The 16th Annual Long Island Woodworkers Show

This post was originally posted at penultimatewoodshop.com

Here we are!

Two weekends ago, I was lucky enough to take my three (3) sons to the Long Island Woodworkers 16th Annual Woodworking Show at the Old Bethpage Village Fairgrounds.

Entering the show.

This is the 6th or 7th year in a row that I’ve attended the Long Island Woodworker’s Show and they’ve found their rhythm as far as size, exhibitors and venue. Since I’ve been going to the show I’ve seen it migrate from Sports Plus (a now defunct large entertainment venue) to Hofstra University to an American Legion Hall (a space so cramped with woodworking that you could barely walk) to the Old Bethpage Village Fairgrounds.

The wonderful timber framed barn that houses the show.

The building the show is in now is just the right size and certainly the right atmosphere. It’s a large, beautiful, timber framed barn, perfect for a woodworking show.

The show itself is made up of member exhibits, vendors and special interest displays. The Long Island Woodworking Club’s special interest groups are the L.I. Scrollsaw Association, the L.I. Woodturner’s Guild, the L.I. Cabinet & Furniture Makers and the Secret Society of Woodcarvers. Each special interest group (at least is seems like each, but I didn’t check) has a corner of the building where they give live demonstrations and talk up their craft.

What's a woodworking show without Woodmizer?

The vendors aren’t the boutique shops you’ll see at Woodworking in America or the generic guys you’ll see at the Woodworking & D.I.Y. Shows. They were all medium sized and somewhat local. The ones I spend the most time with were Lakeshore Hardwoods and the member used tool sale.

A great photo, taken by Tom McKenna of Robert
having Tom's son draw a raffle winner.

While I spent a good deal of my time chasing my kids around and trying to get them enthusiastic about this joint or that finish, the highlight was the wonderful chat I had with Robert of the Long Island Woodworker’s Club. He let my boys draw a raffle winner, and as I learned in Saratoga, he’s a great guy to talk too.

This cookbook rack was my favorite of the member gallery.

Unfortunately, I missed seeing Fine Woodworking’s Tom McKenna. Matt Kenney gave me a heads up that Tom was visiting the show, and it looks like he had a good time too. Check out his post about the Long Island Woodworker's Show here.

You can see my entire Long Island Woodworker's 16th Annual Woodworking Show Picasa gallery here.

Have you found your local woodworking show and discovered who you need to talk to there?

MWA Meeting 4 Atlanta

Today we had another great meeting here in Atlanta and with a growing turn-out.  We spent the morning discussing woodworking and just building camaraderie in the group.  Rufus brought in a few of his antique planes for everyone to see (of coarse I forgot to take a picture) and Bill brought his purpleheart plane that I posted a while back.  The plane looked great and I can tell Bill is already getting addicted to plane making!

The great thing about the meetings are the chance for woodworkers of all levels to sit down and discuss what we do.  Woodworkers who have be at this for years can share and debate different techniques for doing things such as our discussions today on sharping.  On the other side new woodworkers can ask questions such as, what is the best way to trim a miter cut for a picture frame, my suggestion was to use a shooting board as they are extremely accurate and the proper length can be crept up on, while later another suggested using a Miter Trimmer which is great especially if you are going to be doing a lot of frames or trim.  The point is we all learn from one another.

By having the online world and offline worlds come together we all stand a better chance of getting to know one another and learn from one another.  After each meeting my excitement is renewed about the possibilities we have as a group and can't wait to start hearing about meetings set up by Dyami, Tom, and Mike, as well as any others around the country that would like to join and take the time together to learn more about woodworkers in their location.

If you are not a member of MWA and would like to join the group just send me an email with you contact info or leave a comment here.  We would love to have you aboard!

Heading to the Long Island Woodworkers Show

So it looks like I’ll be heading to the Long Island Woodworkers 16th Annual Woodworking Show after all. My travel plans have been changed and while I’m still not sure exactly when I’ll be going, I’ll certainly be making an appearance there this weekend.

The wonderful timber framed barn that houses the
Long Island Woodworkers Show.

So if you’re anywhere near the Old Bethpage Village Fairgrounds this weekend, be sure to stop in and say to the Long Island Woodworkers Club. I'll see you there.

Have a seat and chat with fellow woodworkers.

The Long Island Woodworkers Club 16th Annual Long Island Woodworking Show runs 10:00 am to 4:00 pm on Saturday & Sunday, November 12th & 13th at the Old Bethpage Village Fairgrounds, 1303 Round Swamp Rd, Old Bethpage, NY 11804.


UPDATE: I've figured out my plan and I'll be heading to the show on Sunday at about 10:00ish with my three sons. I hope to see you there.

Atlanta Meeting This Saturday!

I just wanted to make a quick announcement as a reminder that the Atlanta chapter will be meeting this Saturday (the 12th) at 9am at Boulevard Diner just a few miles down the street from Woodcraft of Atlanta.  I have spoken with the owner, he is very excited about us using the facility, so for now that will be our regular meeting place.  After breakfast and visiting, anyone that would like can join us at Woodcraft to check out whats new.  I hope to see you all there.

Also, you may have noticed several changes to the site and we are working on more as we improve the site and our direction. 

The address to Boulevard Diner is:

3446 Holcomb Bridge Road
Norcross, GA 30092

MWA Mission Statement

Mission Statement

Today there is a vast amount of information that can be found online through woodworking communities, forums, blogs, and other social media such as Twitter and Google+.  Through these online connections, woodworkers learn from one another and build camaraderie with fellow woodworkers.  In a sense, we all belong to a woodworking club, the online woodworking club. The Modern Woodworkers Association is a place for the online woodworking community to reinforce our online connections and create personal ones in local gatherings in many regions across the country.

It is a place for woodworkers of all skill levels from professional to hobbyist to be able to share knowledge and learn form one another.  The name Modern Woodworkers Association does not come from the fact that we are powertool users or for that matter handtool users but instead that we have all found a new tool, the online community and the power of information. 

Our goals are create an environment for woodworkers to share and connect online, offline, or both.  

●      Online:

○      Connect via MWA blog and social media

○      Place to share our projects and shops

○      Ask advice/offer answers

○      Share about woodworking

                                          ■         Our means & methods

                                          ■         Our interest

                                          ■         “Inside Baseball” talk

○      Keep up with woodworking events and shows

○      Community blog

●      Offline:

○      Translate online relationships into physical ones

○      Get together to

                                          ■         Take classes/seminars

                                          ■         Grab a meal

                                          ■         Shop woodworking

                                          ■         Just talk shop

○      Attend woodworking shows and events