The New Yankee Workshop Season 14

A well-equipped workshop will need a bench for a miter saw. In this two part project, Norm builds a useful model with extensions on both sides of the saw, an adjustable stop block, an auxiliary guide for use with an adjacent radial saw table, and much more. The bench base is fully equipped with pull-out drawers sized to house Norm's most-used power tools and accessories. One of those, the "dedicated" mortiser, has its own pull-out shelf with a bench-top fixture that secures the tool and provides extension to support and stabilize longer stock. This will be a popular project to anyone who wants to build useful organized storage in the workshop. This is part 1 of 2.

A well-equipped workshop will need a bench for a miter saw. In this two part project, Norm builds a useful model with extensions on both sides of the saw, an adjustable stop block, an auxiliary guide for use with an adjacent radial saw table, and much more. The bench base is fully equipped with pull-out drawers sized to house Norm's most-used power tools and accessories. One of those, the "dedicated" mortiser, has its own pull-out shelf with a bench-top fixture that secures the tool and provides extension to support and stabilize longer stock. This will be a popular project to anyone who wants to build useful organized storage in the workshop. This is part 2 of 2.

Long after the last steamship sailed its last voyage, Norm sets out to build a New Yankee Workshop version of the rounded-top steamer trunk. Once used to store clothes for ship passengers, these trunks are still very popular among antique collectors. Today they are much admired by those who use them at the foot of beds for blanket and linen storage. Norm built his from antique chestnut and hammered iron strips that mimic the original trunk hardware.

One of the all-time most popular projects ever built in The New Yankee Workshop was the Adirondack chair Norm built years ago. Now, with this Adirondack loveseat, Norm has the chance to revisit his original design and make improvements not possible when the original was built. For example, a new generation of weather proof adhesives are now available to secure the various parts to one another. Elsewhere Norm makes refinements in joining the various elements with all weather screws and conceals them with plugs. What results from these improvements, the Adirondack loveseat, is an extremely comfortable double seated version of our all-time favorite project.

The main business of Leonard's Antiques, a group of highly respected antique stores located in the Northeast, is the making and selling of reproduction beds. Using both old original elements salvaged from the past and newly created parts necessary to meet modern bed dimensions, the craftsmen at Leonard's know all about beds. Norm pays Leonard's a visit and meets the owner, Jeff Jenkins, for a behind the scenes look at how the beds are made. Then he returns to the workshop and creates a beautiful tiger maple version sized to fit a queen. The four turned posts and a handsome headboard lend distinction to a good night's sleep.

While visiting Palm Beach, Florida, Norm discovers an attractive maple shaving stand in the Flagler Museum. Norm recreates this unique piece of Americana using cherry to form the mirror surround, the drawer, and to form the gracefully cut legs. At first glance, you might wonder why Norm (with his full beard) would ever need a piece of furniture like this, but he will be ready in case fashions change.

Surely one of the most useful projects Norm's ever built for the shop is this work table. It's a light weight, yet sturdy, assembly table that is easily raised up on casters to move around the shop as necessary. The mechanism for the caster assembly was borrowed from a nearby scenic shop where mobility is essential. Also with the table, Norm creates a storage cart for his collection of woodworker's clamps. When he needs several clamps, he can easily wheel over his collection to make his choice.

Norm visits an antique shop and spots a small round pedestal table that the dealer tells him may have originated in Indonesia. Maybe that's why it was built from teak, a popular wood in that region. Norm likes the choice of the wood, for it means that the table can be used either inside or out. The tricky part of making a pedestal table is connecting the legs to the pedestal. After the pedestal is turned, and while it is still in the lathe, Norm uses a clever technique with a jig and a router to accurately cut the mortises.

If you've been looking for a small elegant chest of drawers then this Chippendale-inspired beauty is for you. Locating one is not easy, so Norm was delighted to find an original in an antique store. Norm's version is built of high quality mahogany veneer plywood and fitted with period reproduction hardware. This four drawer classic is perfect for a small space or next to a bed.

Norm makes wooden bowls.

An antique cherry nightstand, circa 1840, found in a friend's house on Nantucket Island, is inspiration for Norm to build his version in The New Yankee Workshop. This square-topped, single drawer nightstand has 4 handsomely turned legs. Norm uses cherry for the body of the piece, and fashions the drawer front from tiger maple as a distinctive contrast. The simple elegance of this nightstand assures its place as a family heirloom.

It used to be when you cruised the ocean on a liner you would be offered a comfortable place to read and relax on a sun deck. A deckhand would show you to your wooden lounge chair, often made of teak, fitted with brass and combined with a footrest. Today you can enjoy the same comfort with Norm?s version, made of plantation grown teak and specialized brass hardware designed to withstand the elements.

When Norm finds this early cupboard in a Nantucket antique shop, he can't be sure of what he has found. There are questions about the paint, the overall height (it seems low), and the decoration may have been added at a later time. Nevertheless, it's a simple rustic classic, just perfect for The New Yankee Workshop collection. Norm makes his from recycled pine and predicts this piece will be popular with woodworkers.