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We can buy more stuff now than ever before, but we need to replace it two, three, even five times more often. I have always preferred to buy the best even if that meant waiting longer until I could afford it, but that search is getting a little more difficult. Beautiful and artistically-crafted furnishings, lighting, and other home improvements don't exist in most stores and good-quality craftsmanship only exists from a relatively small number or artists and craftspersons in the world today. This lowering of standards is completely our fault. If we continue to buy inexpensive, poor quality merchandise instead of paying more for quality, we are voting with our wallets that quality does not matter. We perpetuate the poor quality we complain about by purchasing low-quality products over and over again. In the end we don't receive anything of value.
This blog is not a complaint, but more a statement and observation that we are not gaining more with all this cheap stuff but losing quality in our surroundings. I want to personally thank all the artist and craftspersons who manufacture quality products, and who add so much to our world by caring about what they do.
I did this carved entry door for a man in Japan. I was amazed when he said he had been looking for years for someone to carve this door in Japan without success.
While there are many woodcarving hobbyists, there are few professional wood carvers. Someone can spend years carving, practicing long hours getting skilled enough in many styles and techniques. Yet it's not good enough to be able to simply carve out a living, so to speak. The professional wood carver works quickly, precisely, and with feeling to reflect the style, period, and part of the world he or she is representing.
There are many machine carved panels, corbels and details that can be applied to existing or new work, but they will not necessarily match the wood, the proportions, or the style. And they are lifeless. Not only is it important that the design be well done, no matter how precise, but that the life of the artist/craftsperson doing the work is expressed through the carvings. Most of the time it is better not to include machined carvings because they will add nothing to the project.
A simple hand-carved rosette, a bird on a branch with just a few leaves, or an entire forest scene can transform well-made but plain woodwork into something special, unique, and a piece of art to be enjoyed each time you enter the room or open a door.
Contemporary design is one of my favorite places for carvings because of the clean plain lines. To carve an iris or other simple shape very precisely adds an element of surprise, a contrast, and a bit of unexpected life to the object that can be quite fun and work very well.
The next time you are thinking of having something custom made, whether it is a kitchen, office, door, or piece of furniture, consider adding some hand-carved details. Look for an artist/craftsperson that can truly add something beautiful to your home or office, a hand carving with life.
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Whether you are a home or business owner, architect or interior designer, working with an artist/craftsperson on a project can be quite exciting. Regardless of their location, be it local or across the country, an artist/craftsperson can add many more possibilities than you might have thought of including the combination of different materials for added dimension to your project. An artist/craftsperson will usually have the experience of working in different materials will know what will work together artistically, and from a practical standpoint what will last.
Start by finding the artist/craftsperson by looking at their website to see if the person's scope of work has the experience to fulfill your projects needs. You don't need to try to find exactly what you are looking for on the website, just the person's artistic ability and experience. Then email or call the studio you have chosen to see if they are interested and are willing to work with the specific needs you have. This is sometimes easier done by phone, but can be accomplished through email as well.
Providing photo's and floor plans can be very helpful with the design process. Providing rough sketches can also be helpful but should not be necessary for a qualified artist or craftsperson, who should be able to do the rough sketches for you according to your design needs, then final renderings once a design decision has been made, and finally shop drawings to start the job.
At some point the artist/craftsperson may want to see the project site depending on the size and scope of work. The more the artist/craftsperson can provide including the different materials, finishing and installation, the more likely the different aspects and materials of the job will work together with an artistic flow of design, and the less likely there will be problems.
By working with the artist/craftsperson a project can go from filling a space to a beautifully artistic expression, incorporating your ideas into something you will enjoy for decades.
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If found in the beginning you can simply drill a series of 1/16" diameter holes about 1/2" deep around the holes left by the beetles and inject with a syringe Pyola Insect Spray from Gardens Alive catalog (www.gardensalive.com), an organic insect spray, or a mixture of boric acid mixed with water. You are going to need very little, just about a tablespoon. Be sure to wear disposable gloves, wash out any container and syringe and wipe up spills.
After injecting the holes several times, wipe up any excess with a damp cloth. Then fill the holes with painters putty if the wood is a painted surface or colored wax for satin wood surfaces, making sure to find a color to match the satin finish. You can find this was at any paint or hardware store. Check at least twice a week for 2 weeks, then once every week for a month for new holes. If you find any new holes repeat as outlined above.
By taking these few simple steps when you initially spot the problem, you can preserve your furniture, avoid tenting and fumigating your whole house (which is very toxic to you, your animal companions, and the environment), and possibly save hundreds or thousands of dollars.
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There is so much opportunity for design enhancements with the garage door. The design can be simple but individually distinct, reflecting the home's style, the landscape, or the owner's individual expression. Or it can be a tastefully exquisite masterpiece, showcasing the front of the home. Either way it is a preview of what's to come on the inside of the home, reflecting the interests and tastes of the owner along with the design ideas from an artisan craftsperson.
Many times the garage door is the first thing a guest will see when they arrive. Why not make it as much of a statement as the rest of your home.
]]>This article, written by David Frisk, was originally printed in Woodshop News Magazine, December 2009 issue.
Frame and panel door construction has changed little over the last thousand years, until the last one hundred or so years and then the changes have been mainly the tools used and the quality of glues used. The basic principles of good construction are the same. Basically solid wood is in a constant state of movement no matter what type of finish is used. Movement is mainly along the growth rings. There is also movement perpendicular to the growth rings, about one quarter as much and almost no movement lengthwise. This movement is compounded when exposed to the outside, such as in exterior doors. For this reason quarter-sawn or vertical-grain wood is far superior to plain-sawn wood.
Because of this movement and the natural oxidation process of everything in nature, the joints are working themselves loose over time. The larger the face-grain gluing surfaces the stronger the joint. End grain (rails) to edge grain (stiles) has almost no strength over time. Dowels have very little face grain and shouldn’t be used in exterior door applications. The best joinery is the age-old concealed mortise and tenon. The more exposure the door has, the longer and wider the mortise and tenon should be. To maximize strength the thickness of the tenon should be less than one third the thickness of the door. Another joinery technique used in the frame of doors is a spline. The spline is usually baltic birch plywood or solid wood, again a little less than one third the thickness of the door. (1-3/4” thick door=1/2” thick spline or tenon). A mortise is cut in the end grain of the rail and edge of the stiles. The spline joint, along with the mortise and tenon, is strongest when concealed, helping to slow the oxidation process by less exposure, starting and stopping the mortises at least 1/2” from the edges. Like the mortise and tenon, the more exposure the door will have, the longer and wider the splines should be. Examples for both types of joinery would be a 1-3/4” thick by 5” wide stile and a 1-3/4” by 8” bottom rail in a low-exposure situation. The tenon would be 1/2” thick by 7-1/4” wide by 2-1/2” long. Spline joinery would be 1/2” thick by 7” wide (1/2” less than both edges) by 5” long (mortise 2-1/2” into both stile and rail). In a heavy exposure everything is the same except that the length of the tenon should be 4” and the spline 8”. Also, the depth of the mortise should be 1/8” longer than the tenons or splines for glue. And don’t fit the joints so tight they have to be hammered together. They should easily slide together with hand pressure. If the joints are too tight the glue is scraped off during assembly and what is left is absorbed into the surfaces leaving a weak joint.
Another type of joinery is cope and stick used exclusively in production shops. In this type of joinery everything said above is exactly the same. The only difference is the tooling and technique used. For mortise and tenon joinery the tenon is cut at the same time the cope is cut. The stick detail is run first, then the mortise is cut. For spline joinery the cope is run first, then the stick is run, and finally mortises for the splines are cut, preferably concealed for added strength.
Making the panels for the joinery is completely different although the considerations are the same. The wood’s movement must be considered. It must be interlocking with the glue surfaces as large as possible. Again, dowels aren’t a good choice in exterior circumstances. Biscuit joinery is a slight improvement but won’t last over a long period of time. Splines in most panels are not satisfactory because the space for glue at the bottom of the groove cut for the spline weakens the full length of the panel and is not recommended. The best overall performance has been the reversible glue joint. This joint is interlocked and the glue surface is increased by close to 50%. Remember to leave space for movement when cutting panels to size to fit into the frame. Plan at least 1/16” per 12” of width. Knowing the relative humidity and equilibrium moisture content (the moisture content of wood equalizes at a specific relative humidity) of the area where the door will be installed is helpful to prevent problems. The equilibrium moisture content of wood in Southern California is 12% at the coast, 9% inland, and 5% to 6% in the desert. If the wood is 9% when you receive it and a door is being built for the desert the panel sould be a tight fit. But that same wood at 9%, with a door heading for the coast, would use the 1/16”-space-per-12”-of-width rule for expansion. In locations where the outside conditions are very dry during the winter and have a high humidity level during the summer, the high humidity parameters are used for the space size. To make sure your moldings are wide enough for shrinkage during the winter, you should figure 1/16” shrinkage per 12” width. Without this planning the panels could become to loose or expand and break the joinery of the frame. Also when gluing the panel into the frame seal the end grain and make sure glue doesn’t get onto the corners of the panels which would lock the panels in place, not allowing movement and causing the panels to crack. The panels need to be able to move. If you can, it’s preferable to pre-finish the panels prior to installing in the frame. This will prevent an unfinished line from appearing after shrinkage.
There are many types of glues available today. The easiest exterior glues to use are the water-clean-up aliphatic resin glues, available rated for exterior use. These glues work very well for most domestic medium-hard hardwoods, if the open time is adequate. For many of the very hard woods, and especially the exotic woods, a two-part urea formaldehyde resin glue or exterior epoxy is better suited. If exterior epoxy is used, mix the two parts as per directed, apply to both surfaces, allow to set 10 minutes then mix in an extender, such as colloidal silica or other extender, to thicken the glue and reapply to all surfaces. Apply enough pressure to bring the surfaces together but don’t over tighten the clamps. Urea formaldehyde has extenders already added. The extenders keep the glue from becoming too thin which will weaken the joint.
Frame and panel doors are commonly used in most situations in new homes and remodels. They are simple to construct yet can be built to last a lifetime. By using the correct manufacturing methods along with the right choice of moisture content of the wood and the proper glues for the job, your project can be completed with little or no problems, guaranteeing a satisfied, and possibly return, customer.
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When I started in business in 1968 one of the areas of architectural art I really enjoyed was the front door. The front door gives a large surface with many possibilities of expression, not just for me but for the home owner, the business owner, the architect, or even the local church or synagog. Nothing else has the potential to welcome or express a feeling or idea, no matter how abstract, than the front door. Think of the door as the first intimate meeting of the outside world with your world. And when that door is a well-designed and well-crafted door, it becomes a piece of art that brings joy every time you walk by it, walk through it, or greet someone at it.
Because each situation is different, picking a door from a catalog is seldom satisfying, and is merely filling a space. How boring! There are many companies making doors but very little variation between them, including most custom door makers who are, again, filling a space and not creating something special or creative.
A unique design doesn't have to be complex. It can be as simple as adding a small carving or molding detail, some art glass, a lovely finish, or fantastic hardware. What is most important is that this unique design must take into consideration the individual circumstance, creating something new and fresh, exclusively for that entryway.
A contemporary home or business doesn't necessarily dictate an abstract design. Likewise, a Spanish or French-styled structure need not follow that period strictly. There is much more involved in designing that distinctive front door for each and every project. The front door is the first thing someone sees upon approaching your home or business, the first impression of what might be on the other side of that door, and should be reflect the personality and style of the person or persons inside. That special design needs the artist's rare ability to see not just a building needing a door, but an architectural framework needing the embellishment I call architectural art.
The joy of life is in it's variations. Sometimes following an architectural style is the right thing to do. But sometimes, the road less traveled is the more interesting path to follow.
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