Featured Classes
Intermediate Bowl Turning with Frank Bowers
Sunday, April 15
9am-5pm
Class Size: 8
Tuition: $95
Hands-On
Item# 991526
Friday, April 18
7pm to 9pm
Class Size: 30
Tuition: $60
Lecture/Demo
Item# 991482
Saturday & Sunday
April 21 & 22
9am to 5pm
Class Size: 10
Tuition: $195
Hand-On
Item# 991483
Alan Noel's Finishing Corner
Controlling Color
One of the first things students realize when taking my classes are the limitations of brushed or hand-applied finishes. When spraying, one can adjust the depth of colors in a controlled process by shading the finish itself. Such control is much harder when applying a finish by hand. Since pre-pigmented/tinted finishes have been introduced, I've had many questions about how to obtain an even appearance when applying these products by hand.
Sean Headrick:
Custom Furniture Designer & Craftsman
by Doug Hall & Elena Vega
Sean Headrick is a longtime customer of Highland Woodworking. He's been coming into our store since he was a teenager and still visits us several times a week to discuss his latest woodworking endeavor or to show us a neat Google SketchUp drawing he's done. (In fact, he introduced us to the design software and our 3D Warehouse collections are made up of his wonderfully detailed tool and furniture models.)
Sean specializes in detail-oriented, 1920's era furniture, millwork and clocks, often with features like hidden compartments, turned elements and leaded glass. But he likes the challenge of building almost anything; for example, he loves building treehouses and he is currently reconstructing the woodwork on a 1946 Chevy Woody Station Wagon, reproducing each component from new stock. Follow his progress on his blog.
Impressed by Sean's beautiful designs, exceptional craftsmanship and his amazing ability to teach himself just about anything, we just had to learn more about him. So during one of his visits to our store he generously took the time to talk with us.
Ask the Staff
E-mail us at woodnews@highlandwoodworking.com with your woodworking or finishing questions. Selected questions will be answered in future issues. If your question is selected for publication, we'll send you a free Highland Hardware hat.
Question: I screwed up and tried to stain bookcases I made out of maple. They look terrible. How do I recover?
Employee Contribution
Preventive Maintenance
by Chris Black
Years ago when I was in the service, we had a system for maintaining vehicles and equipment called PMCS, which stood for "Preventive Maintenance, Checks and Services". Basically, it was a to-do list divided into daily, monthly and yearly routines. By checking the timetable, the list reminded you what to do to keep things running smoothly and operating safely. With spring arriving, I thought it might be nice to go though the shop and see what needs to be done.
ToolBank Tool Drive at
Highland Woodworking's One Day Sale
Saturday, May 3rd
9am - 4pm
Bring in your used & extra tools to donate to the community & receive a tax deduction! The Atlanta Community ToolBank will be here during our Spring One Day Sale accepting tool donations for their Tool Library, the country's largest tool lending program. The ToolBank provides tools to Atlanta's nonprofit organizations for use in volunteer service projects. Don't miss this opportunity to clean out your shop & put your old tools to work for Atlanta!
Learn more about the ToolBank & Tool Drive
Don't Miss Our Spring One Day Sale!
Saturday, May 5th
9am-5pm
Come spend the day at Highland Woodworking for our Spring One Day Sale! We'll have free woodworking demonstrations throughout the day, free refreshments, door prizes and special in-store pricing on hundreds of items.
The shops and eateries here in Virginia-Highlands will keep your family fed and busy all day, so bring the whole clan and come on down! We won't have a tent, so there will be parking available in our lot.
Featured Product
Wixey Digital Angle Gauge
$39.99
Here's one of the most useful gadgets we've seen in some time. The Wixey Digital Angle Gauge will help you adjust & set any saw blade, machine table or fence in the shop accurately to within 1/10 of a degree. It zeros with a push of a button on any surface, so you won't have to level your machine's table for a reliable reading. Three super strong rare earth magnets hold it in place so your hands are free to turn cranks and tighten nuts. The digits on the LED screen are 3/8" high for easy reading, it's small enough to fit in your apron pocket. Durable, simple to operate, plus it comes with 2 batteries. Now someone's thinking!
Item# 168321.
Stay Current with Our Blog
To stay current on all the woodworking news, be sure and visit the Highland Woodworking Blog. New entries are posted frequently, featuring new products, tips on tools and techniques, profiles of instructors and artists, and much more. Recent postings include exciting new videos with many more on the way, so you can peek in on some of the classes and demos we have here in our store. We welcome your comments, feedback and ideas!