We were thrilled to be included in Mortise & Tenon magazine’s Issue X, their 10th Anniversary special (and almost double-sized) issue. As we told M&T, 10 years in publishing is an impressive feat, especially in a field whose obituary had been written many, many times, challenged by increasingly short attention spans and the supposed yearning of all “content” to be free. M&T’s answer to the challenges of contemporary publishing has been the exact opposite of the conventional response - the magazine article as a hot take or a series of captions. Instead of summaries designed to entice the mainstream reader with attention span issues, M&T has offered erudite research on admittedly narrower topics related to woodworking.
In doing so, the magazine also created a sense of community among woodworkers who want to understand the best practices of woodworking’s past – and their own place in this realm. At the same time, the magazine’s beautiful physical presentation also conveyed a certain timelessness, durable enough for return reflection and discussion.
We were asked to explore the topic of “The State of Woodworking in 2025,” and provide some photographs to accompany the article. So along with the text, our article features some pictures of the new Gramercy Tools lathe and some catnip for fans of vintage shop tools.
We now have the magazine for sale in our showroom and online, and while these photos have gotten some attention, probably the biggest conversation starter is the photo of the miniature tools I made as a young lad. These tools were inspired by Eric Sloane’s Museum of Early American Tools and are made of steel with boxwood handles. I used an X-ACTO saw, Dremel, a drill, files, and a tiny torch all obtained from local hobby and hardware stores. And yes, the tools all function!
Some of our customers have responded by sharing their miniature craftwork with us. Our friend Tony showed us the tiny ornaments he made, including one of his dog and another of himself. Merry Christmas!
A picture of my tools made it into M&T Issue X My mini - doll house scale panel saw nested under a mid-19th century short 12" panel saw.
PS. Festool expects to apply an import fee on August 1, 2025. Buy before Festool applies an import fee.
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07/29/2025 Larry Wangerin
In 1965 my wife and I moved into an old, renovated slaughterhouse! The farmhouse was across the road. One day we were invited to see our neighbor's 18th century home. There on a table was Eric Sloan's "Diary of an Early American Boy, Noah Blake 1805." I asked to borrow it and fell hook line and sinker for Eric Sloan's work. I eventually acquired my own copy and many more of his titles. I am surely not alone in this. I believe Eric Sloan would have enjoyed your beautiful miniature tools too.
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