The Fitted Furniture Makers Podcast

What if you stared death in the face then couldn't work for a while?  With time to think, how would you feel about what you have achieved so far?  Would any of it even matter all that much?  Would your priorities be different afterwards?

Paul is a self employed blacksmith and small business owner, faced with a major health event and unexpected open heart surgery 2 years ago, with a wife and 2 small kids at home.

He and his wife Becky talk us through the experience, the striving that characterised his working life before, and the changes in his priorities in life and work afterwards.

My name is Alastair Johnson and I run Freebird Interiors LTD in Sheffield, England.  Find out more about us at:

https://www.freebirdinteriors.co.uk

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/freebirdinteriors/

Extra Training and Resources:  https://www.buymeacoffee.com/Freebird

Pricing conversation on Instagram:

https://www.instagram.com/stories/highlights/17983656118423634/

**'A Fitted Furniture Apprenticeship' Training Course**:

For initial details see here: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/Freebird/e/50990... and check back in early January for it to go live.   Or to receive updates as soon as it goes live please join the member site here: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/Freebird. (either tier. You will received a wealth of other training content in the member site)

Are you getting into woodworking, with an interested in custom designed fitted furniture?  Or are you already doing this and wondering how to take the next steps of growth?  In this podcast I share with you some of my experience since starting a joinery business from scratch over 12 years ago, and growing it to a profitable business specialising in fitted furniture and employing staff and running a CNC machine.  

See a video edit of this podcast with accompanying images and video of our progress from early days to present day here:

https://youtu.be/JH1dOzR_trw

Hear more about our Lean Manufacturing journey under the guidance of Bruce Polling and the team at thejoinerycoach.com in this podcast:

https://thejoinerybusinesspodcast.libsyn.com/alastair-from-freebird-talks-about-how-he-has-scaled-up-his-joinery-business-in-tough-times

My name is Alastair Johnson and I run Freebird Interiors LTD in Sheffield, England.  Find out more about us at:  

https://www.freebirdinteriors.co.uk

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/freebirdinteriors/ 

Extra Training and Resources:  https://www.buymeacoffee.com/Freebird

**'A Fitted Furniture Apprenticeship' Training Course**:  

For initial details see here: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/Freebird/e/50990... and check back in early January for it to go live.   Or to receive updates as soon as it goes live please join the member site here: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/Freebird. (either tier. You will received a wealth of other training content in the member site)  

This time I am talking woodwork with my team-mate Brady, and much more besides:  

Plus the usual standard questions - shaker door, chunky shelf, etc!!

See www.buymeacoffee.com/freebird for ever increasing extra content aimed at the thoughtful woodworker.  Including my member-only vlog series charting our business growth as we take on a big new workshop and machinery.

To share any thoughts on this podcast please add a comment below this instagram post:

PS: About 4 minutes in, Brady mentions 'the latest video' - this is a recording we made of me doing a mason's mitre (kitchen worktop joint).  At time of writing this is waiting to be edited but it will eventually land on my youtube channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/freebirdinteriors

The shelf strength test video Brady refers to (soon after 12 minutes in) is this one: https://youtu.be/qLABN-iDYiM

I mention Brian Needham (at about 13 minutes or so), here is his instagram account: https://www.instagram.com/needhamcustomcarpentry/

In this episode I talk with Gary from the much respected bankscarpentry on Instagram about all things fitted furniture, and more besides.

Just give it a listen, you won't be disappointed!

Find Gary at :

Find Alastair at:

Some things mentioned in the podcast:

Bessey K Body REVO clamps:

Finsa MDF ‘Fibrapan Hidrofugo’ (??) MDF:

The Blum thick door profile hinge:

Supplier of coloured silicone:

The air assisted airless system we both use is the Graco Finishpro 395:

https://www.graco.com/gb/en/products/contractor/emea-finishpro-ii-395-pc.html

A cheaper Graco spray system Gary recommends is the GX-FF 

https://www.graco.com/gb/en/products/contractor/emea-gxff.html

The waterbased spray paint Gary uses is from Tikkurilla:

https://www.tikkurila.co.uk/

The waterbased paint I use is the Sayerlack AT99 from Movac:

https://www.movac.co.uk/wood-finishes/interior-wood/water-based-coatings/pigmented-topcoats/at99-sayerlack-water-base-topcoat-colours/

How did a joiner/site manager from Essex become an Instagram sensation with over 50,000 followers?  Listen on and find out!    Matt shares the combination of hard work, business systems and a chance encounter that all helped his success, alongside candid insights into his business and a generous amount of detail on his methods for building those trademark understairs storage systems! 

Find out more about Matt and Spacetidy here:

https://www.instagram.com/spacetidy/

https://www.spacetidy.co.uk/

Find out more about Alastair and Freebird Interiors here:

https://www.buymeacoffee.com/freebird

https://www.youtube.com/c/freebirdinteriors

https://www.instagram.com/freebirdinteriors/

In this special extra podcast I am releasing part of a conversation I had with fellow woodworker Ben Cartwright, recorded prior to the Coronavirus outbreak, when we were talking about mental health.  This was soon after media reports had come out about the high quantity of construction industry workers who are affected by this issue.

It can be nice just to hear from people in the same line of work who understand and experience the same things.  I decided to release it now on the first day since we (in the UK) have been instructed to stop work and stay at home due to the coronavirus outbreak.  

Please share any feedback on this video at the instagram post here:

https://www.instagram.com/p/B-H4h__jVb7/

As explained in the introduction to the video, the full podcast recording of this one is available to members only at my crowdfunding site https://www.buymeacoffee.com/freebird

Follow Ben on Instagram here:

https://www.instagram.com/bencartwright_joinery/

Follow me (Alastair Johnson) here: 

https://www.instagram.com/freebirdinteriors/

And at my youtube channel here:

https://www.youtube.com/c/freebirdinteriors