I’ve said it more than a few times: Woodworking is an isolated activity, and outside of the digital spheres we build for ourselves, it’s rare for woodworkers to share in true camaraderie with other woodworkers. It’s important to get out of our shops and off our phones and be around people who are more than happy to talk about topics such as tool sharpening. That’s why we’re excited to announce Woodworking in America 2024!

Woodsmith, Popular Woodworking, and Fine Woodworking are teaming up to bring you an event in Des Moines, Iowa, on October 11 and 12, 2024, that will be unlike any other. So come hang out, learn a bit from the presenters, and bask in the glory of being in a place where you’re not the only weird woodworker, but one of many weird woodworkers!

—Ben

We’ll do our best to keep this page updated, but head over to Phil’s post on Woodsmith for the MOST updated version.

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When, Where, What

The event will be held at the Franklin Center. This is a repurposed former junior high school. We’ll be using the auditorium, several classrooms, and the old woodshop for our presentations.

Exhibitors and refreshments will be located in the cafeteria. Walking the halls will take you back to your school days. An educational setting is an ideal venue for a woodworking event like Woodworking in America, which will provide many opportunities to learn more about our craft.

Ticket Options

2-Day VIP ticket ($425) includes:

• General admission to the exhibit floor October 11 and 12 (Friday and Saturday)
• Unlimited access to seminars and demonstrations
• Entry to Friday’s cocktail party
• Open house with event hosts on October 10, including a tour of the shop and studios for Woodsmith, ShopNotes, and the Woodsmith Shop TV show.

Marketplace ticket ($25) allows access to the exhibit floor for one day. Children 16 and younger are admitted free.

Buy tickets to Woodworking in America 2024

Presenters

The lineup of presenters is growing, so check back often. Here’s what we know so far:

Patrick Edwards — A Lifetime of Working With Traditional Protein Glues

W. Patrick Edwards, a furniture conservator in private practice and the 2014 SAPFM Cartouche Award recipient, will discuss the various advantages of working with animal protein glues in woodworking. With over 50 years of professional experience, he will demonstrate using hide glues for rub joints, hammer veneering, lamination, marquetry, and veneering, as well as how to reverse the glue bond when correcting mistakes in assembly. Patrick is the developer of Old Brown Glue and will explain how the glue was modified and how it has real advantages over the traditional hot hide glue using a double boiler. Don’t be confused about adhesion and gram strength; find out from an expert with a lifetime of experience. wpatrickedwards.com

Alexis Dolese — Building Custom Furniture & A Business

Alexis Dolese is a second-generation furniture maker and educator in Bozeman, Montana. She will share practical techniques for building custom furniture and insights on running a business. Her discussion will also focus on the practical aspects of designing solid wood pieces with clients in mind and strategies for creating high-quality works efficiently. She will also touch on setting up a shop for furniture making and teaching woodworking. Dolesewoodworks.com

Wilbur Pan — Japanese Tools for the Western Workshop

Japanese tools are a great addition to any woodworking shop. In this session, you’ll learn about Japanese chisels and saws, why they are so great, and how to incorporate them into your shop to make your woodworking better. We may even get into Japanese planes. Spoiler alert: there’s no hype, and you don’t have to work on the floor.

Wilbur Pan is the author of the Giant Cypress blog. He has given demonstrations and talks on Japanese tools and Asian woodworking at Woodworking in America, the Society of American Period Furniture Makers, and Kezurou-kai USA. He has written articles for Popular Woodworking and Mortise and Tenon magazines. He lives in beautiful Central New Jersey.

Matt Monaco — Two Turning Demos Demonstration 1: Beginning — Advanced usage & application with traditional woodturning tools.

Demonstration 2: Turn a classical wood pottery vessel with traditional wood-turning tools.

Matt Monaco operates a full-time woodturning studio in the Ozark region of Missouri, and is one of very few young modern traditional woodturners in America having apprenticed & trained as a trade professional, and has worked closely within a high-end professional furniture production landscape — Shackleton Thomas Furniture & Pottery as a full-time maker/item producer. At the center of Matt’s work is his understanding & mastery of tool control, sharpening and cutting execution as an expression of traditionally crafted design as fine art — in producing forms & items that are made to be as tactile as they are sublime, and created with intent & purpose. Matt is also a Fine Woodworking Contributor & Ambassador who values both the integrity of traditional woodturning and mastery of the craft as an art, as well as diversity within the handmade craft and woodworking idiom.

Rollie Johnson — Coloring Wood with Dyes & Stains

Chromophobia is defined as a persistent, irrational aversion to colors and is usually a conditioned response. Sounds like a woodworking problem! Too many woodworkers are terrified of adding color to their woodworking, falling back on the hackneyed phrase “I would never ruin the natural beauty of wood by changing its color.” What they’re really saying is “I’m afraid of color and that I might ruin the piece.” Unfortunately in many cases, that’s exactly what happens. Rollie will demonstrate how to correctly use color to bring out the best in a piece—no more bland! Many factors will determine the outcome of using color, and we will make a grand tour of them. Stain, pigment dye, and reactive dye will be compared, and there will be an overview of best application practices. We will also delve into surface preparation and correct adhesive usage to avoid the dreaded “glue spots.” Fear no more, color is here!

Matt Cremona — Getting the Most Out of Live Edge Boards

As woodworkers, we see all sorts of possibilities in a piece of wood. But, getting the most out of your material can be a task. In this demonstration, I’ll walk you through my process of taking a rough-sawn, live-edge piece of lumber and breaking it down into parts. This includes color-matching parts, selecting the best grain, working with (or around) inclusions, and more. Taking this approach will help you save money on projects, and end up with a better-looking project as well.

Matt is a woodworker from Minneapolis Minnesota. His website can be found at: https://mattcremona.com/

Marc Spagnulo — A Hybrid Approach to Woodworking

In the last few years, there’s been a push to return to the roots of woodworking when every step was done with hand tools–from resawing lumber and planing it flat, to cutting joins and creating profiles. Working this way can produce beautiful results, but is it the best method for woodworking in the 21st century? Maybe, but maybe not. In this presentation, I’ll be talking about the hybrid to woodworking, and mainly concentrating on the hand tools that can supplement and enhance woodworking in your power tool shop.

Marc Spagnulo founded The Wood Whisperer Guild with his wife Nicole. They produce woodworking content on their Youtube Channel, and partner with instructors from all over the US to teach woodworking through video courses.

Amanda Russell (Fine Woodworking) — Router Joinery Machines

Amanda has used both the Pantorouter and Shaper Origin to create anything from a basic mortise and tenon to more complex joinery like dovetails and castle joints. She will walk through the basic operations of each machine, how to set up for success, and the advantages of using each depending on your shop needs. After demonstrating the versatility of each tool, she will go over how she uses them to create jigs and shop fixtures that maximize the potential of other machines in the shop.

Phil Huber (Woodsmith Shop) — The Band Saw-Centered Workshop

Several years ago, Phil sold the table saw in his shop. While that seems like a crazy idea for a furniture maker, it makes sense in his small shop. During this presentation, you’ll see how his shop space works with a bandsaw and learn how the other tools he uses play well with this vital machine. He’ll demonstrate a few techniques and share his favorite jigs and accessories for making accurate and safe cuts for a wide range of woodworking tasks, from tables and cabinets to spoons and bowls.

Logan Wittmer (Popular Woodworking) — Sawing and Drying Your Own Lumber

As woodworkers, we see the potential of every tree growing around us. The conversion of a tree to usable lumber is an exciting thing to behold. Does this log hold your next heirloom project, or is better off in the fireplace, heating during the next winter? In this presentation, I’ll walk you through all aspects of milling a log. From inspecting the log, to determining how to lay it on the sawmill, to milling it with a hydraulic bandsaw mill. We’ll then talk about stacking, stickering, and drying lumber, and things to watch for during this process. This demonstration will take place outside, in a sheltered tent.

Ben Strano (Fine Woodworking) — 3D Printing for Woodworkers

You don’t need to be a 3D-printing enthusiast to enjoy the benefits of this incredible technology in your woodshop. From tool holders to dust-collection fittings there is an ever-growing array of 3D models you can download and use in your shop. For Ben, 3D printing hits the next level when paired with free CAD software to make that exact doo-dad you need. Ben will demonstrate how he makes custom mortising templates, bends forms for multiple stringing, routs complex patterns, and makes custom marking and measuring tools.

Chris Fitch (Woodsmith & ShopNotes) — Curved Panels

The world of woodworking doesn’t have to be flat. You can break up those predictable surfaces and straight lines with curved panels. In this presentation Chris will look at the pros and cons of three different methods of creating curved panels: kerf bending standard plywood, using flexible plywood with an applied veneer, and coopered solid wood. Examples and demonstrations of preparing the materials, glue ups, and sizing and will show that these methods are easily

Shop Talk Live … Live
We’ll also host a live recording of Fine Woodworking‘s podcast, Shop Talk Live, with audience Q&A.

Join Us for an Open House

From 3 to 5 p.m. on Thursday, October 10, you’ll have the chance to attend an open house tour of the shop and studios for Woodsmith, ShopNotes, and the Woodsmith Shop TV show. Meet the staff and get a behind-the-scenes look at upcoming projects and issues.

 

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