We start with a rough cut Poplar board straight from the sawmill and drying shed. A pattern for the work is seen to the right of the board, that's what I'm about to make. After making four of them I will have completed the fancy aprons for a tavern table.

A blank is cut from the rough cut board using a crosscut saw.

In the bench vise I joint one edge flat and straight with a wood bodied jointer plane.

One side of the work piece is flattened with a smoothing plane.

With a marking gage against the flat side I mark out how far to plane to make a 3/4 inch thick board. Can you see the mark the pin made? It's hard to explain how neat it is to watch a long streamer coming out of sharp plane...and cheaper than the health club too.

Now the pattern is used to draw a line for a bow saw to cut the design out.

A file and rasp takes the marks left by the bow saw out

Here the antique combination plane is used to plow a dado that will be used later for assembly

There you have it after carving... four aprons for a tavern table using no power, making no breathable dust and not even waking my dog Bo. No need for the latest gizwillie from the home improvement mart, just master a few simple and sharp tools.