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Trouble Seeing the Tenon
1 commentSeveral readers of my book are having difficulty making the mortise on the Chamfered Post Table. The reference is "Create the Leg Mortises", Step 19 on page 50. In this section of the book, I showed...
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Drawing a Flame Finial
4 commentsI've been asked several times to show how to draw a flame finial. Here's one way to do it. I used three different plugins for this; Tools on Surface, Weld, and Extrude Edges by Rails. I created the...
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Bending an Inlay Strip
5 commentsI'm constructing the small sideboard as shown below. The lower front decorated rail has a strip inlay on the bottom curved edge. Not only was I unsure how to bend this strip in the shop, I was...
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Williamsburg's Queen Anne Leg
As mentioned in my last blog entry, I attended this year's Williamsburg conference "Working Wood in the 18th Century". The theme of the conference was Asian and Oriental influence on 18th Century...
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Kitchens In SketchUp
13 commentsI had an e-mail today from a reader who is interested in using SketchUp for laying out kitchen cabinets. He was asking for suggestions on how to make this an efficient task. He also wants to be able...
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3-way Miter Joint, Chinese Style
11 commentsI had to do it….. after attending the Williamsburg conference "Working Wood in the 18th Century", I rushed to the computer to figure out that beautiful, interesting, complex, and strong...
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Hand Drawn in SketchUp
9 commentsOne of the strengths of using SketchUp for woodworking projects, or, for that matter, just about any project, is that it can help you communicate clearly with your client even if that client is a...
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Where's My Component?
10 commentsHere's another quirk in SketchUp….. sometimes you can select a group of graphics on the screen, execute making it a "component", yet the group of graphics you started with does not become a...
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Rounding Corners on Legs and Stretchers
One of our readers contacted me today asking for a suggestion on how to draw radiused edges on components when those components meet. The example he used and which I am using for this demonstration...
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Flutes on the Pilasters
4 commentsI'm developing a model of a famous American Corner Cupboard. I built this piece years ago but did not have the advantage of a SketchUp model. Here's the current status of the model (finished except...
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Installing Plugins from Zipped Files
2 commentsIn the last few weeks a number of folks have contacted me regarding problems they've had installing various plugins that are downloaded as zipped files. Installing these plugins as well as extracting...
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Dower Chest with Solid Tools
3 commentsI'm working on a reproduction of a Pennsylvania Dower Chest and have enjoyed experimenting with the new Solid Tools that are a part of Pro version 8. The same results can be achieved with the...
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Back Edges
2 commentsThe new version 8 of SketchUp released several months ago introduced a new Face Style called Back Edges. Below this face style is shown in the Styles Toolbar. I'm liking this new feature and have...
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Biscuits and Gravy
9 commentsThe other day a reader asked e-mailed me to ask about how to cut draw biscuit slots in SketchUp. Although when I'm drawing models for my own use I don't draw these sorts of details, the process is...
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The Most Often Frustrating Error
4 commentsAs I review the comments, questions, and issues by readers of my book, I'm seeing a common and frequent error being made in using SketchUp. Here it is - perhaps too early to declare the "most often...
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A Star Exercise
8 commentsThis isn't strictly a woodworking project. I just wanted to get you thinking outside the box a little.
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Cutting the Ogee-shaped Cutout in the Magazine Rack
3 commentsIn Chapter 7 of my book, I present the first practice piece of furniture - the making of a Magazine Rack. Although it looks simple, this project has some challenges. Last week I posted a video on...
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More Than One Way
4 commentsThe other day I was asked about the best way to draw a tapered Shaker-style leg in SketchUp. I don't think there is a best way to do it although some ways might be easier than others. Just as in...
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Making/Copying Chamfers in Table Leg
6 commentsIn Chapter 9 of my eBook, on page 47, I describe a method of making and copying the chamfers on the Chamfer Post Table. After receiving questions on this procedure, I've created a video showing the...
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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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