Woodworker, cabinet maker, carpenter and artist ... all of the above

I give up what are you?

-- What happens in the workshop stays in the workshop. No wait that doesn't sound right. Karson Southern Delaware karson_morrison@bigfoot.com †

I’m a LUMBERJOCK !!!

-- work from your heart and your spirit will live forever

Welcome to LumberJocks. Glad to have you aboard. †

-- What happens in the workshop stays in the workshop. No wait that doesn't sound right. Karson Southern Delaware karson_morrison@bigfoot.com †

I just had to do that Dan, you are a LumberJock superb.

-- What happens in the workshop stays in the workshop. No wait that doesn't sound right. Karson Southern Delaware karson_morrison@bigfoot.com †

I have a sickness.
You have it also.
We are different from lumber-challenged people.
WE care.

Nuff said.
(how’s that?)

-- Got Wood?

You are an artist.
I want to be an artist.
I’m not sure of the difference.
I really don’t care if anyone else cares.

-- My favorite piece is my last one, my best piece is my next one.

I was watching PBS Antiques Road Show and heard a distinction that I had not heard before. A chest of drawers was called a “carpenter’s piece” as opposed to a “cabinet maker’s piece.” Their distinction was that the carpenter builds his drawers with nails where a cabinet maker would use dovetails. Interesting, irrelevant but interesting.

-- Gary, South Central Wisconsin. So much to learn, so little time!

Hammers. We don’t need no stinkin’ hammers (Mallets and persuaders, maybe).
Without a doubt, Dan you are an artist and a lumberjock superb

And I’m pretty (99.9%) sure Joe is too.

-- "Bordnerizing" perfectly good lumber for over a decade.

Hey Gary
The show inspired me to write this topic. A bit thought provoking.

Nails ?
Only recently have I used nails in some of my projects.

Used to be a oak peg purest … guess I’m a carpenter sometimes.

-- work from your heart and your spirit will live forever

can we really be the judge of what we are? or is that for other to decide i always say im a wood butcher with some really nice tools

-- I buy tools so i can make more money,so ican buy more tools so I can work more, to make more money, so I can buy more tool, so I can work more

Frustrated termite.

-- "They who dream by day are cognizant of many things which escape those who dream only by night." ~ Edgar Allan Poe

Why are we always trying to label and catagorize everything? Just be yourself and who cares whether you are an artist, ant farmer or a dust collector with a woodworking problem.

-- Rich, WNY, www.nyrockingchairs.com

a lumberjock is, what a lumberjock does

-- work from your heart and your spirit will live forever

Here is the difference between a carpenter, a woodworker, and an artist:

A carpenter wouldn’t be caught dead at a chick flick.

A woodworker will go with his wife, but he’ll spend most of the time thinking about the project he could be working on instead of watching this dumb movie.

An artist not only goes to see the chick flick with his wife, but ends up crying harder than she does at the ending.

Don’t ask me how I know this.

-- Charlie M. "Woodworking - patience = firewood"

You are the “Master Tile Framer Dude”

-- http://www.woodsongsfurniture.com

If a carpenter installs cabinetry and millwork, or builds anything in wood doesn’t that in turn make him a woodworker too? What is a woodworker? Someone that makes furniture? Cabinets? Or someone that works in the medium of wood? Carpenters work with wood on a day to day basis. To me they are the same thing. An artist is construed as to many things as well. From musicians to painters. So what are they really? Someone who designs and can bring that design to life right? But is a musician who didn’t write their song an artist or is the writer an artist? Whos the artist there? Are you an artist if you can sing? Really? I thought that was talent not art. So to me an artist is someone with the talent to write, draw, or design something. He doesn’t have to create it. So a novelist could be an artist. Not all woodworkers are artists though. They may be able to make anything even do things in marquetry that looks like art. But maybe they stole the designs. Then they aren’t artists to me. They are workers. Or a better word, Craftsman. A craftsman is someone that can make anything in his medium, but doesn’t necessarily design the idea. So the only way to be an artist is if you create the design for the piece. Then you are a craftsman if you can build that design. You are a woodworker if you work with wood. A carpenter to me is someone that does finish woodwork with the exception of furniture. He will do mouldings, wainscott, etc and maybe install cabinetry. The other people are called what they are due to profession. A mason works with concrete. If you build cabinets you are a cabinetmaker. Same with furniture. These people only do the work in the title, otherwise they refer to themselves as a woodworker. It becomes a general term. I call myself a woodworker because I can make your front door or your kitchen cabinets. And install them too. I build cabinets as a woodworker, so in essence I am a cabinetmaker too. But I make furniture. So I am a furniture maker. I also draw, carve, do marquetry, stain glass, leather carve, etc. and design the work taboot. So I am an artistic craftsman? Who knows. I think the terms are thrown around loosely and most of them mean the same thing. Maybe everyone is an artist in their own way, and anyone can make something with patience. So since we are one of the lowest paid professions maybe we can be called laborers, blue collar workers, monkeys, etc. LOL

-- ~ Inspiring those who inspire me ~

Years ago, when I was trying to make it as a cowboy artist, I met Johnny Hampton, one of the founding members of the Cowboy Artist of America. Johnny made a statement I’ve never forgotten,” The cowboys call us artists and the artists call us cowboys.” He also said,” You’ve gotta be sensitive enough to do this and tough enough to take the consequences”. Johnny was one of my heroes. But then, you are one of them as well, Dan. You are a master at your craft.

-- Thos. Angle

artisan or craftsman is another label to ponder

-- work from your heart and your spirit will live forever

I’m just the idiot Norm wanna be in my neighborhood. And that’s what they say to my face! It’s cool, I’m having fun, it keeps me off the streets.

-- I'm a lumberjock and I'm ok, I sleep all night and I work all day!

All this questioning about labels brings back some lyrics from a Country Joe MacDonald tune. I hope i get this right. Who am I to stand and wonder while the wheels of fate slowly grind my life away, who am I?

-- Gary, South Central Wisconsin. So much to learn, so little time!

I consider a woodworker to be someone that takes wood in any form, cuts, glues, bends nails, wraps pegs, etc. etc. said wood into any form there capable of. The only difference is there level of craftsmanship, which doesn’t put them into any category. Every woodworker has different levels of skills and different areas of perfection. Because of the type of work I do I mainly consider myself to be a cabinet maker, which to me also falls into the category of a woodworker.
As far as being artists, we are all artists, some just have a better eye for capturing their imagination.
Ask my wife who I am and she will tell you that “I’m that guy” I’m still not sure if that’s a good thing or a bad thing. ;>)

I agree.

A lumberjock is … what a lumberjock does

Yesterday I made a small bandsaw carved snake out of anigre.

Spent a couple hours making it and felt good about it ! Cheap entertainment.

-- work from your heart and your spirit will live forever

Start with enough material to make three boxes. Build one each day. On day one, keep saying to yourself “I’m a carpenter”. On day two, say “I’m a woodworker”. Finally, on day three, say “I’m an artist”. When all is done, look at each of the three. I’ll bet they are different.

-- Anybody can become a woodworker, but only a Craftsman can hide his mistakes.

I’m working really hard to hide my mistakes … somedays there are real challenges

-- work from your heart and your spirit will live forever

I term myself a wood-worker with an engineering problem…

Am I creative enough to come up with some of the amazing designs on my own? Nope, I freely admit it. However, I can duplicate just about any design, put a level of skill, effort and perfection into the piece so that I am happy, the customer is thrilled and the piece will last almost forever.

Several of the cabinetmakers I know are only cabinetmakers because that is where the money is. They have constant work doing cabinets, millwork, etc where-as the custom and specialty pieces do not keep us as busy. They started out doing all those fun, nifty projects, but had to switch to primarily cabinetry to keep afloat.

Artists are the ones who get an inspiration and can imagine things, twist things and create new visions and designs. They may not be able to execute their design or can only draw it, but that is where the woodworker comes in.

A Carpenter to me was always someone doing carpentry. By carpentry I mean the rudimentary, rough wood working. Say like the framework of the house or installing doorways. They are more the engineering type and can make amazing structures using the materials given. The level of finish detail is not the same as what a woodworker or craftsman would do though.

A craftsmen is someone who works through a craft. Be it metal working, wood working, clay, whatever. They have mastered a craft and can take the artist’s designs and implement them in their craft.

-- Rich, WNY, www.nyrockingchairs.com

My wife calls me a piddler. I cannot in good consciece call myself either of the above. I hope to one day reach the level of you guys. I did design and build a deck for my father-in-law and a couple of shelves for the wife. But mostly I spend my time fixing things.

-- I came, I sawed I fixed it. (well sort of)

Its not that an artist is a certain kind of man. Its that every man is a certain kind of artist.

-- miles125, Alabama.."Architecture is frozen music""

I like to call myself an imperfectionist …

-- work from your heart and your spirit will live forever

I call myself a wanna be wood worker,artist,carver.
I give it my all no matter how the project turns out. Some like some do not.
In the end “I am an LJ”

-- Can't never could do anything, to try is to advance.

If a carpenter cuts a tree down in a forest near a woodworker, does an artist hear it?

I think the answer is yes, because they are all the same guy. I see a lot of people in this community that could build a house, mill the woodwork, make the furniture, and design the art for the walls…

-- As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another. (Proverbs 27:17) †

Dan is an artist & he’s OK
he designs in his sleep & works on it all day
he has a sense of humour second to none
I wish I could understand it but that’s part of the fun.

On ya Dan, keep up the good work

-- Grumpy - "Always look on the bright side of life"- Monty Python

fifteen men on a dead man’s chest … yo-ho-ho and a bottle of ...

-- work from your heart and your spirit will live forever