Garage Shop Renovation
- This topic has 4 replies, 3 voices, and was last updated 7 years, 2 months ago by Anthony Greitzer.
-
AuthorPosts
-
17 December 2016 at 10:40 pm #143459
Hello all. I recently had my very small garage workshop renovated a little. An electric garage door has been removed and a single entrance door installed to replace it. The ceiling has been drywalled. The new wall with the new entrance door has been drywalled. There’s aluminum siding on the outside of the new wall and a spotlight. There’s track lighting on the ceiling. There’s a heating unit installed for the winters and an air conditioner for the summers. I live in Allentown in the U.S. Allentown is in a valley called Lehigh Valley which can get very humid in August. Our humidity makes second floor wooden doors expand up to 1/4 of an inch. Ever since I had my first and only customer thus far in my woodworking journey, I still remember thinking that I wished my garage was more like a woodworking shop and not a garage that I woodworked in when I met the couple and showed them where I worked. For me, I do feel strongly that a shop with a certain aesthetic appeal and atmosphere that matches how I woodwork can make a difference. I know what you veteran woodworkers are saying. What matters is how you make something and how well it’s made. No one cares what a shop looks like. I agree, but if I go to a doctor I do not expect to wait in a room with guys fixing cars and lingering aromas of gasoline and oil. So to a certain extent, atmosphere can matter.
Hi Anthony,
Good to hear you’re up and running in whatever capacity you can manage. I personally think it is important what your space is like if you are bringing people into it. Think of it as a customer journey, what interactions and impressions do they have along the journey to purchase from you and become a customer. But think about other ways to give a sense of your work if your workshop isn’t doing the job for you. Maybe it’s a wonderful toolbox with all your chisels, planes, saws etc. Put together a good quality book with drawings and photos of pieces you have made and meet them for a coffee. What does the look and feel of your business card say about you as a woodworker. I say all this because I am starting out and living in a 1 bed apartment but there’s more than one way to skin a cat.
As it turns out I plan to build my first workshop this year. It will be small but the vibe and atmosphere when someone enters will be very important to me when laying it out and developing all the design details.
16 February 2017 at 1:10 am #309244Thanks. Couldn’t agree with you more about the feeling you want to have in your shop as well as the feel you want the customer to have. Really like the advice about the drawings. I just returned from woodcraft. I bought some mahogany and purple heartwood. I love the way it smells and feels.
-
AuthorPosts
- You must be logged in to reply to this topic.