today we're talking five tips to help you succeed as a beginner woodworker and here's a hint you don't need to buy expensive tools my first tip is that things will always take longer than you expect have you ever picked out a recipe that states it'll only take 20 minutes but an hour later you're still chopping vegetables well woodworking is the same it always takes longer than you expect anything you see on youtube is just a glimpse of reality and anyone who says differently is lying don't kid yourself with a project deadline committing a hobby to a schedule is about as realistic as me committing to a relationship what because life will get in the way and should take priority over your hobby sometimes setting an end date will add unnecessary pressure which is going to cause you to rush through it and make mistakes and that's no fun because the minute you're no longer having fun is the minute your hobby becomes a chore so how do you stay motivated to keep working on a project when the end is so vague if you can get in the shop figure out how much time you have and choose a small task that you might expect to accomplish in about half that time since you're a beginner it might take you the whole time anyway it's much easier to work one task at a time than to be constantly overwhelmed by the entire project your project will get done when it gets done so plan for the next step not the entire project scott can you make me some quick built-ins my second tip is to be selfish as a beginner woodworker one of the hardest lessons you'll need to learn is when to say no if they haven't already people are going to ask you to build them things left right and center because you're a woodworker now no one not family friends or friends of friends have any idea what the value of your time is and nor do they care because they just want a farmhouse table that's cheaper than a particle board atrocity from ikea and they wanted it yesterday and here's a news flash as a beginner woodworker you probably don't know the value of your time either and as i said before you might not have a great understanding of how long it takes to complete that wine holder that your aunt could have bought off amazon for 40 dollars having a bunch of tools is a bit like being the person with a pickup truck only a hundred times worse because letting someone borrow your pickup truck for an afternoon is nothing compared to the dozens of hours of your own time it'll take to build just a quick project for that friend don't fall into the trap of always saying yes to building for others it'll just strain relationships and leave you with no time for building and experimenting for yourself my third beginner woodworking tip is don't cheap out on wood so you're watching a woodworking video like we all do and you tell yourself that's pretty easy i can do that so you head to a big box store to buy some wood yet you bring home some construction lumber that's neither flat nor straight now you're headed down a path of pain and despair where things don't line up joints aren't tight and you unfortunately hate your new hobby i know you don't want to spend a whole lot of money on wood when you're starting out but do yourself a favor spend a little more up front to save you time and frustration later the best place to find premium wood is to go to a hardwood dealer they're going to have the best selection of pre-milled lumber that's going to be pretty flat and straight you'll also have optional services to play into a specific thickness i know that hardwood dealers are few and far between and you might not have one around the corner from you in fact i live in the most populous place in canada and i have to drive an hour north but it's totally worth it if you're really going for convenience there is a small selection of premium soft and hardwoods at the big box store that might be adequate for your projects just be sure to inspect each board to make sure it's as straight and flat as possible i understand that it's more expensive to buy straight and flat wood but there's no point in getting frustrated when you're starting out if it's preventable make your first project successful and you'll stick with woodworking the fourth tip on what you need to do to succeed as a beginner woodworker is to like this video it's i can't say that with a straight face but if you like what i do and you want to support me hit the like button and subscribe that'll make me happy and i'll make more videos my actual fourth tip is don't confuse woodworking with tool collecting you should only buy what you need when you need it otherwise you might spend money on tools you'll never use when you could be spending the same money on primo wood see tip number three imagine this you're at work bored out of your mind because no one appreciates you or what you do you hop on ebay amazon marketplace or whatever commerce site gives you that temporary endorphin rush then you see it that one tool and you say that's pretty cool i can use that two clicks later and it's yours and you feel not much different than before you forget about it but then it shows up and you're like wow let me use this on everything but then you don't don't buy a tool just because you think it's cool you won't use it don't buy a tool just because it's on sale you won't use it i hate to break it to you but you might not know what tool you need until that need arises and that's when to buy that tool my fifth and final tip is well i don't have a catchy phrase for it but it's about plans and design [Music] drill goes up drill goes down if you're lost with what to build and how to build it buy some plans for something small and useful to get you on your feet but if you have any inclination towards designing your own furniture i really want to encourage you to explore that as much as possible it is so rewarding to build furniture that you've designed from scratch but scott i don't know how i get it it seems intimidating at the beginning but here's how you can take some baby steps to get your feet wet in design start by finding plans for something you might want to build learn about why certain joinery is used where it is used and what dimensions are important then see if you can modify the design to meet your needs both functionally and aesthetically you can do things like add a drawer to a cabinet change the dimensions to fit your space or change the aesthetic to fit your home's decor if you have no desire to design on a computer you can pick up a pencil and paper and learn some new drafting skills but if you do want to draw in 3d i recommend you start learning sketchup or fusion360 there are plenty of tutorials out there but if you keep telling yourself i can't do this and i can't do that well i can't help a poor attitude good luck though
