a remaining craftsman

I am a remaining American craftsman. I won't say the last, as there are others like me, and will be more to come, as the urge to create objects of useful beauty with one's own hands is rooted at the core of our humanity.

Today the snow is falling fast and hard in Northwest Arkansas. We started with a layer of ice, then sleet and now snow at 4 inches and deepening by the hour, so town is slowed to a crawl, and other than a bit of tractor time to clear the road, the day portends such pleasantries as a warm fire in the wood shop and the careful assembly of fitted parts.

The photos show wedging the tenons that secure the table legs. I use a dowel between the mallet and the wedge to better direct the force and prevent the mallet striking from breaking the wedge. The tenons are glued and then a bit of glue spread on the face of the wedges glues them in place as they expand the tenon tightly in the mortise. One must check to make sure that the part assembly is square. After the glue sets, it would be nearly impossible to fix poorly aligned parts.