Woodworking Projects for Do it Yourself Home Improvements

Decorating and improving one’s place of residence can be costly. Besides the price of the materials, the cost of the labor for the contractor or other professional can often be so great that many will postpone making improvements that could greatly improve property value and/or living conditions.

One way to beat the cost of improvements is to complete the work yourself. And one magazine that is dedicated to self- improvement in the area of home repair is Workbench, a magazine that focuses on woodworking to improve your living environment.

Features of This Magazine:

Workbench contains between 90 and 120 pages and offers the following sections in each bi- monthly issue:

Reader’s Workshop- This section includes a wood- constructed item with description, measurements, and diagram so you can build it yourself.

Workbench Shop Tips- Here, you will find a tip on an area of woodworking that often causes frustration, like sawing the perfect curve.

Tool Close-Up- This includes an overview of a tool or tool accessory, complete with information on where to go to make a purchase.

Skill Builder- This section is several pages in length and it includes instructions for improving your woodworking techniques n specific areas.

Tool Review- In this section, you will find side by side comparisons of different brands of a specific tool, complete with performance measurements and a final recommendation.

Departments- Five other departments make up this section. They are: Questions and Answers, Finishing Fundamentals, Tips & Techniques, Tools & Products, and Craftsmanship Close- up.

Besides the regular departments, Workbench can be counted on for about four to six longer articles that change each month. They all deal with building things from wood for indoor and outdoor home improvement.

Costs to Subscribe:

This magazine carries a base subscription price of $22 for six issues. This works out to $3.67 per copy, representing a savings of about 22 percent off the high cover price of $5.99. The base rate for a two- year subscription is $33, which equals $2.75 per issue- a savings of 45 percent from the cover price.

Using the internet, you can easily find better deals. The subscription price through most on- line retailers is $18 for 6 issues. This works out to $3.00 per issue, which is a savings of 40 percent off the cover price.

Customer Service:

Subscriptions and other inquires can be directed to the magazine’s web page, workbenchmagazine.com. If the web site doesn’t have what you need, you can call the customer support line, 800-311-3991.

Final Thoughts:

Woodworking can be a rewarding and enjoyable hobby and I have spent my share of time working on different projects for my home. Not only can it save quite a bit of money, it also offers the worker a sense of pride in a job well done. Workbench Magazine takes this idea of self- labor and applies it to woodworking projects in and out of the home.

What I enjoy best about this magazine is the fact that it makes no assumptions. Each project is discussed in detail and is complete with instructions, diagrams, side, front and top views, and other visual aids to help woodworkers get the job done right the first time. Workbench doesn’t take any chances on what the reader may or may not know. It spells it all out, before your eyes, from the initial selection of wood all the way through finishing the final end product.

While there is an occasional article in each issue about making something from wood for your home’s interior, like a cabinet or dresser, the majority of the pages of Workbench deal with using wood to improve the exterior of your home. Thumbing through the pages of each issue presents a large number of projects for things like porches, decks, storage sheds, fences, and other outdoor things. When I have created things from wood, it has almost exclusively been for the inside of the home rather than the outside. But since this magazine is focused more on permanent home improvements, it makes sense that it devote most of its time talking about fixing up the exterior of the home.

The sections that compare and review specific tools are quite good and what’s nice is that you can apply this knowledge to any type of woodworking since the tools are usually used by anyone who works with wood regardless of his/her project. The tools are stacked up and compared using the three V’s: Virtues, Vices, and Verdict. Then, a table shows specific measurements and capabilities for each tool with grades (A through F) and a final recommendation.

Advertisements cover about 30 percent of the pages of each issue, which isn’t too bad. The ads feature things like power tools, cleaning agents, measuring devices, paint, lawn mowers, etc. The ads don’t deviate much at all from the magazine’s main focus of home improvement. And the photography in this magazine is very nice. It makes you want to get up, grab your Sears Craftsman circular saw and a tape measure, and get to work on that fancy new wood deck or front porch you always dreamed about.

Using wood for building a deck, fence, or other project can greatly enhance your home’s appearance and resale value. Most of us would probably do more woodworking on our own if time permitted because it can prove to be an enjoyable, rewarding hobby and it can save quite a bit of cash. For those who like to saw and drill their own shelves, joints, posts, etc., Workbench makes a good idea for a magazine subscription. It walks you through the necessary steps to complete your own home improvement projects with your favorite wood, making your home look better and saving you money in the process.