Finally back to work in the shop. I decided to start with a warm-up project: a cherry tea tray with walnut dowels and wax cord wraps for the handles.

A wooden tray with dark blue handles sits on a workbench surrounded by tools.

All is on hold this month as I was diagnosed with Lyme disease and now recovering. I did not see a tick, nor did I have a telltale bite mark. I thought I had the flu, then joint pain began. If I can offer any advice, it’s to be vigilant and take precautions to avoid this.

Three corners completed, one to go, then on to the cabinet doors. I’ve never cut so many dovetails at once in my life.

A wooden box with dovetail joints is positioned on a workbench, surrounded by woodworking tools and materials.

Two corners done for my cabinet build, two to go. I did through dovetails for the base, the top will be half blind dovetails. Sketching out plans for feet and sliding doors now.

A wooden cabinet on a blue patterned floor is being held together with clamps.

My solution for transferring pins to tails on a 50x25 inch panel. It’s not pretty, but it’ll do the job.

A woodworking setup features two large wooden panels clamped to a workbench so pins can be transferred to tails for a 25 inch dovetail joint.

I just looked at the iOS top charts and it struck me how far I’ve diverged away from the mainstream of app downloads. I don’t use any of the apps on the list until #35 (Discord), which I use occasionally.

Frederick, Maryland, this morning before it gets too hot to be outside.

Frederick Maryland, Carroll creek park

Making some wooden nails with scraps (with a dowel plate) while I wait for glue to dry on panels, which are just tiny dowels shaped to a point with a chisel. They work great for small box projects and are a good use of small hardwood scrap.

A wooden nail on a piece of wood, a wooden nail inserted into the same piece of wood; behind that a chisel, a wood scrap, and a dowel making jig.