Just got finished making a bunch of new product for the farmer’s markets, as sales have been pretty brisque on a lot of items. Finished a show on Saturday (26th) and while sales were very good, I still am in pretty good shape in terms of inventory. So its on to a project I’ve been wanting to do for a while, but haven’t had the chance – a desktop valet (place to put your keys, wallet, etc. when you are coming in from outside). I hope to have it done and ready for my next show at the end of August (more on that later).
First off, however, is that I need to clean up the shop and reorganize. After you go through a variety of projects, the sawdust is pretty thick, tools, materials and finish are scattered about, and it can be hard to get going on the next one. A clean, organized shop, with everything back in its place, it a great motivator to get started on your next big project.
I’ve written about it before, but the shorthand process is;
- Put away all tools, materials, books, finish, etc. where it is supposed to go
- Clean off tool and workbench tops
- Sweep/Vacuum up the shop so the floors are clean and free of debris
- Pull maintenance on your machinery
- Sharpen tools (planes, chisels, etc.)
It takes a while, depending on how bad it was to start (it was a full day for me) but the end result is a shop ready to go. It doesn’t look that different from the “before” picture, but trust me, I can get whatever tool I need quickly, I’ve got my next projects staged on the workbench, and I am ready to go!
Now on to that desktop valet!
Kevin