Selling work...

One of the things that is less fun than making things is selling them. Selling work takes me out of the wood shop. I was alerted by friends that Crystal Bridges Museum Store was completely out of my work, so this afternoon, I drove over to make a delivery. Next I need to get boxes into the hands of local galleries, as those outlets, too, are low on my work. It feels good to thin the inventory here in my office and to get the cash flowing, but it always feels best to just hang out and be creative in my wood shop. But the things I make have to go somewhere. A house with too many boxes and too little cash is not for the best.

I learned today that in addition to my new book, several of my older projects will be included in a new box making "bookazine" published by Taunton Press. It will be a compilation of projects from my book, Basic Box Making, from a book by Strother Purdy and perhaps articles republished from Fine Woodworking Magazine. This kind of book project is a nice thing for me as it will be based on work I've already completed. To keep it from competing directly with my own books, it will be available only for a limited time.

I have been reading about the life of Pestalozzi, from a book written by Henry Barnard and originally published in 1859. One thing you quickly learn is that the man had a sincerity and truthfulness about himself. He displayed a humility that can only be described as profound. I invite you to read along here. Please pay particular attention to the letter he wrote to the woman he later married. It begins on p. 54 with the words, My Dear, My only Friend...

Make, fix and create...