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Laser Cutting Cardboard to Make a Human Skull

<![CDATA[// ><!– (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); //–><!]]> A fun project making 3D cardboard sculptures using my Full Spectrum Laser cutter. I downloaded a free model of a human skull from Autodesk 123D. I then imported that model into 123D Make which lets you turn 3D models into 2D build plans and gives you step by step assembly instructions. Once you import your model you set the output size and the thickness of your material. The software quickly calculates how many sheets and parts you need based on your specs. I then used the outputted PDF to cut the cardboard sheets on my Full Spectrum Laser cutter. The Cardboard pieces were glued together using…

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The Man Who Made Things From Trees, me on Radio 4

Nearly three years ago I was visited by a lovely chap by the name of Rob Penn. He was fascinated by trees and was on an interesting journey. He had had an ash tree felled and was trying to get as many things as possible made from the one tree. He was planning a book […] The post The Man Who Made Things From Trees, me on Radio 4 appeared first on Robin Wood.

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Do what you love

As the year draws to a close I tend to become reflective and to check I am really doing what I want to do with my life. This year I am more reflective than normal, a couple of weeks ago a friend of mine died after a short illness. Paul was a lovely, lovely man, […] The post Do what you love appeared first on Robin Wood.

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Spooncarving knife making in Sheffield

This week I have been making another batch of spooncarving knife blades, or perhaps I should say blade blanks as the bulk of the time in a finished blade is actually in the final sharpening processes. Anyway these are the blades at the first stage of bending, these ones are all right handers. I bend […] The post Spooncarving knife making in Sheffield appeared first on Robin Wood.

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The story of a spoon

The story of a spoon. Some folk think it’s a lot of effort to make a spoon, it’s nothing compared to this. Or you could learn to carve gorgeous functional sculptures that are a joy to use or give to friends. Lets take a tiny step toward a world of zero carbon spoons. This one […] The post The story of a spoon appeared first on Robin Wood.

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Creative goodness

Tonight was the last in Julia Bradbury’s series of “walks with a view” and she led viewers around my home valley of Edale. On the way she stopped by the workshop and helped turn a bowl. You can see the program on ITV player here  not sure how long it will be live for or if […] The post Creative goodness appeared first on Robin Wood.

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25 Best of 2016 list from Drum Sander Specialists

The other day the folks at Drum Sander Specialists posted their “25 Best Woodworking Blogs for 2016” listing. There’s some mighty fine blogs listed there, and right smack in the middle is Matt’s Basement Workshop. 25 top sites according to Drum Sander Specialists A huge thanks to the staff for including me! Take a moment and checkout the list by clicking here to see if there’s some new ones on there you’ll enjoy following. Help support the show – please visit our advertisers Related posts: I Made The List! Woodworking Tool Giveaways Galore! It’s like being on the Dean’s List for Forestry!

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A Decade of Matt’s Basement Workshop?

As I’m sitting here trying to come up with something to say about the 10th anniversary of Matt’s Basement Workshop Podcast I’m finding myself entirely at a loss for words. For those of you who know me, that never happens! I’ve told the story a thousand times, but the show was never meant to last this long. My intent from the very beginning was to demonstrate it was possible to create a woodworking podcast, then wait for someone to come along, show me up and then I could sit back, listen/watch, and enjoy the experience. As you all know from podcasting history, at the same time I was launching Matt’s Basement Workshop my good …

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Old tools made new

It’s been a while since I’ve picked up an “old tool” and made any attempt at restoring it. Early in my woodworking career it was a great way to outfit my shop with tools I either needed, or thought I needed (in other words, feed my addiction!) Actually this was sent to me by a friend of the show several years ago! One problem I ran into frequently was that after I spent hours disassembling the tool (after attempting to document how it was originally assembled so I could reassemble it later,) and then trying desperately to restore it to its original showroom appearance, I inevitably always made the assumption that the previous owner knew …

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MICROJIG Celebrates 15 Years with $15 Rebate on GRR-RIPPERS!

Without a doubt, in my opinion, one of the best safety tools in my shop are my GRR-RIPPERS! They’re extremely diverse in the way I can configure them for the tool I’m using, and give me a peace-of-mind like no other pushblock I’ve used in all my years in the shop. Some woodworkers are thrown off by their price, but what’s the price for the peace-of-mind that comes with knowing you have a safety tool system, that when combined with common sense makes you all that much more safe? To help celebrate their 15th Anniversary, and at the same time make woodworkers all over the country safer than ever, MICROJIG is …

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Don’t push them into the shop!

Usually I save this conversation for closer to Father’s Day, but recently I’ve been feeling like I need to bring it up sooner than later. A frequent question I’ve received over the years, and a topic I see come up all the time in forums and on social media, is fellow woodworkers asking how they can get their kids as passionate about woodworking as they are? For the record, when Madison and Aiden were very young and the woodworking bug first bit me, I dreamed of the day when they’d be old enough to join me in the shop for hours of building and sharing a common passion in woodworking. But as the kids started getting …

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A Letter I Liked

Hello Paul. I am a true follower of all your endeavours, I served my time at Willy Rose & Sons in Oldham , They were shop fitters and we did some high class work, I was engaged on the new Town Hall at Rochdale for years, most of the joiners used ordinary planes for everyday work, but most of them had a Norris tucked away in his toolbox. Some of the counter tops were 40 ft long X 4 ft wide and 2″ thick, (usually in two pieces) think of the trees that that came out of) when cleaning these up, for polishing, nearly always out came the Norris, I would be obliged if you give us your thoughts on these fine old …

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