Selective Woodworking ??

[Ben Roman]

Hello All,

I have a question. Actually I have several. Is there a such thing as selective woodworking. I have had a closet remodel lurking in the background for about 3 months or so. The LOML is looking for drawers, additional hanging bars, shoe cubbies, and all that fun stuff. I really am considering going to the Borg and buying the kits to make this happen. I am sure you all have see the " Some assembly required" kits that they sell that will make the closet into the "Super Closet". Does this make me a woodworking hipocrite. I really don't find any satisfaction in making my own cabinets for the closet and or doing any type of woodworking that is not recreational. I will however make a cabinet for a toolbox that I have in mind. Is that wierd? I don't mind doing these types of projects if they can be done quickly and I can go back to making my furniture pieces or whatever I feel like making. Are you really saving any money doing it yourself?

Feedback is appreciated.

Ben

[Reg Mitchell]

Saveing money.......maybe. I like to think that I am doing something I love and creating something a little different that you can buy form the "kits" or from the "box stores".
For me its not about the money but the enjoyment. But to answer your question I would think you will end up with a better product and bragging rights.
Reg

[Gary Keedwell]

I have heard of a few guys who bought the kits and were happy with them. Your still going to install them, right? No one will see them in a closet and the price is right. I'm with you...

Gary K.

[James Carmichael]

Sounds like a question for Dr. Phil:-)

Seriously, if you don't enjoy it, don't do it. If you can save a lot of money by DIY, then maybe you should consider it, but don't worry about not being a "real" woodworker (whatever that is).

[Jim Becker]

Honestly, I doubt there are very many of us who don't do this...it's not just a matter of money...it's a matter of time. When you have limited time, your "fine woodworking" shop projects need to be targeted to where they make the most sense. Outside of a wall-hung shelving unit and one vanity/desk that I made, the furniture in my girls' room is from Ikea. So is my current master bedroom cabinetry...some will be replaced this year with hand-crafted pieces, but what I have now has been in service since about 1988 or 1999. It looks nearly new. And when it comes to closets...well...bought really can make sense, whether it's wire shelving or more involved "organizers".

Pick your battles and pick your projects. Do what maximizes your woodworking enjoyment and best leverages your time.

[John Hulett]

For me, it comes down to money. I just personally can't see spending the cash on a kit I'm going to have to assemble anyway. The closest I might come while building out the next closet (one down, one small and one large to go) to purchasing the stuff pre-made, is BORG sells melamine that's 8' long, 15" wide and pre-drilled for adjustable shelves, and pre-edgebanded on one edge. While still cheaper than the kits, it's probably twice what I'll pay for full sheets of melamine and edgebanding it myself. And while the pre-drilled holes for adjustable shelves is nice, last time I just Kreg-Jig'ed it as I don't see any need to make frequent changes anyway.

What about the drawers? You can get creative with those too... dove tail them... good practice for in a place where it won't be seen much.

Most importantly, for my situation, it allows more justification for my spending on my woodworking habit... err.. hobbie.

- John

[glenn bradley]

I'll back you on this. I have agreed to do a few things for people 'because I can'. By the time I'm half way through, I wonder why am I wasting my valuable shop time doing this???

[Pete Brown]

My "honey do" list is so huge, that I usually have to compromise on the things that are either disposable, or just don't matter that much.

For example, we bought some cubbies for my 1 year old's toys. They're cheap MDF-covered 1/2" particle board - total crap bought from Target. They took me maybe 20 minutes to assemble, at most. But, guess what? They're there and working and I didn't have to interrupt the kitchen project to do them At $30, I don't think I could even buy the materials to make something like that. Plus, if I did it, it would have to have solid wood banding on the front and be made to last.

Another example. while I have taken forever to get them completed (still working on them, one at a time), I enjoy the kitchen cabinet project I'm working on. To speed that up and keep me from what could be some real drudge work, I farmed out all the drawer boxes to CCF custom drawers. They run between around $40 each for solid maple dovetailed drawer boxes, factory finished, notched and bored for the Blum tandem slides I use (I also got a great price on the slides from them). Farming this out lets me focus on the drawer fronts and doors, cabinet boxes and face frames. Early next week they're shipping me the drawer boxes for my pantry cabinet, with all of the above plus side scoops.

It's all about what you like to do, and what you have time to do. When a hobby becomes work, well, it's no longer a hobby (and yes, this kitchen cabinet project is borderline work, as is much of this renovation <g>)

Pete

[Jude Tuliszewski]

I like doing things myself, if possible, even unexciting things like drawers for inside lower kitchen cabinets, or in your case a closet. If I make it I can get it just the way I want it. Seems like when I look at the stuff at the big box stores it is always some sort of compromise. Also when I make things myself I can change things on the fly. When you get the pre-made stuff, what you see is what you get. Then there is the quality, I will almost always use better materials, and always more solid constuction.

[Roy McQuay]

My woodworking is, I think, better quality when I am doing work I want to do. If I take on something I am not interested in doing, I take a lot longer. I think you answered your own question, so buy the kit and install it. If you decide later that you could have made it better yourself, do it at that time. It's not always about the money. What you make yourself will outlast anything you buy at the borg.

[Larry Browning]

This week, I bought my wife a jewelry chest from JC Penney and paid almost $200 for it. This is a project I would have completely enjoyed doing myself, and I am pretty sure I could have made it from wood I already have on hand. The hardware would have set me back maybe $100-$150 or so.
Even though it looks really good from 20 feet away, when you take a closer look I just want to cry. I am not sure how much actual wood is in this thing, but all the drawers are made from pressed wood stapled together. The back is cardboard. etc... etc...
She just got too impatient waiting for me to make a good one. I guess this is the price I pay for refusing to be rushed on the project I do make.

[Brian Tuftee]

This week, I bought my wife a jewelry chest from JC Penney and paid almost $200 for it. This is a project I would have completely enjoyed doing myself, and I am pretty sure I could have made it from wood I already have on hand. The hardware would have set me back maybe $100-$150 or so.
Even though it looks really good from 20 feet away, when you take a closer look I just want to cry. I am not sure how much actual wood is in this thing, but all the drawers are made from pressed wood stapled together. The back is cardboard. etc... etc...
She just got too impatient waiting for me to make a good one. I guess this is the price I pay for refusing to be rushed on the project I do make.

It was this same motivation that led me to my first major project, a jewelry armoire for my fiancee. I saw those same crappy ones at JC Penny's, and I knew I could do better with a little effort. When I consider a woodworking project, I like to analyze it this way: If it would cost $200 to buy it from the store, and it would cost $100 in materials to make it, I can justify buying another $100 of tool, jigs, etc (you know, grownup toys) and still break even. So when I built her armoire, I was able to justify buying a Kreg pocket hole jig and a new 60-tooth finish blade as well. So she got a present, and I got two for myself!

I saw one of those units at Penny's that had the top damaged, and I'm not even sure what the heck it was made from. It looked like pressed cardboard with some kind of paper (not even wood) veneer on the top. God forbid it get dinged or scratched at home. The thing I built, I actually dropped it on its side (crying in terror), and it didn't even hurt it. Solid oak beats paper and particleboard any day of the week.

[Don Bullock]

I think that "selective" woodworking is very common. We can't make everything that we need or want. Sometimes time and energy aren't available for a project or we lack the needed skills or tools. There are also times when, because of our love of wood, we see something that someone else made and decide we have to have it.

Two summers ago I was planning to replace the chairs in our dining room. My wife and I had seen some beautiful cherry arts and crafts and prairie style chairs in a shop the summer before and we planned to start by getting several of them if they weren't too expensive. When we looked around the store we started looking at the tables that went with the chairs. We both looked at the table that went with the style of chairs that were our favorite. I had been wanting that table for at least two years, but I didn't tell my wife. Well, I was very surprised because my wife is usually the one to say things cost too much and we don't need them. She fell in love with the table as well as the chairs. Needless to say we ordered a table along with five chairs. More recently we bought two more chairs for the table (one we use as a desk chair -- that's the reason for the odd number).

To put this story in perspective, our new table replaced a trestle table that I made soon after we were married. While I miss the table I built, the new table is beautiful and I'm enjoying it perhaps even more than my wife. Sure I could have made one just like it, but when was a big question when we bought it. In fact, that table and chairs has played a big part in getting me back into woodworking after being away from it for over twenty years. BTW - I still have the old table knocked down in my shop. When I get a chance to set up shop permently, it will be used in my shop as an assembly table (it's made out of 5/4 solid ash).

[Joe Dusel (Vista, CA)]

About two years ago I was in Sam Maloof's new kitchen. It was built for him with funds from the state of California since they moved his compound and designated it as a sort of museum. It was crappy and I'm sure he could have made a spectacular kitchen himself, but that would have taken him away from creating his furniture, which are works of art. I think you should focus as others have said on doing what you enjoy. Items like closet units will be much cheaper to purchase than for you to make.

Joe

[Joe Jensen]

Hello All,

I have a question. Actually I have several. Is there a such thing as selective woodworking. I have had a closet remodel lurking in the background for about 3 months or so. The LOML is looking for drawers, additional hanging bars, shoe cubbies, and all that fun stuff. I really am considering going to the Borg and buying the kits to make this happen. I am sure you all have see the " Some assembly required" kits that they sell that will make the closet into the "Super Closet". Does this make me a woodworking hipocrite. I really don't find any satisfaction in making my own cabinets for the closet and or doing any type of woodworking that is not recreational. I will however make a cabinet for a toolbox that I have in mind. Is that wierd? I don't mind doing these types of projects if they can be done quickly and I can go back to making my furniture pieces or whatever I feel like making. Are you really saving any money doing it yourself?

Feedback is appreciated.

Ben

Make it a game. Pretend that you are a contractor and you need to get this unpleasant job done as quickly as possible.