Just hit 200 completed projects on my workbench log

I started keeping a simple notebook of every piece I built back in 2019, just scribbling down dates and dimensions, and last week I passed 200. What surprised me was how many of those early projects were basically practice that I'd never sell now - anyone else realize how much stuff you make just to learn?

4 comments

4 Comments

owens.laura11d ago

200 projects and I bet half of them are in a "learning" pile in the corner of your shop that you'll never admit to anyone besides us. At least that's where my 147th and 89th projects live, haunting me.

kim_davis11d ago

And that learning pile is more valuable than half the finished pieces I've sold, honestly. I still have a little cherry jewelry box from 2020 where the lid doesn't close right because I cut the miters two degrees off. Every time I open that drawer it reminds me to double check my saw settings before making a cut. Those early mistakes teach you things no YouTube video ever could because they're your own personal failures burned right into the wood.

grantc8011d ago

Kept a "learning shelf" for so long it turned into a "learning bookcase" and then a "learning wall." Now I'm just one bad joint away from a learning room addition.

kellyallen11d ago

Tossed my 72nd project into a burn pile last month and it felt WEIRD watching that first dovetail joint go up in smoke. That coffee table had gaps you could fit a finger through but I was SO proud of it back then. Now I keep a few of the really bad ones around just to remind myself how far the workshop has come. They make great conversation starters when other woodworkers visit and spot the crooked legs.