Useless skills...

[Aram]

AKA "so I got that going for me, which is nice."

Planning my next project. I got out the poster board. Then drew outlines, using an unmarked straightedge, to find good size and proportions by eye. I landed on something I liked.. Then I thought, this better not be the golden ratio. That's boring. So I checked. Nailed the golden ratio within a half percent. 

Moved the vertical line and went to do something else.

[barryvabeach]

Nice to be able to do that by eye.

[Arlin Eastman]

AKA "so I got that going for me, which is nice."

Planning my next project. I got out the poster board. Then drew outlines, using an unmarked straightedge, to find good size and proportions by eye. I landed on something I liked.. Then I thought, this better not be the golden ratio. That's boring. So I checked. Nailed the golden ratio within a half percent. 

Moved the vertical line and went to do something else.

Go with what you did but add something that is not

[Aram]

Go with what you did but add something that is not

That's an interesting idea! You just woke me up, thanks, Arlin

[Arlin Eastman]

Welcome

If it is a table put and inlay off to the side or the legs different or????  the possibilities are endless and I think could look very nice

Looking forward to what you are making

[Aram]

Welcome

If it is a table put and inlay off to the side or the legs different or????  the possibilities are endless and I think could look very nice

Looking forward to what you are making

Thanks, Arlin. I look forward to figuring out what I am making. 

[C. in Indy]

Aram, your last project posting didn't list a soundtrack.   Maybe that would change the ratio !

[Aram]

Aram, your last project posting didn't list a soundtrack.   Maybe that would change the ratio !

 Doh! I must be losing it. 

Good idea, could work...

[adamcherubini]

You guys completely lost me. Why is being able to sketch classical proportions a useless skill? I think it’s awesome that you can do that and recognize what it is. I think all the classical rules are based on nature and that’s why they just look right to us. To purposely diverge isn’t typically bold, it can be unsettling, naive, quirky.

Shaker can be like that. I think most woodworkers who like shaker try at least to impose classical proportions, sometimes not knowing they are doing it. It’s a good skill to have.

Golden section/Fibonacci isn’t boring. 50% is boring. You guys lost me!

[Aram]

You guys completely lost me. Why is being able to sketch classical proportions a useless skill? I think it’s awesome that you can do that and recognize what it is. I think all the classical rules are based on nature and that’s why they just look right to us. To purposely diverge isn’t typically bold, it can be unsettling, naive, quirky.

You were correct in your other. post, I was somewhat joking. But I think proportions look different in wood than on paper. Two same-size pieces can look very different in different woods. Different color or figure can change the way a proportion looks, to my eye anyway. Also, I think some pieces benefit from deliberate visual tension, which you can get by playing with the proportions. It's not an always kind of thing.

Shaker can be like that. I think most woodworkers who like shaker try at least to impose classical proportions, sometimes not knowing they are doing it. It’s a good skill to have.

Golden section/Fibonacci isn’t boring. 50% is boring. You guys lost me!
As it turned out, the part I guessed at will be very close to golden ratio (plus or minus my ability to shoot boards to length). I was sure I wanted something thinner. I was wrong.