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lowfatroubo

Full time furniture maker, tool maker, writer and Furniture Lead at London Design & Engineering UTC

Well… I needn’t have worried. Everyone headed hom

Well… I needn’t have worried.

Everyone headed home today from @schoolofwoodwork with smiling faces and a Japanese toolbox under their arm. I’d call that a successful couple of days.

Day one in the workshop finished with far more done than anyone had any right to expect.

I didn’t want to speak too soon, but this little bunch made it look easy.

By 4.30 on the first day the box sides and ends were joined, the handles shaped and fitted, everything glued up, the lids trimmed and the base boards routed. That’s not bad going for a project that usually keeps people on their toes.

There was even enough time left to wander down to @caferialtotampa for an iced matcha latte with oat milk - aways on trend my friends - you know how we roll at LFR classes!

They’d run out of scones by 2.30, which isn’t half as surprising as there being scones on the menu in a Florida coffee shop. This continent is full of surprises. 🍵

Thanks to a great group for making teaching feel effortless. Safe travels home, everyone.
Tomorrow we build cricket tables
#FloridaSchoolOfWoodworking #JapaneseToolbox #LowfatRoubo #theresalizardinmybathroom

Day one @schoolofwoodwork Over the next week I’ll

Day one @schoolofwoodwork
Over the next week I’ll be teaching two very different projects. We start with a two-day Japanese toolbox - a deceptively simple piece that introduces accurate layout, careful joinery and a clever wedged locking mechanism - all good entry level techniques.
After that, we’ll move on to a five-day build of the joined Cricket Table (or Tavern Table), exploring draw-bored mortise and tenon joinery, compound angles and the deceptively complex geometry that sits behind this humble vernacular form.
It’s always a privilege to spend a week in a workshop with people who have chosen to invest their time in learning something new.
#floridaschoolofwoodworking #lowfatroubo #japanesetoolbox

Long-time followers and close friends will know I’

Long-time followers and close friends will know I’m just as happy in the kitchen as I am in the workshop.

In fact, I’d argue they’re pretty much the same place. Different tools perhaps, but the same process: observation, patience, repetition, and the quiet satisfaction of getting something right.

So imagine my surprise when, completely out of the blue, I received a text message from someone I hadn’t heard from in over fifteen years.

To be fair, it was a misfire.

The message was meant for another Derek.

Still, I’ll happily accept a culinary tip from anyone.

If the perfect poached egg has always eluded you, then we’re already kindred spirits. I’ve lost count of the gadgets, widgets and assorted contraptions I’ve bought - and eventually sent to landfill - in pursuit of that elusive café-style egg.

Until now.

@eatpoachies A poached egg in a paper bag.

It sounds ridiculous until you try it. The results are consistently excellent, they’re almost impossible to mess up, and they’ve earned a permanent place in my kitchen drawer.

I don’t use the phrase game changer very often, but this genuinely is one.

Do your own research. Buy a pack. Tinker with them for a week.

Then come back and tell me…

”…yes, the world is a slightly better place.” #poachies

Progress. I’ve finished fiddling and faffing with

Progress.

I’ve finished fiddling and faffing with a few of the details. The legs are now octagonal, the stretchers have found their place, and the frame has been slimmed down a little. Small changes individually, but together they’ve made a much better chair. The next step is to build one properly, probably in oak.

That build isn’t just about making a nicer version - it’s about testing the sequence of operations, refining the workflow, getting a feel for the handling of the components and finding out how long the whole thing really takes to produce. After all, this is destined to become a teaching project.

The seat is still up for debate. A loose cushion? A drop-in upholstered seat? Or perhaps something closer to Allan Peters’ original with its gently curved solid seat. I’ll probably make all three before deciding.

One thing that has surprised me is the template for laminating the back slats. It worked first time. No tweaks, no second attempt and it works for a sculpted seat. Serendipity... or some benevolent workshop spirit looking over my shoulder?
Either way, I’ll take it.

If you’d like the longer story behind this project - why I’m developing it, why Allan Peters’ work still matters, and how a teaching project evolves into a course I’ve written a more in-depth piece over at The Furniture Reader. The link’s in my bio #lowfatroubo #tlevelfurniture #furnituredesign #furnituremaking

Prototype nearly there. This chair will become on

Prototype nearly there.

This chair will become one of next year’s projects on the T Level Craft & Design – Furniture course at @ldeutc

t’s still very much a prototype, cobbled together from an assortment of workshop offcuts, and there’s plenty of refining to do before it’s ready for teaching, but I’m getting close.

The design owes a quiet debt to Allan Peters. His book, Cabinetmaking: The Professional Approach, was one of the most influential books I read when I was starting out as a self-employed furniture maker.

What appealed to me then - and still does - was its practicality. Peters wrote for people who wanted to make a living at the bench. His designs reflected the realities of small-batch production, and his advice was grounded in the workshop rather than wrapped up in unnecessary mystique. That’s the thinking behind this project.

The chair isn’t just something to build; it’s a vehicle for learning. Every joint, every angle and every process has been chosen to develop skills that transfer directly to commercial furniture making.

The best teaching projects don’t just produce a chair. They produce a furniture maker.

#lowfatroubo #tlevelfurniture #furnituredesign #furnituremaking

Pedestals, platforms, plinths… whatever you call t

Pedestals, platforms, plinths… whatever you call them, today they’re doing what they do best: showing off good work.
We’re open for business at @ldeutc this Saturday from 10am–3pm, and the workshop is ready. On display are projects from the last two years, alongside the ones next year’s students will be making as they begin their own journey into furniture making.
The rest of the college will be open too, of course. But if you’re 16–18 and you wake up wondering, “What can I make today?” then you already know where you should be heading.
Come and explore the T Level Craft & Design – Furniture course. Talk to the staff and current students, pick up the work, look closely at the details, and discover how making furniture can become a career in the creative industries.
Open Day 📍 London Design & Engineering UTC 🗓️ Saturday 🕙 10:00am–3:00pm
We’ll see you in the workshop.

Like making, I’ve never really managed to kick the

Like making, I’ve never really managed to kick the writing habit. Not that I’d want to.

So after months - who am I kidding, years - of procrastination, diversions and false starts, I’ve finally launched a new project on Substack: The Furniture Reader.

It’s free to subscribe and gives me a place to explore ideas about furniture, craftsmanship and material culture in a little more depth than the fast-moving world of Instagram tends to allow.

The first Note and Post are now live, including an essay called Before There Was Furniture.
If you’d like to follow along, there’s a link in my bio.

I’m not entirely sure where this little adventure will lead, but that’s part of the appeal #The FurnitureReader #lowfatroubo #furniturehistory #furnituredesign

FOR SALE – 4 × Bad Axe No. 9 Precision Tenon Saws

FOR SALE – 4 × Bad Axe No. 9 Precision Tenon Saws

A bit of a story behind these...
A few years ago, when Mark Harrell came over to the UK to teach one of his saw-building classes during London IWF, these four No. 9s were intended as replacement saws for students whose original kits were delayed in shipping. By the time the parts arrived, the class was over.
Rather than leave the job unfinished, Mark returned to the UK a few months later and personally completed them. They’ve sat in my teaching inventory ever since, waiting for the right projects to justify keeping them. The reality is that I rarely teach work that allows these saws to shine, so it’s time they found homes where they’ll actually be used.

If you know Bad Axe saws, you’ll know exactly what these are.
The No. 9 is Bad Axe’s modern interpretation of the classic Disston No. 9 - an incredibly versatile joinery saw that comfortably bridges the gap between a dovetail saw and a traditional tenon saw. Large tenons, lap joints, dados, housing joints, deep shoulder cuts... (I’ve cut them all with one of these - there were five!) this thing just gets on with the job.
What makes it special is the distinctive ogee-shaped exposed toe, which reduces weight at the nose and gives the saw “exceptional balance and manoeuvrability”.

Here’s the numbers…
• 14” (356mm) blade • 12ppi Hybrid hammer-set toothline • 0.025” (0.64mm) gauge plate • 0.032” (0.81mm) kerf • 3⅝” (92mm) depth of cut • Black-oxided carbon steel sawback • Cherry handle • Regular handle size • Brass slotted nuts

Why I’m Selling
Simply put, these are too good to spend their lives wrapped in brown paper. I’d rather see them in the hands of woodworkers who’ll appreciate what they are and put them to work.
Only four available.

📩 DM for price and details.
#BadAxeTools #TenonSaw #HandTools #FineWoodworking

After a week of cricket tables, a few people have

After a week of cricket tables, a few people have asked which one is my favourite.
The honest answer is that I try not to think about it too much. Furniture makers are supposed to sell things, not adopt them.

What I do think about is ownership. Or perhaps more accurately, the illusion of ownership.

Most of the old furniture I admire has already outlived several owners. Some pieces have survived wars, house moves, changing fashions and the occasional enthusiastic amateur repair. Long after the makers and owners disappeared, the furniture simply carried on.

When you buy a handmade piece, you’re not really buying ownership in the absolute sense. You’re buying custodianship. You get to look after it for a while, use it, enjoy it, spill tea on it, tell visitors where it came from and perhaps kick the feet a few times as generations before you have done.
Then one day it moves on to someone else.

With any luck, these tables will still be doing their job long after both maker and current custodian have shuffled off this mortal coil.
Of course, there is another option. You could do what I did and make your own. There happens to be a book I can recommend that might help.

Or, if you’d prefer to fast-track the experience, I’ll be teaching cricket table making @schoolofwoodwork in August and @london_iwf in October.

Al this is a slightly roundabout way of saying that a few cricket tables are looking for their next custodian.
If you’d like to apply for the position, send me a message.

Today’s table is one you might have seen before -

Today’s table is one you might have seen before - it’s the one featured on the cover of Cricket Tables. @lostartpress or @classic_hand_tools will be happy to supply you with a copy.

Furniture names are curious things. Many were coined by antique dealers, auction houses and collectors to help describe and market objects. There’s nothing wrong with that, but over time these labels can take on an air of historical certainty that they don’t always deserve. Take the term “cricket table” for example - it has nothing whatsoever to do with the game of cricket.

This style of table is sometimes referred to as a “tavern table”, though I’m not entirely sure for whose benefit. Perhaps it conjures up images of ye olde England and flagons of ale. The truth is these tables were probably more likely to be found in coffee houses than public houses, but that’s not nearly as romantic.

This particular table is based on a period piece that I never actually got to see in person. It was probably the fourth or fifth cricket table I made, long before the idea of writing a book about them had crossed my mind.
Looking back, it’s interesting to see how much of what interested me then still finds its way into my work today. Some of the things I struggled to accept - imperfection and asymmetry for example - now sit comfortably in my repertoire.

If you’re interested in giving this table a new home, send me a message for details #crickettables #lowfatroubo

Today’s cricket table brings together two of my fa

Today’s cricket table brings together two of my favourite things: the physical outline of a well-worn piece and a murky patina.

Let me explain.

Cast your eye down to the feet. They’re tapered, which is something you’d often find on old tables after a couple of centuries of being kicked around parlours, coffee houses and kitchens. Wear doesn’t just affect the surface of a piece; over time it changes its shape, and that’s always fascinated me. So many unanswered questions.

This table is a nod to that history. Not an attempt to reproduce a particular antique, but an appreciation of the way objects evolve through use and the stories that become written into them.

Add in a suitably murky finish and you’ve got many of the things I enjoy most about old furniture.
If you’re interested in giving it a new home, send me a message for details.
#crickettables #lowfatroubo

And here’s another. This table is my contemporary

And here’s another.

This table is my contemporary take on the classic stick style cricket table. Made from Douglas fir and finished with oil and wax.

Douglas fir is still seen by many as a construction timber, but I think it has a lot to offer furniture makers. One face can reveal beautiful swirling grain while another displays perfectly straight pinstripes. It’s a timber with more range than it often gets credit for. It’s not always the easiest wood to work with either. Depending on where your tool lands, it can feel somewhere between granite and sponge cake. I suspect that’s part of the reason I like it.

Simple construction, clean lines and a material that deserves a closer look.
It’s also one of my personal favourites.

It’s always difficult to part with your favourites, but this one is ready for its next home.
If you’re interested, send me a message for details #crickettablesforsale #lowfatroubo

Here’s that sliding lock mechanism for previous po

Here’s that sliding lock mechanism for previous post #crickettablesforsale #lowfatroubo

Another Cricket Table over the finish line and now

Another Cricket Table over the finish line and now looking for a new owner.
This piece was never originally intended for sale. Built from a combination of oak and ash, it has spent the last few years accompanying me to open houses, exhibitions and shows before finally receiving the finish it deserved.
It also features what I believe to be a unique detail: a knock-down top. The top is held together by a keyed wedge system, inspired by traditional Japanese toolboxes and sliding dovetail joinery. No screws, bolts or other ironmongery - just simple mechanics.

Projects like this often end up waiting patiently in the workshop while commissioned work and T Level classes take priority. It’s satisfying to finally bring one across the finish line.
If you’d like to give it a new home, send me a message for details.m #crickettablesforsale #lowfatroubo

Put the finishing touches to a couple of Cricket T

Put the finishing touches to a couple of Cricket Tables this week.

This one features a beautiful brown oak top paired with a European oak undercarriage. Originally made as part of a pair back in 2024, this table never quite made it across the finish line until now.

A couple of light coats of shellac and a dark wax have brought out a rich, deep colour that really highlights the character of both timbers.

This design has been one of my most popular pieces over the past few years with customers and students and this table is now looking for a new home.

If you’re interested, send me a message for details.
#crickettable #madebyhand #handmadefurniture #lowfatroubo

A workshop full of final projects, two years of le

A workshop full of final projects, two years of learning, and countless hours of hard work.

Last week our Year 13 T Level Furniture students @ldeutc laid out their completed projects ready for external moderation. We don’t have the final grades yet, and we’ll wait for the official feedback before saying too much...

But when the moderator said he was “blown away” by the quality of the work on display, it’s fair to say we’re feeling pretty proud of this lot.

The final assessment required students to complete two timed practical pieces to a strict specification - a kitchen shelf unit and a Shaker-style cabinet door - alongside their major Design & Make project: a Carver chair of their own design and manufacture. For context they were allowed 30hrs build time - no prototype, no dry run ! Just design it and build it.

These pieces represent far more than timber, joints and finishes. They represent resilience, problem-solving, technical skill, creativity, deadlines met, mistakes overcome, and a huge amount of personal growth.

As the first cohort to complete the T Level Craft & Design Furniture course, they’ve set the standard remarkably high.

Now we wait.

#tlevelfurniture #furnituremakers #lowfatroubo #ldeutc

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