Oh 2020… where do I begin? I know, we all want to just forget about 2020 and move on. I’m with you on that. But don’t worry, I’m not here to talk to you about the pandemic or anything COVID related.
That being said, I wanted to share some of DIY Montreal’s highlights of 2020. What were my favourite projects, most challenging projects, but also how my journey as a content creator has evolved in the recent year. How sponsors have crept into my channels or how my content style has evolved and where I see it going in the future.
My Most Challenging Projects of 2020
My goal has always been to challenge myself, learn more and more as I go and try new things. I’m not talking crazy 2,000 litre epoxy pours or hydro dipping a guitar, just little things — baby steps, you know?
With that said, this year I tackled compound angles, cutting circles, wooden drawers slides, shaker doors and so much more. It was always a little nerve racking — and I was always afraid I’d mess it up and ruin my project — but was so satisfying when I ultimately succeeded and realized I had just added another skill under my belt.
With that said, here are my top 3 most challenging projects of 2020:
#3 – Chevron Pattern Bar Stool
In early 2020 I grew tired of waiting to find the perfect bar stools for my kitchen, so I decided to build some myself. It’s just a bar stool — 4 legs and a round top — How hard could it be? Answer: it’s not that hard at all. The hard part is the design of the stool: figuring out the right angles and measurements so all the parts work together and don’t look “off” when you’re done. Once the build plans were finally done though, it was a really fun project learning to work with compound angles and making really cool patterns using plywood.
#2 – Tile Demolition / Hexagon Tiling
Quite recently, I decided to retile my front entrance. The demolition (which I did manually with a hammer and cold chisel) was back-breaking, but actually relatively easy. The hard part was getting the layout right — OMG! Of course I went with hexagon patterned tiles to keep things simple, wink wink. Oh, and I went with the wrong underlayment, but I think it should be just fine nonetheless. Live and learn, I say. Sometimes I think I should just stick to woodworking…
#1 – Mid-Century Nightstand with Hexagon Pattern Drawer Fronts
One of my favourite, but most challenging projects was the hexagon drawer nightstand. This project took me a long time! I guess what made it challenging was the number of steps involved in the making and the number of new techniques I had to figure out. Some I had attempted before only once — like assembling a mitered carcass — but others were totally new, like using India Ink as a finish, building a mid-century base with angled tapered legs, or even just using homemade wooden drawer slides. And don’t get me started on making those 3D hexagon-pattern drawer fronts! Ultimately, the challenges I went through just made this project all the more satisfying in the end.
My Favourite Projects of 2020
Project favourites are so subjective. I’m sure there are projects that stuck with you more than others or that you were really excited to try. For me, ALL of my projects are my favourites! Ha-ha, no seriously, the ones that I’ve picked below are because they were either a. highly useful/valuable to me or b. a lot of fun to make.
With that said, here are my top 3 favourite projects of 2020:
#3 – Outfeed Table / Mobile Workbench
When I first set up shop in my garage, I used a pair of sawhorses and a beat up old sheet of plywood as a workbench. It was a quick simple way to get started, but ended up being my workbench for the next few years, which I hadn’t planned on! Eventually I said enough is enough and decided to build an outfeed table that could also double as a workbench. Given the limited space in my single car garage, a mobile workbench seemed like the optimal solution, with leveling feet that I can use to lock the table in place. Along with my miter station, this build has become one of my best-selling plans.
#2 – 4 Ways to Cut Circles in Wood
The first time I ever cut a circle was back when I made my Lazy Susan. I used my router and a homemade circle cutting jig, and it was so satisfying to cut a perfectly round circle! Eventually I started looking into other ways to cut circles using various tools around the shop and realized there are a lot of jigs you can make to cut circles, from tiny little ones on the bandsaw to big ones on the table saw. This video covers 4 different ways to cut circles in wood.
#1 – DIY Holiday Gifts for the Kitchen
Typically I start every project off with a plan before heading into the shop to start building. I sketch it, draw up plans and figure out my dimensions before making my first cut. For this holiday gifts video though, I took a different approach. I went in with a general idea and just let my imagination take the lead, and it was so liberating! That’s why I enjoyed making these little trinkets for the kitchen so much. And they turned out awesome!
Sponsorships: The New Frontier
2020 was also the year I started working with sponsors. A content creator’s dream, right? Well, yes and no. Initially I thought so too — and I was so stoked when I got my first sponsored video — but as I gained experience, I began to think twice about how and when I wanted to work with sponsors in the future. Some partnerships were a wonderful experience that I would gladly repeat, while others made me feel almost taken advantage of, or just weren’t the right fit for me — but this, I realised too late.
While having more sponsors would theoretically allow me to generate more revenue and, if I’m lucky enough, allow me to create content full-time one day, there’s also a flip side to that. Having sponsors also can also, in certain cases, limit creative freedom in the sense that you feel like you need to create projects to fit with the sponsor’s product, rather than just build whatever project you’re inspired to build.
That being said, going full-time and putting out 1 video a week — like you see from many of the big name YouTubers — isn’t possible without the support of sponsors. And frankly, making videos for free isn’t sustainable long term. Hence my current sponsorship dilemma.
While I can’t make any promises, and while there definitely will be sponsors involved in my channel, what I strive for moving forward is to work with sponsors who will fit with my content, my channels and my audience so I can stay true to what I started DIY Montreal for in the first place.
What I can promise for 2021 is that there will be more great content, exciting builds, awesome videos, killer build plans, and bonus content like my woodworking book of the month series, so stay tuned!
Ever Evolving Style of Content
When I first started making videos, the trend on YouTube was still leaning towards shorter videos. That trend quickly shifted towards longer videos in the past couple years. I was very pleased with this evolution, as longer videos allowed me to show more of the details and specifics on how to do certain things and also to go through all the project steps without skipping any important parts.
Meanwhile with the growing influence of Tiktok, and the dwindling human attention span, quick short high-satisfaction videos have taken center stage. This trend is in direct opposition to the YouTube trend, but the truth is that while YouTube videos as getting longer, we know that most viewers aren’t watching videos in full, not even close.
All of these contradictions leave me wondering: Which way should I lean? Short, punchy, high-entertainment videos or detailed how-to tutorials where you can actually learn something? So while my style continues to be a continuous evolution, I strive to continue offering high quality tutorials on YouTube, while focusing more on entertainment on other platforms like Instagram.