Popular Woodworking in the Warehouse

One of the great benefits of working on the SketchUp team for the past five years has been the opportunity to be around designers who have inspired me to become a woodworker (albeit a fledgling one). That said, it was a nice surprise to find Popular Woodworking's Collection in the Google 3D Warehouse recently.

I was intrigued, so I contacted Bob Lang (the Senior Editor) to ask him the reason for providing such a robust collection of models. He says that using Google SketchUp has changed the way they design projects and it's a "tremendous advantage for a woodworker to be able to build a project on screen before heading to the shop".



Bob says it seemed natural for them to upload designs from the magazine to the 3D Warehouse; that way, people can "pull the models apart" to gain a more intimate understanding of the project's details. Although the folks at Popular Woodworking have built some of the models themselves, most are created by their readers – it's truly a community of shared ideas.

As PW's audience asks for more and more digital content, free, user-friendly tools like Google SketchUp and the 3D Warehouse fit the bill perfectly: Bob told me that he's gained new readers who discovered Popular Woodworking through its models in the 3D Warehouse. Here's some of what's available:

Arts and Crafts Tool Cabinet

Stickley Bridal Chest

Stickley Bridal Chest Parts

Posted by Steve Dapkus, Google SketchUp Team