Woodworking: Fundamentals of Furniture Making

Name: Woodworking: Fundamentals of Furniture Making
Rating: 4.6 (153 reviews)

This extensive furniture making course will help improve skills resulting in rock solid furniture.

Created byGeorge Vondriska

Last updated 10/2019

English

What you'll learn

This woodworking course provides every detail you need to build quality furniture in your shop.
Learn the mortise and tenon joint resulting in solid furniture.
Adding decorative accents to furniture projects taking it from simple to beautiful.

Course content

1 section • 9 lectures • 2h 48m total length

Getting Started4:45
Meet your instructor, George Vondriska, and learn what tools and techniques are used in this video Course. You’ll also learn the material requirements; how many board feet of material are required for the woodworking project you’ll complete.
Prepping Parts37:18
George’s preference is to start furniture making projects with the most visible piece. That means gluing up the top first. The legs are also made from glued up stock using a book matching technique that makes them seamless.
Design & Layout Guidelines17:52
The strength of mortise and tenon joinery begins with the joint being correctly sized for the project. Learn standard rules for dimensioning this joint that you can apply to this table, and other woodworking projects. Consistency in laying out the joint locations is key to a square and stable project. George provides his time-tested secrets for uniform lay out.
Joinery41:50
Mortises on the router table, and tenons on the table saw. This approach provides a winning combination for cutting the mortise and tenon joint. What if, once cut, the joint is too tight or too loose? No sweat. Everyone runs into an “oops” every once in a while, and George will provide the fix for you.
The Top15:18
Solid wood tops must be allowed to seasonally expand and contract. This can be accomplished by incorporating table top fasteners in your project; a must to prevent splitting later. Learn about correctly installing these versatile fasteners. A great tip for making a thick top appear lighter is undercutting the edge. A shop-made jig provides what you need to make this cut on the table saw.
Details12:50
You’ll be amazed at how a simple router bit can transform the look of the rails on your furniture projects. Easy to set up on the router table, the detail added by this cutter really enhances the overall design of the table.
Taper the Legs10:09
Lighten the look of your furniture by using a tapered, rather than straight, leg. Learn the rules-of-thumb for how to lay out an attractive taper, and how to make a custom table saw jig for safely and accurately cutting the taper.
Sand and Assemble27:16
Many furniture projects are too complex to assemble all at once. Ease of assembly is about staging, and considering which parts to assemble first. George provides the guidance you need to determine a logical assembly sequence. He also provides tips on making sure the project is square.
Summary0:59
George wraps up this Course with a reminder to use the processes and skills you learned in making this project table – to create a wide variety of new furniture pieces that you’ll enjoy for years.

Requirements

There are not any course requirements or prerequisites for this class.

Description

Tables, chairs and other forms of furniture rely heavily on mortise and tenon joinery, which is at the heart of this Fundamentals of Furniture Making Course. From scaling the joinery to suit your project to producing a perfectly fitting joint, you’ll learn the mortise and tenon joint inside and out, along with other great tips for making rock solid furniture.

Additionally, furniture projects often require solid wood tops, made using edge-to-edge glue ups. Learn the tricks behind jointing perfect edges, getting great color and grain matches in your top, and allowing solid wood tops to expand and contract seasonally.

The Course video instruction, produced in conjunction with Woodworkers Guild of America, is very detailed, leaving no steps out of the process. In this Course you’ll learn about:

Project design
Edge-to-edge glue ups for strength and beauty
Mortise and tenon joinery
Tapering legs
Adding decorative accents to furniture projects

Woodworkers Guild of America Instructor George Vondriska, is a firm believer in the adage that form should follow function, and he’ll show you how to add simple details to furniture that take it from boring to beautiful. For example, a simple router bit makes a significant difference in the look of the table rails. Undercutting the edge of the top gives it a lighter look. A slight taper on the legs reduces their bulk. Fundamentals of Furniture Making provides video instruction that makes each of these details easy to do.

In addition to step-to-step video instruction, this Course provides you with downloadable resources and helpful information, including: A complete printable Guide, that is a woodworking plan for the table you’ll build in your own shop while following along with George’s techniques; and source references for any specialized tools used.

Who this course is for:

Woodworkers wanting to expand their furniture making skills.