Eight Killer Woodworking Videos To Inspire You!

Been a while since you’ve fired up the band saw? Does your workshop have dust everywhere but in the dust collector? Sounds like you need a little motivation…so DROP DOWN AND GIVE ME FIFTY, MAGGOT!! Oops, sorry; every once in a while, I flash back to boot camp. What I meant to say was “Grab yourself a refreshing beverage, and have a look at a small sampling of cool woodworking videos from the wild world of YouTube. Let’s get those creative juices flowing!”

Yipes – Stripes! Woodworking Videos A Filmmaker Could Love

The first stop on our inspirational tour is this gem from woodworker Frank Howarth. As creative behind the camera as he is on the lathe, he uses stop-motion photography to document the building of a piece of lawn furniture. His pro quality camera work and great sound effects entertain you on the journey, as raw lumber goes through the process of being cut, planed, shaped, and assembled into final form. I guarantee you’ll be smiling while you watch this one. This guy has a kick-ass shop, and dozens of other great woodworking videos. At the end of the video, there’s a link to another short video, showing the technique he used to film it. It’s worth watching as well.

The Wood Whisperer Shows You How to Get Inlaid

The Wood Whisperer, aka Marc Spagnuolo, has one of the best woodworking sites on the web, with a slew of great woodworking videos of his own. At one time, our fearless leader, also named Marc (coincidence? I think not), even acquired the site – sort of. Actually, not really. At any rate, this is a great 43-minute tutorial on how to do wood inlay. Marc’s demonstration piece is a table top, but the technique would work on any surface. He goes into great detail on every step: creating a design, transferring it to the work piece, selecting the perfect inlay material, orienting the grain for the best visual interest, cutting and inserting the inlay material, and so forth, all the way to the finished product. If you’re thinking about trying inlay, this is a great resource. Even for a woodworking rookie like me, who is not quite ready to attempt something so exacting, it’s very interesting to see the process.

Coming Unhinged

If you’re a fan of using wood instead of metal whenever possible, you’ll love these removable cabinet door hinges made by Matthias Wandel. This design should be adaptable for pretty much any size door, by adjusting the size of the components, and maybe the species of wood. They add a beautiful touch of customization and visual interest to an otherwise ordinary door.

“How’d You DO That??”

This next offering demonstrates that even the seemingly impossible can be accomplished with a bit of ingenuity. This is actually a fairly simple project (assuming you have a drill press), that falls into the “conversation piece” category. By using an exotic wood, and perhaps staining the pieces differently, you could elevate it to “art” status. I’m actually planning to make this one for my grandson; hey, maybe that will make me an artist! I winced a bit watching it, though, especially when he stuck his hand under the spinning Foerstner bit…safety, people!! Anyhow, here’s how thinking outside the box allows you to work inside the box.

Get That Fish OFF Of There!

Cutting boards can be an easy way for beginners to get into the hobby. A search for “make a cutting board” yields roughly 114,000 results. After watching them all, I decided that this is one that really takes it up a notch! The only problem with creating such a beautiful cutting board is that you’d never want to actually cut anything on it…

No 3D Goggles Required!

This piece of wall art, composed of pieces – lots of pieces – of ash, walnut and cherry, seems pretty straightforward to make. There’s a lot of cutting, gluing and sanding involved, but no high-end woodworking machinery is needed. You could adapt this pattern to pretty much any project: cutting boards, tabletops, picture frames, garage doors. If you have the time, and the patience, you could create an entire 3-D universe!

Snakes On A Table

This quick video was made to show off a unique dining room table from a custom woodworking shop in Jerome, AZ (the cowboy hat is your first clue). It uses reclaimed wood, and while it doesn’t demonstrate any woodworking techniques, if you’re looking for design inspiration, what better place to get it than from a rattlesnake! I thought the hidden storage compartment was a cool touch.

A Fair Job Of Whittling…

I’ve always loved seeing beautifully carved wood pieces. Unfortunately, my skill level with making designs out of wood extends about as far as using a sign template. If work made with a chisel and mallet is your cup of meat, check out this woodworking shop. Located near Bangkok, Thailand, these guys produce some incredible carvings, with extraordinary levels of detail. And if I ever decide I need a four-foot-tall wooden elephant, I know where to go for it.

And that’s eight! These woodworking videos document just a small sampling of the incredible variety of unique stuff that’s lurking out there. Hopefully one of them will spark an idea for your OWN creative project. So step away from the computer, go grab your router, chisel, sledgehammer, or other woodworking tool of choice, and MAKE SOMETHING! What’s the project you’ve made that you’re most proud of? What’s your fave woodworking vid? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.