Here at Long Island Woodworking Supply, we are proud to offer woodturning and woodburning tools and accessories to woodworkers all across the country. When many people think of woodworkers, they might imagine a Ron Swanson-type character, a grizzled man of the woods who enjoys making things by hand. However, you never know if that college student who always has his face in his phone is paying his tuition by making woodturned furniture, or if that millionaire in the big house down the road has a special room where she practices pyrography on the weekends. There is no right or wrong way to be a woodworker, and in today’s blog, we’re going to be busting some misconceptions about woodworking to give you a better idea of what woodworking is and who woodworkers are! Keep reading to learn more!
While woodworking might seem like something reserved for older generations, there has actually been a huge influx of young woodworkers in recent years, especially as more and more people want to ‘DIY’ certain projects. Many young people have taken up woodburning as a side hobby and even sell their artwork online. Other people are taking up woodworking as a way to get away from our tech-filled world.
Sure, investing in a nice lathe and the accessories to go with it can get expensive, but there are plenty of types of woodworking. You can chisel pieces by hand or get into pyrography. Pyrography, which is just a fancy name for woodburning, only requires a pyrography kit and a piece of wood. Also, don’t be afraid to reach out to your local woodworking community. Often times, experienced woodworkers will upgrade to new equipment, leaving their old but perfectly good equipment to collect dust. Most will be willing to part with old equipment for free or cheap.
This myth might be perpetuated a little bit by our own blog, as we often mention a ‘woodworking shed.’ But the truth is you don’t need a shed to be a woodworker just like you don’t need a studio to be a painter. It does help to have a place where you woodwork, as your spouse probably wouldn’t be too happy if you set up the lathe on the kitchen table and sent strips of wood flying everywhere. Woodturning with a lathe does require a somewhat permanent setup where you don’t mind making a mess such as a garage, but woodturning and hand carving can be done in a lawn chair in your front yard if you want. Just make sure wherever you work is well ventilated.
We’ll let you in on a secret: anything can be dangerous in the wrong hands. Cars are designed to be safe, but with someone irresponsible behind the wheel, they can be deadly. Lathes, woodburners, and other woodworking tools are designed with safety in mind, but the user has to use common sense if they don’t want to get hurt. Just follow the manufacturer safety instructions, use your head, and wear protective eyewear and a dust mask and you should be just fine.
Many people think they have no artistic ability so they can’t take up woodworking. This simply isn’t true. You don’t need to be Leonardo Da Vinci or Michelangelo to be a woodworker. While woodworking requires certain skills, those skills can be learned. Find a mentor, watch instructional videos, or trace drawings onto your wood to burn so you don’t have to worry about freehanding something.
Not true! Woodworking tools, from heavy-duty lathes to tiny woodburner pen tips, can all be bought online. Our online woodworking supply store is called Long Island Woodworking Supply, but we ship our products far beyond Long Island (that just happens to be where we are headquartered). While there are woodworking supply stores in most major cities, you can always shop online for your essential tools.
In response to this myth we’ll ask, “Is that your goal?” You can make a living off of anything if you are good at it and sell products people want. If you are the best woodturner in your region and make custom pieces, you can find yourself selling woodturned salt and pepper grinders for a couple hundred bucks and wooden dining room chair sets for several thousand. This can certainly make you a living off of woodworking! However, you can also just make pieces in your spare time for your own home or to give to friends and family as gifts, or sell a few pieces online when you have them. You don’t need to make a business out of it, but you can if you have the skill and dedication.
Hopefully the above gave you a better idea of what being a modern-day woodworker might be like. You can hop on the internet to learn how to do a specific craft or use essential woodworking tools, you don’t need a lot of space, time, or money to get into woodworking, and you can get everything you need shipped straight to your door. It’s that easy. Shop our website for all of the supplies you’ll need!
