David Barnett
"There's so much to know and learn about woodworking I cannot fathom the duality of adding all the intricacies of metallurgy to the task."

Perhaps from hubris, perhaps from how I learn or how long I've been at it, but there's little I need to or wish to know about woodworking these days. There is certainly plenty I don't know but little remaining that I care to learn. To some that may sound arrogant, but to me it's simply so. I have all the tools I'll ever need, a good place to use them and can make anything I wish. Will I cut perfect dovetails after a couple years of not doing so? No. But a little practice and I'm back in the game.

So I'm saying that once you get where you need to be in one craft, you can move to another, and another. For me, woodworking came after hand bookbinding, gilding, document restoration, and other book arts. No, I'm not some flittering dilletante or part-time poseur. I simply don't buy into jack-of-all-master-of-none limited thinking. Maybe that's for some, just not for me.

Besides, what you bring from one craft to another can reap benefits. I enjoy combining wood, metal, glass, leathers, gems and other materials into my work. For example, I like to cover wood furniture in parchment, vellum, or shagreen (book arts + woodworking). Even if you only add some rudimentary metalworking skills to your woodworking, you can design and form your own unique and satisfying hardware or make decent tools tailored to your needs. So go ahead, "fathom the duality". You might surprise yourself. Works for me.