Jim Tolpin’s Sections and Projections

Late last winter I was on a call with Jim Tolpin and his writing partner George Walker discussing their latest book “Euclid’s Door” and some drawings I would be doing for the book (out fall 2022). “There’s another book in the works as well, It’s a sort of guide book to creating complex geometries for building furniture etc. Maybe you’ll be interested in doing some drawing for that one too?” Of course I was, this was a dream come true.

I have been a fan of Jim Tolpin’s writings since my career in woodworking began. I think I read most all of his huge library of books like “Tablesaw Magic” and “Working at Woodworking” over the years and always learned a ton, this book is no different. More recently, his series of books with George Walker “By Hand and Eye” really made a serious impression on the way I see the built world, and how I approach layout and design.

I had a lot of fun working on this pdf guidebook, and I learned so much. My hope is that you will download a copy, print it out, and do all the exercises. That you learn new things as you go, and then apply them when you design and build in the future, and that you feel greater comfort working with curves and angles.

Each chapter tackles the finer aspects of a different shape, such as a cube or a cone or a barrel shape for instance. Most of these chapters are best read at a table, where you can draw the exercises, then cut them out of paper and fold them to prove that your drawing works. It’s basically a geometry class for adults who want to design better, and it’s super satisfying.

Download the pdf book, the free templates, table of contents and intro, and explore all the other awesome stuff at https://www.byhandandeye.com/shop/