student in mid November 2012 that traveled from North Carolina to take a 5 day private class with me. One of the things she was interested in learning was my method of cutting dovetails using the bandsaw and getting that “hand cut†look.
She had been taught by a Master Craftsman from the UK to use a …
Woodworking is about passion and guitar making is a form of that passion. Woodworking is challenging enough but building a guitar requires making something out of wood that not only looks good but also sounds good.
Kevin Russell is a musician and show promoter who lives in Seabastopol Calif. Kevin is so passionate about guitars that he decided to stage …
Marc Spagnuolo of the Wood Whisperer just posted a great review of David’s Double Bevel Marquetry DVD. You can read the review posted, and also listen to a discussion of the DVD between Marc and Matt Vanderlist, the host and creator of Matt’s Basement Workshop Podcast. They have a very candid discussion about the DVD.
Phil Crane from the Sacramento area took a class with me early November 2012 on how to make a bentwood laminated lamp from mahogany similar to the one I made on Woodworks episode #512.
Bending wood opens up a world of design possibilities that enable one to create things that have flowing curved lines as opposed to the predictable flat …
David bandsaws a mahogany bentwood lamination in half for a student that is taking a class to build a replica of David’s Koa Lamp design from Woodworks episode #512…
The good folks at Popular Woodworking magazine invited me to do some demonstrations at the Woodworking in America show in Pasadena last October.
One of my demos was on double bevel marquetry so I decided to make a small sample of something to show the people in my class.
I decided to try and make a “bug”.
Yellow heart made …
Woodcraft In Spokane Washington Posted on February 28, 2013  Wood Whisperer Review Of Double Bevel Marquetry DVD Posted on January 22, 2013 |