Projects like this one afford participants many opportunities for practice and discovery. The saber leg shape has been in use since the Greeks made their Klismos chairs. Early American furniture used a two-sided saber shape as the short legs on their cabinet plinths. Everything old is new again. This project will incorporate mortise and tenon joinery that can be made using routers or cut out with a mallet and chisel. The mortise and tenon construction is straightforward and yet recalls many other types of furniture builds from cabinet stands to four-legged dining room tables. It makes for a great learning experience for other larger projects. Once our joints are cut, we will focus on shaping legs on all four sides using the bandsaw, spokeshave, block plane, and scraper. There are design options for the leg top and the shaped edges on the rails, which we will explore. Once those parts are done, it’s time to discover the wonder of glue-ups. We will do this in sections to keep our stress levels down, and you’ll see how easy this makes a four-legged piece. With our two leg assemblies ready, we are ready to do the final glue-up and then clean-up of the piece. Details for this design often include a bit of inlay. We will learn techniques for putting in simple shaped inlays. Contrasting woods can really pop the design and draw attention to the piece. After our inlay work, we will discuss hand-applied finishing options. These include oils, waxes, and the answer to all your finishing questions: shellac. The final step is to learn upholstery options. This will include webbing or corded options as well as a simple upholstered slip seat. Required Tools: Personal protective equipment Pencil Paper or notepad Close-toed shoes 6” rule Sharpening stones Prerequisites Students should have some familiarity with hand tool use such as joinery lay-out and chopping or routing mortises. Using hand planes is another valuable skill to have, but we will go over planes.