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Why do you use social media?

Blog by Rob Brown
Fibonacci Cabinet

Not to brag, but we at Canadian Woodworking & Home Improvement have been on a bit of a social media tear lately.

We’ve mainly been focusing on Instagram, where you can follow us at @CanadianWoodworking. We’ve posted somewhat regularly over the past five years or so, but we figure this social media thing is likely here to stay, so why not jump on board in a much bigger way?

We’ve got Chad Martin (our advertising director), Carl Duguay (our digital editor) and myself making reels in our small shops. We’re all sending them to Jennifer Taylor (our audience development expert), who edits them and posts them on Instagram and Facebook. Jennifer has also been known to make the odd reel now and then. It’s been fun to collaborate with the group to see what works and what doesn’t.

All this has meant I’ve been spending more time on Instagram recently, checking out all sorts of woodworkers, both amateur and professional. Not surprisingly, there are a lot of makers out there.

My preferences

With my studio furniture background, I enjoy seeing what some makers are building. I love seeing what the great Canadian artisans are creating, though coming across international makers is also a treat. One account I stumbled upon is @SilverLiningFurniture. They make incredibly sleek furniture, often with an Art Deco flair to it. Wood is their main building material, but they also use metals, glass and other materials to build truly extravagant pieces.

I also enjoy a short reel that simply looks good. Interesting camera angles, quick editing cuts and other special effects make watching reels a lot of fun.

How about you?

Have you stumbled across any furniture making gems? Or maybe you’re more into learning about woodworking techniques? What about your viewing habits? What time of day do you check out a site like Instagram? And do you prefer a short, snappy video that looks good or a longer video that might include a tip?

We’re finding our short videos get by far the most views and reach well beyond our number of Instagram followers. I’m no expert on the algorithm that makes a social media site like Instagram work, but I know videos need to look good and move along quickly if they’re to succeed. If there are any editing tricks like increasing the playback speed, making numerous short clip edits, or adding simple graphics and words your reels are even more likely to succeed.

To give you an example of a small success we’ve had, I made a short video to highlight the cover story on our current Oct/Nov issue. It was just eight short clips of me setting up and using one of the mitre gauges in the tool comparison article. Once the clips were edited tightly, and the playback speed was increased two-fold, it was only 10 seconds long. It’s been up for only 10 days, but it’s been viewed over 57,000 times and has been liked 725 times so far. Not numbers Kim Kardashian would be proud of, but I think we’re doing pretty well.

Feel free to share your scrolling habits, what your favourite people to follow are, as well as any hidden gems you’ve stumbled across here. You could also send me an email if you prefer. It’s a big digital world out there and I’d love to hear what you all think about the woodworking portion of it.

Our Instagram masterpiece

Maybe “masterpiece” is a bit of a stretch, but we have had a lot of success with this video on Instagram over the past 10 days. It’s short, simple and to the point, which is what Instagram is all about.

Fibonacci Cabinet

This cabinet, made by Silver Lining Furniture, caught my eye for a number of reasons. The Fibonacci pattern on the doors is almost mesmerizing.

Fibonacci Cabinet

Fibonacci Cabinet Detail

As you can see, the piece looks even more amazing once you see it close up. The colour gradation of the curly sycamore veneer used on the doors shows the attention to detail that went into building this cabinet.

Art Deco Coffee Table

An elongated pedestal sits on a base created from 16 pillowed segments.

Art Deco Coffee Table

Wine Screen

This English walnut screen was made for a client who had a passion for fine wines.

Wine Screen
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Last modified: November 15, 2023

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