Author Archives: Deftereos

Chinese classical furniture in the Ming style demonstrates some very interesting solutions to typical problems, some fascinating joinery and some timeless elegance in design. I found this book to be a great “read” – its got very little text but lots of inspiration. Upon reading it’s easy to see why this is considered one of […]

Have your kids been nagging you to let them play with your tools? Those tools that my wife refers to as the ones that weren’t very expensive with a raised eyebrow? Or they’ve been telling you how other dads buy playstations for their kids – and when are you going to actually make something useful […]

At 480 pages long, Hand Tool Essentials is a comprehensive review of a solid core toolset – discussed and selected by a master craftsman who has spent a lifetime working with (and teaching about) the tools. Depending on where you live it might not be the easiest book to get hold of – but I’d […]

Another Work is Possible is a very different take on how the task of building a structure can be completed. With the help of Charpentiers Sans Frontieres (CSF) – the folk at Mortise and Tenon set about constructing a new Blacksmith shop. Part philosophy, part construction log, part beautiful coffee table book – this book […]

The Craftsman is a thoughtful and thought-provoking look at mankind’s conflicted relationship with technology and craftsmanship. I learnt a lot from this book, but it is a bit of a tough read. You have to be paying attention. A book that I would suggest breaking up over a number of sessions. It’s taken me a […]

The Art of Saw-Filing by HW Holly is a fun little book that takes a quite complicated topic and breaks it down into a very easy to understand process – in a book which covers everything from the finest saw to a monster two-man saw to a circular saw and everything in between. It’s free […]

The book that I am most frequently asked about is the book Handsaw Essentials. It’s a book that is very difficult to get hold of and when you do the price is astronomical. In 2019 I paid just over $150 and I was pretty happy that I got a steal. Unfortunately, in my opinion the […]

This was a book that I was excited about when I found it in a second hand bookstore. Unfortunately, that excitement soon faded to disilussionment. Sadly, the bok has very little about cabinet making and is more a general autobiography. Unlike Thomas from the Joiner and Cabinet Maker, following James is a disaapointment. Occasionally there […]

This is one of my favorite autobiographical / philosophical books. Peter tells a great story, and this is a deeply personal account of his life and the lessons he has taken from it. From his early days of carpentry on Nantucket, through to the establishment of the school, this is a hard hitting account of […]

An important book, but one that is not always easy reading. A rural carpenter’s world is an interesting insight into the practice of carpentry in New York state during the nineteenth century. I found the book to be good, but more scholarly than narrative. Franklin cannot be faulted on his research, I just wish that […]