Made You Look: Building a Chair Inspired by Pre-Industrialist Values

It’s always a great day when the YouTube algorithm serves up quality content from lesser known channels onto the front page. Check out this video from Eden, of the channel Preindustrialist, as they build Curtis Buchanan’s Democratic Chair. I was immediately taken in by both the quality of chairmaking education in this video and the strong craft values that inform the construction of this chair.

Eden explains that Buchanan’s design is inspired by the Bill Coperthwaite’s philosophy of democratic living, which centers on “enabling every human being to have agency and control over their lives.” Simple tools, accessible materials and two skilled hands.

–Made You Look are videos we’ve found on the web that we thought were worth sharing with our audience. Let us know in the comments below if you find anything you think is worth a look!

Build a Handsome Chair with Limited Tools

Part 1: Seat and undercarriage. Curtis Buchanan gets to the basics of chairmaking with this Windsor made exclusively with a few basic hand tools.

How to Sharpen and Use a Drawknife

Learn how to master the drawknife, a brilliantly simple shaping tool that’s versatile, fast, and a pleasure to use.

How to Ride a Shaving Horse

With practice, and these tips from Curtis Buchanan, using the shaving horse will become second nature.