We had a horse chestnut log lying around and some recently acquired hazel branches, I wanted to do something with them so Sunday we got all spontaneous and ended up with this.
Being modelled here by Ember (whose large size does not do much to help with the scale).
I hadn't though to get the camera out while doing it. Making consisted of me and the kids cutting a length of Hazel down to 4 sections, putting a hole each in the log with the bit and brace and shaving each leg down to hole size with a knife and then battering the leg in.
Despite the silly mistake of not V ing the legs length wise it's really stable on grass and holds the whole family without breaking sweat.
In spite of (or is it because of) the simplicity we find ourselves really chuffed with our work. A working bench in less than an hour with it being the first time the kids used a brace and bit. And it's somehow very comfy as well.
It wasn't 'til afterwards looking at a carpentry for children book that I had further realisations
1. This is multi-purpose, as it is the same shape as what the book called a Saw Horse, though it might need a partner and two of those could also hold a canoe.
2. The projects in the book looked pretty sterile, long and non-organic compared to this, most notably the picture of sourcing and obtaining wood at the lumber yard. The saw horse in the book required loads of cuts, to make 7 pieces of wood the right size and then screw them together, a lot of work and expense for an arguably inferior product in both strength and (to our mind) aesthetics.
3. We could have gone "Primitive" and burned those holes in with a bow drill and shaved the legs with a flint or stone edge.
Sorry if this seems mundane to y'all but it's like a whole new world opened up for us.
NOTE: for any carpenters, please don't take this as any sort of 'dis on your work. This just seems like a more interesting or appropriate place to start especially for the kids.
Being modelled here by Ember (whose large size does not do much to help with the scale).
I hadn't though to get the camera out while doing it. Making consisted of me and the kids cutting a length of Hazel down to 4 sections, putting a hole each in the log with the bit and brace and shaving each leg down to hole size with a knife and then battering the leg in.
Despite the silly mistake of not V ing the legs length wise it's really stable on grass and holds the whole family without breaking sweat.
In spite of (or is it because of) the simplicity we find ourselves really chuffed with our work. A working bench in less than an hour with it being the first time the kids used a brace and bit. And it's somehow very comfy as well.
It wasn't 'til afterwards looking at a carpentry for children book that I had further realisations
1. This is multi-purpose, as it is the same shape as what the book called a Saw Horse, though it might need a partner and two of those could also hold a canoe.
2. The projects in the book looked pretty sterile, long and non-organic compared to this, most notably the picture of sourcing and obtaining wood at the lumber yard. The saw horse in the book required loads of cuts, to make 7 pieces of wood the right size and then screw them together, a lot of work and expense for an arguably inferior product in both strength and (to our mind) aesthetics.
3. We could have gone "Primitive" and burned those holes in with a bow drill and shaved the legs with a flint or stone edge.
Sorry if this seems mundane to y'all but it's like a whole new world opened up for us.
NOTE: for any carpenters, please don't take this as any sort of 'dis on your work. This just seems like a more interesting or appropriate place to start especially for the kids.
(no names....)
