Thrashbear

Hey Kevin, may I ask what part of Pittsburgh you live in? Reason I ask is because I have a buddy on Troy Hill who could have written this article almost word-for-word. I've been to his basement shop where he's currently in the process of remodeling his house. Last I saw he was living in one room in the basement and the rest of the house was torn down to the framing. His shop was packed toe-to-toe with lumber and tools, and good luck even turning around!

I am a full-time woodworker and furniture maker working out of my home. I find myself fortunate to have dedicated my 2-car garage as a workshop, but these Cleveland winters are hard to deal with without a reliable heat source. So I copped one 10 x 20 room in my basement as an assembly/finish room. Now I divide all my milling and dust-kicking jobs to the garage, and my "quiet" and clean work to the basement.

Despite this, it's still not enough! What I wouldn't give for a 10-foot ceiling. I do a lot of big furniture that is taller than my meager 7-foot 3-inch ceilings, so final assembly needs to be done outside on the driveway. Not easy when there's 12 inches of snow and subzero temperatures predicted this weekend.

Prior to this, I worked out of a 1-car garage, where it didn't take long for my work to spill into my house. Being a bachelor, I didn't have a spouse to answer to for furniture parts lying around the living room, or a steamer perpetually set up in the kitchen. I don't have that option now, but it's still head and shoulders compared to my previous workspace.