Woodworking Autobiography of Tom Riley

jriley@charm.net

Note: Since this article was written, Thomas has moved his collection of files to his Web page and they are no longer available via FTP. I have left this piece as it was written but have added the new information where applicable. RJBrown 8/21/97

October 19, 1995

1. Purpose

Intro for an interesting FTP site for woodworkers.

2. Bio

Started wood carving in 1969 on the Navajo with mail order tools and "The Sunset Wood Carving Book" by Doris Aller. I had to haul hardwood in from the outside.

I quickly specialized in hand carving signs. Signs are always in demand and the sign blanks are easy to make with a few simple tools. I always work from my own designs although I may steal an idea from a photograph or antique.

I usually use a Polychrome technique. The letters and decorations are incised into the sign blank. The cut-ins are filled with artist's acrylic and then the surface is sanded. This produces strong colors well protected from wear and weathering.

A set of signs I cut for the Height Ashbery Free Medical Clinic in San Francisco (1972) appeared in several national magazine photographs about the clinic. The best of these was a front door panel with a young oak tree; leaves, branches, trunk, and roots.

I expanded to simple furniture featuring the same carving techniques as the signs. The most popular of these are large, storage boxes. Classically they are given to women as hope chests, wedding presents, and blanket chests. I also promote "seaman's chests" for teenaged boys. These feature sailing or airplane carvings and a strong lock, and give them some privacy.

I have also done several cradles but discourage people requesting them. They are only used for a short period and then get put away in storage.

I still do signs for community groups and churches. The greatest problem is developing finishes that weather well.

I am a great advocate of wood carving as a meditation. An activity is a meditation if your mind is placed in a state quite different from normal and you are unaware of the passage of time, discomfort, or worry. Classical eastern meditation is not the only possible meditation. Prayer, exercise, and many other activities can be meditations as well if they place your mind in a mediative state. The meditative state is very good for you. This also explains why I will not have a router in my shop.

3. Current Projects

To organize my efforts on the Internet, I have organized a small design group, Woodware. The idea is to provide a design service for home wood craft people on the Freeware/Shareware model.

3.1 Computer Desks

Most computer furniture is terrible. It is made of composites and laminates, it is weak and short lived, it is badly designed, and it is ugly. I can also make you so sick that your career is destroyed.

To address this problem, Woodware has produced a portfolio of computer desk designs (COMPFUR.ZIP) available by FTP. These come with text descriptions and aids to customizing your desk to your exact needs.

3.2 Other Projects

Also included at this FTP site are a preliminary design for amateur scientific equipment (ALTAZ.ZIP) and science fiction short stories (SCIFIC.ZIP).

4. FTP Site -- NOTE: NO LONGER AVAILABLE -- GO TO WEB SITE

These designs are NO LONGER available by anonymous FTP at:
FTP://charm.net/pub/home/jriley.....
The Web Site is here (http://www.charm.net/~jriley/compfurn.html).

The README.TXT file there explains the other available files.

We need your feedback and are always looking for prototypes to build designs. In return you get a furniture design customized to your exact needs for free.

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