1. To draw a line parallel to the edge of a board quickly, set the blade of a combination square to the desired distance. Position the flat side of the square against the edge of the board, and place a pencil at the end of the blade. Pull the square and the pencil toward you to draw the line.

2. To measure the diameter of a round object make a simple gauge with a ruler and two squared pieces of wood. Place the round object between the two blocks of wood and then measure the distances between the two blocks.

3. Wrap a piece of sandpaper around and old deck of playing cards to make a handy contour sander. The deck of cards will shape itself to the contours of the workpiece.

4. An old phonebook makes a great renewable work surface for small painting and gluing projects. Simply tear out the dirty pages to provide a clean work surface.

5. Although tack cloths are fairly inexpensive you can make your own by moistening a lint free cloth with equal parts of turpentine and oil-based varnish. Store homemade tack cloths in an airtight container.

These are just a few tips that I picked up over this past week. They come from a variety of sources including books, magazines, newsletters, online and some from personal experience.

There are more Woodworking Tips and Tidbits located here.

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