How to Build Wooden Steps, Landing, or Deck

Here's how we did a new deck with steps on one side: 1) Measure the area, and draw out what you want to build. Tools: Graph paper, pencil, tape measure, laser level if available. Details: - Read all the steps first, then plan things out. -...

Edible Lawn

Ernie's Best Boat Projects for Beginners

There are several ways to build boats. These range from those that take great amounts of skill, down to those that are simple for anyone. 'Simple' and 'easy' are not the same thing, by the way. A dugout...

Paints Laid Bare: Pigments, Binders, and Solvents

Most of the paint used today is utilitarian. Cheap, light-fast colors (rust red, verdegris green, ochre yellow) and durable binders are slapped onto bridges, houses, and fire hydrants year after year, to protect them from rust, bugs, and weather. ...

Ernie's Dandelion Wine

Our latest batch was five gallons, and it's almost gone! You may want to start smaller, especially if you're new to homebrewing. For 1 gallon of Dandelion Wine: 1 gallon chemical-free dandelion blossoms 1-gallon glass jug (clean and...

Rocket Mass Heaters: Efficient Home Heating With Wood

A Rocket Mass Heater is a wood-burning device. Beyond that, it gets weird. Technically neither a woodstove nor a fireplace, the rocket mass heater is related to masonry heaters, rocket stoves, and traditional earthen buildings. In terms of...

Selecting a Suitable Pen: Fine Arts, Fun Colors, Sketching and Drafting

There's a joke that during the space race, the US spent lots of money to develop a pen that could write upside-down, in vacuum, or in extreme temperatures. The Russian space program used a pencil... The main...

How to build a 'Skin on Frame' boat - and why

Why Skin on Frame: Skin on frame boat building can be one of the fastest, most satisfying, skills-rich projects you can do. It teaches you essential skills to build almost any wooden boat. It's not difficult, and you don't need to already have...

Drawing Tools: Pencils, Crayons, Charcoal, and More

Drawing tools are no-fuss color. Most come wrapped in wood or paper. For quick, portable art materials they're hard to beat. So what's the big difference between drawing tools? Shape and Smudging: Round art tools are easier to hold and aim...

Building Wooden Boats - Speculation on a Joint Adventure

OK, so I am a wooden boatbuilding nerd. When I think of building/buying boats, I think big, because in a couple jobs, that was what I did.... build BIG boats. Remembering those jobs got my brain on the track of how to build a bunch of boats cheap....