Four or so years ago when my father passed away, Christopher Sexton, woodshop steward and maker of fine dovetailed boxes (I think he’s made upwards of 60 of them), invited me to do some woodworking. He suggested it might be a good way to process things. Something inside me said "Great idea! I want to build an electric guitar!" Always with a gentle voice, he suggested maybe we start with a few other things first. Maybe learn a few things. Ok, Ok. So, with his help: I made a gu

Chris Sexton is on a mission to craft 100 dovetail boxes, one carefully fitted corner at a time. As a volunteer Wood Shop Steward at Nova Labs, Chris helps care for the shop while supporting our ever-growing community of woodworkers.

Working with National Bell Festival to support the Solidarity Bell.

By Vince McCullough This year’s Nova Labs entry in the Reston Cardboard Regatta will be the KARDBORD DRAKEN. The DRAKEN is designed to resemble a Viking longship (a very short longship), and is built using construction techniques that are similar to those used by the Vikings themselves, though with cardboard and glue instead of wood and nails. The keel of the DRAKEN The keel of the ship is constructed by laminating five boards made of 5/8” triple-ply cardboard together to f

By Paul Chase Last Sunday the Kinetic Sculpture Team met to work out what went well during last month's race in Baltimore, and to talk about what will go even better this coming year. The Baltimore Kinetic Sculpture Race will run on May 6th, 2023 - only 324 build days remaining! After meeting a new member, Kevin, and another current NL member, Josh, who were interested in joining the team, we reviewed the sculpture itself and tried to figure out logistics, and broad design to

By Steve Fritzinger Sharp tools are essential for woodworking. No one knows that better than a wood turner. When a 40-tooth table saw...