1989

S2.E1 ∙ Rocking Horse

Fri, Jan 05, 1990

After a look at a collection of wooden toys at Old Sturbridge Village, a "living history" museum in central Massachusetts, Norm builds a child's rocking horse from ash - a durable hardwood.

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After a trip to the Museum of the Adirondacks to view a collection of chairs, Norm combines the best features of each chair to make his unique version of an Adirondack chair. He chooses Cypress wood because it needs no preservatives or treatment to withstand outdoor conditions. Norm uses the band saw to shape the curved pieces and fastens the chair together with screws, nails, nuts, and bolts rather than using fancy joinery.

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S2.E3 ∙ Butler's Table

Fri, Jan 19, 1990

Norm visits Kingscote, an elegant Gothic Revival house in Newport, Rhode Island, for a look at a mahogany butler's table with four leaves that fold down on solid brass hinges. For his version of this stylish antique, Norm demonstrates the technique of biscuit joinery to glue together the boards for the tray, crafts mortise-and-tenon joints to connect the rails of the base, uses a molding head cutter on his table saw to add a decorative bead to the rails, and shows how to mount the tray's special hinges.

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S2.E4 ∙ Kitchen Dresser

Fri, Jan 26, 1990

After a look at an early 18th-century kitchen cupboard at Old Sturbridge Village, a "living history" museum in Sturbridge, Massachusetts, Norm constructs his own version from pine featuring open shelves above a base cabinet whose door sports an antique-style hinge. He shows a pattern to draw the curved outline of the side pieces, then uses a hand-held saber saw to make the cut, saving the cut-out portions to make shelves. Using a molding head cutter on his table saw, Norm demonstrates how to add a decorative bead to the shelves.

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S2.E5 ∙ Hearthside Settle

Fri, Feb 02, 1990

Norm travels to the Massachusetts harbor of Gloucester to look at a high-backed, curved hearthside settle at Beauport, the home of tarry 20th-century interior decorator and antiquarian Henry Sleeper. The house is now a museum run by the Society for the Preservation of New England Antiquities. Norm's version of this pine piece closes in the area beneath the seat to create a storage space and adds an access hatch in the seat. Norm shows how to cut the settle's curved cross-members and shaped side pieces, how to join the back boards with tongue-and-groove joints, and how to bend the back base board along the bottom of the frame.

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S2.E6 ∙ Pencil-Post Bed

Fri, Feb 09, 1990

Norm visits the Shelbourne Museum in Burlington, Vermont to examine an antique pencil-post bed with a rope support system and a hay-filled mattress. Norm then adapts this design to accommodate a standard full-size mattress and box spring, and builds his pencil-post bed of poplar featuring mortise and tenon joints in the construction. The bedposts are tapered on the two inner sides, then beveled on all four corners to produce eight-sided, asymmetrically tapered posts.

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S2.E7 ∙ Chair Table

Fri, Feb 16, 1990

Norm drops in on the Fitch House in Old Sturbridge Village, central Massachusetts' "living history" museum, to look at a chair table, with a tabletop that pivots back to form a back rest and a seat with a drawer underneath. Norm's version of this unusual but comfortable and serviceable piece features hardwood (maple) where needed - on the tabletop, arms and feet - and poplar for the sides, seat and drawer front. Norm cuts the shaped side pieces and curved arms and feet on the band saw, shows how to create a sliding dovetail joint to attach the seat and drawer support to the sides, and demonstrates a trick for cutting the large circular tabletop by mounting a specially made jig on the band saw.

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S2.E8 ∙ Kitchen Worktable

Fri, Feb 23, 1990

Norm constructs a kitchen table that functions equally well as a dining table or a worktable. Built of pine, the table features tapered legs and storage drawers, with a center rail joining the pairs of legs. Norm employs a specially made tapering jig to fashion the legs and uses mortise-and-tenon joints to put the table together.

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S2.E9 ∙ Mission-Style Sofa

Fri, Mar 02, 1990

In a departure from the traditional New England-style furniture usually featured on The New Yankee Workshop, Norm draws inspiration from the furniture craftsmen of the southwestern United States to constructs mission-style sofa whose signature simple lines and oak frame allow for cushions. Despite its distinctive regional flavor, Norm's design for this project features the same woodworking techniques - including mortise-and-tenon joinery - he employs in creating his other pieces.

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S2.E10 ∙ Chippendale Mirror

Fri, Mar 09, 1990

In a change of pace, Norm shows how to build picture and mirror frames, emphasizing tools and clamps designed specifically for this purpose. Norm uses a mitre box and a table saw outfitted with a jig to cut frames and demonstrates a variety of techniques to fasten corners.

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S2.E11 ∙ Chest-on-Chest

Fri, Mar 16, 1990

Norm uses biscuit and dovetail joinery to build a chest-on-chest from Cherry. He uses a band saw, table saw, and router to craft the sculpted, contoured feet.

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S2.E12 ∙ English Garden Bench

Fri, Mar 23, 1990

Norm constructs a version of an English garden bench using Teak. He uses pegs, mortise and tenon joints to assemble it. He demonstrates how to shape the curved pieces using a band saw, how to use a tenoning jig mounted on a table saw to create tenons, and how to use a drill press to cut angled mortises.

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S2.E13 ∙ Armoire: Entertainment Center

Fri, Mar 30, 1990

Norm builds an armoire that is based on classic designs and can double as an entertainment center. It has raised panel doors and is constructed of veneer plywood. He demonstrates many joinery techniques such as dado, dovetail, and mortise and tenon joints. He also uses a shaper to create molding.

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