First
Object

My first woodworking project. Tray from beech, bowls and small pieces from pear wood.

The pear wood came from my father-in-law. Approximately seventy years old, originally intended as firewood. It had insect holes and cracks. I left them visible.

The tray was flattened entirely by hand. At that time I had no planer, no jointer, no workbench experience. Everything was difficult. Making it flat and evenly thick took weeks.

The bowls were not turned. I split each block lengthwise, drilled the cavity, glued the halves back together and sealed the inside with epoxy.

The tray cracked. The butterfly key was cut by hand using chisels. It is still asymmetrical.

No drawings were used. Edge shape, chamfers, proportions — most decisions happened during the build. I usually work this way.

I learned mostly from YouTube. Mostly Japanese woodworking channels.

The moment I wanted to continue woodworking was the first proper hand plane shaving.

I still see many mistakes. Usually nobody else notices them.