A SIMPLE GIFT FOR FATHER’S DAY

A simple gift for dad—anyone can build it

Last weekend I was at Valley Bookseller Visit Valley Bookseller in Stillwater promoting Woodworking FAQ: The Workshop Companion, and other books I've penned, for Fathers’ Day. I was promoting something else, too—the idea of building something with your own two hands to give as a gift. We weren’t just promoting the idea, we were building it! I think the good folks at the bookstore are still vacuuming up sawdust

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The book that features the project

The project was a simple balancing wine rack featured in my book, Ridiculously Simple Furniture Projects. All it really takes to build one is a drill, a jigsaw and about 30 minutes. I think these things are so cool people should make them by the dozen to have on hand for emergency gifts! And there are a jillion variations in terms of shape and size. It's a great project for using up oddball wood scraps.

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My granddaughter Paige sanding her project

There were kids of all ages building the racks during that hour; a couple of 60+ years olds that wanted to dip their toes into woodworking, a pair of Junior High girls that unwittingly walked into the scene and wound up making gifts for their dads. They rolled their eyes a little, but in the end they thought it was cool. There were little kids ranging from 1 to 7 years old. Best of all, three of my granddaughters and four of my own daughters were there. Guess what I got for Fathers’ Day?

Daughters Kellie and Tessa building a bottle rack for dad

         It’s pretty easy to walk into a store and buy a card and a necktie—but it’s not much harder to make a simple gift. With a handmade gift comes the memories of making, giving and receiving it. It feels better. Give it a whirl.

Here's the basic plan::

A simple plan for a simple project. Just build it!