Master woodworker Rob Cosman not only offers dozens of tutorials on YouTube, along with a series of DVDs, books and tools, he also teaches workshops in Ontario, Canada and online that share his techniques. Using traditional hand tools, Cosman builds chests, boxes, cabinets, desks, seats, mantles and many other items, often using Eastern White Pine (also known as Northern White Pine.)
“Pine is the one wood that can accept the dings of life and not look out of place as a result,” Cosman writes. “It is also the wood that ages better than all others.” Cosman’s pine gallery includes tables, a bookcase, a Shaker wall cabinet and several chests of drawers. A workshop teaching advanced woodworkers how to build a 17th century chest also utilizes white pine.
“True to the era, we shape this chest using everything from an adze, to a scrub plane to a custom made curved sole wooden plane. With dovetails cut on the round this will challenge everyone.” If you can’t get to Ontario, you can take online workshops for both hand tools and power tools, with two 30-minute lessons per week.
The craft of woodworking is experiencing a revival as many people in other fields return seek out the satisfying experience of building something with their own two hands. Community woodworking shops are taking off around the nation, and as woodworking jobs begin to boom, learning centers of all sorts are offering a wider variety of classes.
