The mindfulness of carpentry; sourcing and seasoning your timber; tongue and groove, lap and spleen; legs, aprons, stretchers and trestles; fox wedges and tenon joints: through his inimitable artistry, wit and individualism, Joel Bird passes on the skills of table making while also expressing the personal journey that accompanies the learning of these skills. Split into four parts - table beginnings, the table top, the table base and the table finishing - The Table Maker is part meditation and part guide book, and has within its pages the information needed to make a quality table of your own.
'The tables I like are quiet. They sit patiently waiting for the day's purpose to reveal itself. They offer themselves to a room, not attempting to grab attention or dominate, inconspicuous in their simplicity, saving their qualities for those who are interested. The table that I grew up with was one such example. A simple 5' x 3' pine table, four legs joined with mortise and tenon joints, a wide apron to support decent dimensions. It still sits as composed as ever in my parent's dining room. It has participated in the raising of two generations that ate and grew and learned at its surface and there is no reason why it won't participate in two more. Can an object such as this be described as having a soul?' Joel Bird is an architect, artist, designer and shed builder. He was the first winner of Channel 4's Amazing Spaces Shed of the Year competition in 2014, and has appeared as a judge on every series since then.He is currently the host of Your Garden Made Perfect and The Great Garden Revolution. Joel has also appeared on Alan Titchmarsh's Love Your Garden, Eating Well with Hemsley and Hemsley, The Chris Evans Breakfast Show, Grand Designs Live, Manspace Magazine, and Completely London.
Joel lives in North London with his family. And his shed. A beautiful guide and meditation on the art of making your very own table The ideal Xmas gift for the difficult person to buy for - this is a wonderful celebration of the simplicity of woodwork and design, and inspirational meditation of the art of modern-day craft The follow-up to the wonderful The Book of Shed, this is 2018's ideal gift for those interested in reconnecting with nature and with the traditions and cultures of our past Beautifully designed with a wonderful collection of colour photographs and over 20 of Joel's personal sketches, drawn throughout the building process Joel Bird is a unique new voice in the outdoor and lifestyle market, and has a growing following across Twitter and Instagram
