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Showing Off Your SketchUp Inventory
2 commentsIt recently occurred to me that I could create display rooms of my furniture in SketchUp. I'm not sure how this could be productively used, but it is interesting to see what you can achieve. I was...
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From 3D Model to Shop Plan -- A Workflow Example
The other day a friend of mine was asking me about how I go from a 3D model in SketchUp to a plan or shop drawing. He was looking for an efficient way to do the same thing so he can spend more time...
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Tough Going with Follow Me
2 commentsThe Follow Me Tool has been one of the most reliable and effective tools in my design of furniture in SketchUp. After all, I like furniture with turnings and moldings so Follow Me has been...
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Have You Run Into the Clipping Plane?
3 commentsIn this case, I'm not referring to a particular shop hand plane, rather a phenomenon in SketchUp. You can run into a Clipping Plane when zooming in very closely to your model. All of a sudden...
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Putting Slats on an Adirondack Chair
I had a request for the contents of a blog post I did on the old blog platform. I no longer have the text and images but I found the model so I could redo it. Perhaps this will be new for some...
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Do you Click-Move-Click, or Click-Drag-Release?
7 commentsA reader of my book recently asked why his mouse was not working like my book explanations. While drawing a line with the Line Tool, he could not get the mouse to "click-move-click", rather he was...
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Creating New Materials
9 commentsLast week I was asked to describe how I make wood grain materials for use in SketchUp. Here's a bit of the discussion we had. To start with, I find some useful images. For wood grain materials...
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Evolving a Design in SketchUp
6 commentsWhen beginning a new design, I plan on saving several SketchUp versions as the project develops. I will start with a "1" after the filename, and continue with "2, 3, 4, 5…. etc." when changing...
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Drawing With Plugins
The other day I was looking through an old book and came across a ladder back chair with a rush seat. I thought it would make an interesting excercise in SketchUp and commenced to drawing it. I made...
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Showing Shop Dovetail Procedure (in SketchUp)
7 commentsRecently I tried to explain my dovetail procedure used in the shop. The project was making several Shaker Chip Boxes, and each corner is fastened with hand-cut dovetails thesenbspare...
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Resizing a Model
In my previous blog entry I mentioned that, after drawing the model to the dimensions of the original, I would like to make it slightly deeper. I also think wider would be good. At the request of one...
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Modeling a Windsor Chair - Part 1
For next semester's class at Mount Diablo Adult Education Center, I'm developing a model and accompanying design documents for a Braced Comb-Back Side Chair. I like to replicate actual 18th C...
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Using a Reference Sketch—Another Approach
5 commentsIn my previous blog post entry I wrote about tracing a reference drawing to get the basics for a 3D model. sometimes the reference drawing isn't at all useful for tracing. It may not be drawn...
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Tracing a Reference Drawing
6 commentsOnce in awhile it happens that you want to draw a SketchUp model from a sketch on paper. Perhaps it is something you've drawn out by hand or as in this example, it's from a an old book published in...
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Checking a Plane Angle - in SketchUp?
4 commentsSometimes it's easier to determine a difficult angle by drawing a model of the problem in SketchUp and measuring the angle. Recently in one of my classes, while hand planing the surface of a drawer...
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An Index - eBook References to DCB Blogs
3 commentsSeveral blog entries here in Design. Click. Build. provide more information on sections and procedures in my eBook, "Google SketchUp Guide for Woodworkers". Below I've idexed these references...
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Stopped Curved Chamfers
4 commentsWhen I was working on the SketchUp model for the plans to Michael Peckovich's Arts and Crafts Dining Table I had to draw the chamfers on the curved end caps of the hayrake stretcher. The...
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Connecting a Dowel Joint
1 commentSome SketchUp users may wonder how you align and connect a dowel joint. After all, there are no corners to grab on the dowel to match-up with the socket. To get around this limitation, you need...
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Reusing Your Models
2 commentsStudents of programs like AutoCAD learn early to never draw anything twice. The same applies in SketchUp. If you can do so, reuse components you've drawn rather than redrawing them. I written in the...
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Documenting a Shop Procedure (and also a Training Tool)
2 commentsI sometimes regret not capturing and documenting successful shop construction procedures, particularly those complex ones not used frequently. I easily forget how I worked it out before, and end up...
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About Design. Click. Build.
Learn the art and science of designing furniture in SketchUp with Fine Woodworking's official blog. Moderated by a devoted community of woodworkers, we feature step-by-step SketchUp tutorials on designing components, downloads of pre-built 3D models of furniture parts, and news and information about the evolving world of digital furniture design.
Basic SketchUp Tutorials
Learn the basics of building furniture in SketchUp with these classic posts from the Design. Click. Build. blog.
Creating a Project Plan in SketchUp
How I Draw in SketchUp
Axes in SketchUp
The SketchUp Move Tool
The SketchUp Rotate Tool
The SketchUp Scale Tool
Materials, Colors, and Textures
Applying Wood Grain Skins in SketchUp
Easy Dovetail Joints in SketchUp
Digital Project Plans
Download and modify SketchUp files for select projects from Fine Woodworking. View all. Top Sellers: Matt's Monster Workbench New England Pine Cupboard Garden BenchMeet the Authors
DaveRichardsI am a Biomedical Equipment Technician. I maintain anesthesia and respiratory equipment for the largest medical facility in southeast Minnesota. I...
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Tim KillenI am retired from Bechtel Corporation after 36 years in Engineering and IT management. I grew up among woodworking machinery in...
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