Simple Japanese Furniture presents 24 simple and stylish furniture projects for the home based on timeless Japanese designs. Each project is presented with notes on the key design elements of each piece, the tools and techniques needed, and step-by-step instructions for completion. The designs are chosen to illustrate the structure of furniture and key principles in furniture building, and the techniques are well-suited to working with cuts of coniferous trees, especially cedar. Each project is described in a brief overview, with notes on degree of difficulty and an emphasis on key design elements.This isfollowedby a detailed descriptive sectionwithhelpfulillustrations. Will appeal to woodworkers and hand-tool enthusiasts, the book reflects growing interest in making simple, practical furniture for the home as well as an appreciation of Japanese design.

Focusing on the furniture of the Edo and early Meiji periods, this text lookst the history, aesthetics and techniques of hand-worked traditional Japaneseurniture.

Tansu, the unique cabinetry of Japan, springs from a rich folk-art tradition. This book is lavishly illustrated with 27 full-color plates and over 260 monochrome photographs of spectacular chests and elegant details. It is divided into two parts, the first on history and the second on techniques. It also includes an invaluable guide to purchasing and conserving tansu.

Guide to easy-to-make furniture using inexpensive wood with detailed instructions and illustrations, including coffee table, sundial, kitchen cabinet.

The Genius of Japanese Carpentry tells the story of the 1200-year-old Yakushiji monastery in Nara and the dedicated modern-day craftsmen who are working to restore what has been lost to the depredations of time, fire and warfare. Although the full monastery reconstruction will not be completed until 2030, one of the main temples, the Picture Hall, has been completely restored employing the same woodworking technology used to create the original building. This new edition of an architectural classic is by Azby Brown—one of the world's leading experts on Japanese architecture. It contains a new preface and many new text materials and photographs—most of them now available in color for the first time. Azby Brown chronicles the painstaking restoration of the temple through extensive interviews with the carpenters and woodworkers along with original drawings based on the plans of master carpenter Tsunekazu Nishioka. An inspiring testament to the dedication of these craftsmen and their philosophy of carpentry work as a form of personal fulfillment, The Genius of Japanese Carpentry offers detailed documentation of this singular project and a moving reminder of the unique cultural continuity found in Japan.

The traditional Japanese house is universally admired for its clean lines, intricate joinery, and unparalleled woodworking. The authors of this elegant volume, Peggy Landers Rao and Len Brackett, show how a classic Japanese- style house can be built to offer the warmth and comfort that modern homeowners require. Len Brackett, rigorously trained in traditional architecture in Kyoto, has spent decades adapting the ancient Japanese design aesthetic to Western needs. He builds traditional live-on-the-floor houses, as well as versions that accommodate furniture. Both types provide the essential features expected in today's new homes - central heating, insulation, weather stripping, thermal glazing, streamlined kitchens, computerized lighting systems, and the latest electronics. The book's primary focus is on a single guesthouse in California, but pictures of other adaptations of the traditional Japanese house in America exemplify various points. Architects will find reference charts of the prescribed set of proportions and dimensions normally passed down through a strict system of apprenticeship. anticipating shrinkage of various woods. A remarkable tool used to lay out precise joints is described in detail. Various sources are given for materials, including where to find a contemporary version of the distinctive, traditional earthen plaster.

This text shows how to use Japanese tools effectively and maintain them properly, and explains the role they play in traditional Japanese craftsmanship. It describes how to create razor-sharp cutting edges and introduces almost 50 different planes.--This text refers to the Paperback edition.

If you want to make japanese joints, without spending money on expensive tools then read on... Are you a weekend carpenter that wants to make traditional japanese joints? Do you want to apply Japanese ingenuity of design to everyday furniture and give them a special character? Do you want to do so without spending a lot of time or money? For centuries before the invention of screws and fasteners, Japanese craftsmen used complex, interlocking joints to connect pieces of wood for structures and beams, helping to create a unique Japanese aesthetic that can still be seen in the works of modern masters like Shigeru Ban. Up until recent times, however, these techniques were often the carefully guarded secrets of family carpentry guilds and unavailable for public knowledge. Let this book teach you the secrets from an era when craftsmanship mattered, prior to the industrial revolution and mass production of "things". Inside this book you'll discover: How to make your own japanase joints in 8 steps The #1 Japanese wood you should use to make joints The top 5 tools you need to get started with most japanese joints The secret behind how japanese joinery is used to construct buildings that have stood for hundreds of years 8 Tradional joints and 3 beginner friendly projects Here are the answers to some questions you might have about this book: Q: I'm just a woodworker with a wood shop in my garage, and I don't want to splurge on expensive tools just for making japanese joints. Can I still make the joints given inside your book? A: Absolutely, this book is designed for the weekend woodworker and enthusiast! While we still recommend a few tools that are cheap but absolutely key when making japanese joints, we have omitted the joints that require any type of expensive tools from this guide. There also certain joints that don't require any specialized tools. So, you don't need to spend extra if you don't really want to. Q: Can japanese joints really improve regular objects (like chairs and other furniture) that I already know how to make? A: Yes. The special characteristics of Japanese joints are diverse. Their utility can be found in making flexible yet strong houses in earthquake-prone Japan. They are also useful in building recording-studios where sound-transmission through joist-conduction must be minimized. There also certain joints that don't even need nails to make! The addition of japanese joints in your own designs will incorporate one or more of these charateristics to your furniture. We also have short guide on adapting these joints into your own designs, so you never get lost trying to make sense of it all. Q: Are the pictures in your book color or b/w? A: The pictures inside this book are b/w, meant to show clearly the intricacies of the joints. Every day that you delay is another day you miss the opportunity to use this magnificient japanese craft to make your woodworking projects a notch above everything else. Take action now. Scroll up and click the 'Buy Now' button, to receive this book at your doorstep!

Furniture Studio explores the origins, methods, results, and influence of the unique and highly successful furniture design and fabrication studios offered by the University of Washington Department of Architecture. The furniture program, initiated by Andris Vanags, is an immersion into the role of materials, design, and making in architectural education. Students directly engage the physical properties of materials, and the knowledge gained through this engagement enriches the design and fabrication process. The experiences of its graduates reveal that the studio fosters creative thinking that truly integrates design and making. Ochsner presents historical background to shop-based courses, including furniture studio; traces the careers of four representative graduates of the program; and suggests implications from this program for architectural education and individual achievement beyond the University of Washington. Eleven students and the projects they created in the winter 2009 studio are profiled, and the book contains a fully illustrated catalogue of exemplary student projects from 1989 to the present. Illustrations and descriptions throughout the book showcase the heirloom-quality projects created by the students, many of which won awards in competitions. "Jeffrey Ochsner has written a book that will be invaluable to furniture historians, furniture makers, architects, and design educators. The book's great strength is its telling of a local, personal story within a broader context of architectural pedagogy and philosophy." -Edward Cooke, author of Making Furniture in Pre-Industrial America Jeffrey Karl Ochsner is professor of architecture and associate dean for academic affairs, College of Built Environments, University of Washington. He is the author of Lionel H. Pries, Architect, Artist, Educator and coauthor of Distant Corner: Seattle Architects and the Legacy of H. H. Richardson.