Resources

There are countless resources available on woodworking. Over time, you’ll find your favorites. Check out some of mine to get started.

I’ve spent a lot of time learning as much as I can about the craft. I’ve referenced countless books, magazines, and online videos. On this page, I’ve includes some of my favorites; they are the ones I’ve found to be most useful. Check them out for more woodworking information.

Magazines

I’ve pretty much tried out every magazine on woodworking. At one time I believe I had eight different subscriptions, but I’ve limited myself to two now. Fine Woodworking is by far my favorite. Sometimes their articles are pretty advanced, but I love to challenge myself. They provide exceptional instruction and detail. Woodsmith is my other favorite. Woodsmith is more for the beginner and early intermediate woodworker, but I find great tips and new ideas every time I get their magazine. Additionally, they have some great patterns you can build as is or modify to your own needs.

Books

Woodworking Basics:  Mastering the Essentials of Craftsmanship – An Integrated Approach With Hand and Power Tools by Peter Korn

Complete Illustrated Guide to Woodworking, published by Taunton 

Regularly Updated Websites

The Wood Whisperer: Marc Spagnuolo has an amazing website with free educational videos and articles. He also has a pay option, and it is worth every penny. He goes through in great detail every portion of a build from design to finishing in video format. He is very professional and a precision woodworker. It is sometimes frustrating for me because his level of perfection still eludes me. Recently, he has been getting away from the free videos, but he has about four years of videos archived on his site. It will take you a while to get through them, and they are packed with great woodworking skills.

Fine Woodworking also has an amazing online reference. Many of the resources are free, but the paid online resource is very reasonable and worth the cost. As an online member, you have access to all their articles and videos. Additionally, if you’re new to woodworking, they have a great Starting Woodworking series for free.

Garage Woodworks: Brian Grella is a little unconventional by the standards I’ve listed above, and while he hasn’t posted as much in recent years, his site has great ideas for shop jigs and tools. He also provides numerous detailed videos on calibrating your tools. He is worth watching.

Woodsmith Magazine: Log on to Woodsmith.com and sign up for the weekly e-tip. It’s free, and each week they provide some good tips. Often, it is pretty basic stuff, but sometimes they have some great ideas.

Woodworkers Guild of America by Wood Magazine offers a weekly video tip and some detailed archived videos as well.

In addition to the ones listed above, there are countless YouTube channels. Some of my favorites are: jimmydiresta, Laura Kampf, I Like To Make Stuff, Jay Bates, Stumpy Nubs, April Wilkerson, DIY Tyler, Jackman Works, Crafted Workshop, Fix This Build That, Get Hands Dirty,  and Dustin Penner, just to name a few. Many of these YouTubers work in other mediums besides wood, but they are very inspirational. 

Supplies

You can find most anything you need on Rockler, Woodcraft or Highland Woodworking when it comes to woodworking supplies. Rockler is my go-to supply store. I’ve found Woodcraft to be slightly more expensive and Highland even a bit more, but sometimes I turn to them. There are also hundreds of other places for specialty items.