Let’s say you spent weeks working on what you consider to be your best project yet. Hours were dedicated to wood selection alone followed by weeks of effort in the joinery and construction. A week was spent perfecting the finish alone! With all of this emotional and physical investment, you finally bring the piece in from the shop for your family and friends to enjoy. Most compliments are the typical supportive pats on the back you expect from your loved ones, but then someone drops a bomb on you. They say something that is totally meant as a compliment, but your woodworker’s brain doesn’t quite know how to process it. Here are a few examples that I frequently hear.

“That feels like plastic!”

What the woodworker hears: “You spent all this time working on a natural wood product only to end up with something that feels like it was generated in a laboratory by a machine.”

What they meant: “The finish on this piece is so smooth and so perfect that it has a similar feel to plastic. You are incredibly skilled to be able to produce such a finish in your shop!”

“That looks better than store-bought!”

What the woodworker hears: “I am so surpised that you were able to make something that looks better than that particle board crap sold at Walmart!”

What they meant: “I usually only associate quality with manufactured products because my experience with hand-made furniture is quite limited. Therefore I am pleasantly surprised that you are able to make something that actually looks better than a comparable product that was mass-produced by a company with millions of dollars invested in the production of said product.”

“You built that?!”

What the woodworker hears: “I can’t believe you are actually skilled enough to make that!”

What they meant: “I had no idea you were such a skilled and capable craftsman! I am very impressed!”

I know I can’t be alone in this observation. What compliments have you received that didn’t initially FEEL like a compliment?

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Do you remember the first time you realized what how a sharp well-tuned plane is supposed to behave? I sure do! For years I used an old Stanley block plane and thought it was the worst invention in the world. Instead of shavings, it would often emit large chips. I quickly learned that it was always safer NOT to use it on an important project. Then one day I visited a friend’s shop and had an opportunity to try out his new block plane. Fortunately, my friend knew the value of sharpening and the planing experience was pure pleasure. At first I thought it was the plane itself but in reality, it was the blade doing all the work. From then on, I knew that finely-honed blades were going to be a constant in my shop. I did some research on sharpening techniques, bought some water stones and a honing guide, and the rest is history.

While I don’t particularly enjoy the sharpening process, I don’t hate it either. I usually reserve it for those few days between projects when I’m in the mode of shop cleanup and maintenance. Knowing how powerful the results will be makes the entire effort worth it, so I don’t begrudge the process. How about you?

How do you feel about sharpening your tools?

Poll created by Tom Iovino of TomsWorkbench.com.

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