4 life-saving skills to learn while working with wood
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While the headline is a bit misleading – we can see it being advertised on websites we don’t plan on mentioning – but it is the truth. Wood is incredible – not speaking from a wood-worker’s perspective – but from a layman’s experience as well. Once you see the wood dust scattered all over your workstation, you have to admit – falling in love with your handiwork is just a vacuum blower away.
Woodworking is just like coding; one faulty error and there goes your masterpiece! And do you know of the worst part? There is no shortcut or CTRL + ALT + DEL buttons to hit to immediately restart your work. To motivate you to work with wood, we want to discuss the following 5 life-saving skills we learnt while fooling our way to the top as a professional woodworker.
1) You learn the Importance of Quality
“Momma didn’t raise a fool,” said Forrest Gump as he discovered the different types of sandpaper and grit textures in the box that was originally meant for chocolates.
As a woodworker, it is important to tell the quality and consistency of your woodwork. How well can you grade your work? As someone who was barely starting out, we could never go past the minuses, but we were sure of rule number one in the woodworking book – there is improvement! As an apprentice, we learned how sanding was incredibly important to ensure the quality of your work – and we soon found out why.
Sanding is one of the woodworking finishes without which your piece of wood wouldn’t stand another chance at the Crafter’s market. Woodworkers expect perfection from their work, and trust us on this, they aren’t used to grit and sanding flaws. Getting your wood’s grainy texture to appear smoother than silk is the real job here – and apprentices usually miss out on sanding as a classic mistake.
Plus, sanding is one of the basic finishes you have to excel in before you grab a jar of paint or coating to lay it on your wood. If you are confused which sander to get, we recommend reading through one of the best reviews about bench sanders to get an idea about belt, disc and random orbital sanders.
2) You Are Handy At Home!
There goes your bill for hiring a carpenter every time you hear a door creaking!
One thing we have to admit that we got out of woodworking other than the profits that lined up from selling our crafts – it has taught us to be handy at home! From repairing a hole in the wall to sanding the wood planks to perfection for your garage door – woodworking opens a can of opportunities once mastered.
Start out by leaning to fix that annoying hole in the drywall that is now covered with a painting you loathe. Once you get the sense of sanding, all you need to do is make measurements and take your combination sander in the backyard to get your chop chop down.
3) You learn to be Patient
Working with wood – we repeat – is not a chore or a project you took to get your mother off your toes at home. It requires a huge amount of effort and intellect, not to mention, patience to continue sanding a piece of wood for hours.
Even if you are a seasoned woodworker, you understand how your masterwork needs time, energy and patience to turn out the way you want it to be. One bad stroke and you are left with a ruined piece of wood that will soon find its way in your trash. From covering drywalls to carving benches, you will soon be making miniature pieces like Klaus used to – with perfection.
4) You are Comfortable with the ‘Little Things’
Woodworking for any aspiring woodworker is more than your basic menial job. We remember the time when woodworking was considered as one of the essential life lessons in school. Many picked it up faster than others because woodworking had already been declared a form of expression at home. The kids who got an A in woodshop usually played with wood on the weekends with their fathers unlike others who would whine for turns at the roller-skating rink.
Woodwork exposes you to stress and patience at the same time – we agree, but it also allows you to work in our comfort zone. There is nothing a woodworker doesn’t enjoy – and that is working in a woodshop that gathers in dust while his station remains sparkling clean. For true woodworking enthusiasts, the workshop is a haven.
For a woodworker, enjoying little conversations with the people who really matter, matter. For instance, talking about his neighbour’s expensive wheels gives him no joy in contrast to conversations shared about his passion with the elderly who actually experienced the joy.
Woodworking opens life to experiences and skills you might not trade for riches – we know, we wouldn’t. Plus, who says you can’t keep profits at bay? Indulge in your passion to get marvelous so that one day, you can sell it to people who appreciate wood sculptures, carvings and other works!
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