Woodworking — Max Peinkofer

Woodworking projects ranging from small functional pieces like cutting boards and coasters to multiple styles of selves.I started woodworking when I was about 12 taking an industrial arts class in middle school. I’ve always enjoyed working with my hands and creating things that are functional and beautiful so I immediately took an interest. Through high school and college I continued to learn and teach others what I have learned through TA-ing classes in high school and being a shop monitor in college.

I believe woodworking is becoming a lost art and I am trying to do my part to keep all that knowledge alive and in use. My favorite woods to work with are walnut due to the dark color but also the variation of color you can bring out of the wood. The top of my desk shown on the metalworking page is walnut. Aromatic cedar is a close second, of course for the wonderful smell but also the stunning streaks of red and white that you can see in the shelves I’ve made.

Projects

Hand-Carved Tool Handles

A set of hand-carved and hafted tool handles — a few full-size axes, two hammers, and two hatchets — each shaped from raw wood blanks and monogrammed.

Axe handle mid-sanding in the shop — Shaping and sanding the axe handle.

Close-up of the carved axe handle grain and monogram — Detail of the finished grip and monogram.

Two hand-carved hammer handles side by side — A claw hammer and ball-peen hammer.

Finished axe with carved wooden handle on a table — A finished, full length axe.

Axe embedded in a tree trunk in the woods — Flame burnished handle on a small hatchet.

Shelves & Wall Storage

Wall-mounted storage pieces — a hand-built wine rack, a rope-suspended hanging shelf system, and an aromatic cedar bookshelf.

Handmade wall-mounted wooden wine rack holding five bottles — Finished wine rack, mounted and in use.

Rope-hung wooden shelves holding potted plants in a window — Tiered hanging shelf system, built to fit the window.

Live-edge wood shelf clamped together in the shop — Assembled in the shop, wax finish applied.

Handmade live-edge wood bookshelf — Installed and in use, holding books and decor.

End-Grain Cutting Boards

Four cutting boards — an end-grain brick-pattern design with a monogram, a board with an inlaid grape cluster made from wine stained barrel oak, a striped walnut/maple/mahogany design, and a maple and purple heart board with an inlaid heart.

End-grain brick-pattern cutting board with carved monogram — Brick-pattern board, finished with a monogram.

Maple cutting board with an inlaid grape cluster design — A second board with an inlaid grape cluster.

Striped walnut, maple, and mahogany cutting board with rounded corners — A third board with alternating walnut, maple, and mahogany stripes.

Maple cutting board with mahogany side accents and an inlaid heart — A fourth board with purple heart ends and an inlaid heart.

Miscellaneous Projects

Smaller shop projects — wood slice coasters, a set of parquet trivets, and a climbing hangboard.

Purpleheart wood slice coasters — Purpleheart slice coasters, freshly finished.

Wood coasters with inlaid black line details — A second set with bent lamination line details.

Inlaid parquet trivet with mahogany and maple frame — An inlaid parquet trivet, mahogany and maple.