Caleb Nakia Rogers

About Caleb Nakia Rogers

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I am a self-taught woodworker whose love of design and architecture began at a very early age. However, it wasn’t until my mid thirties that I discovered the Japanese art of sashimono (building without nails or screws). 

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It was a desire to build more naturally, with less waste and noise, that finally led me to this extraordinary craft. I was finding that my power tools, industrial strength glues, toxic stains and metal fasteners were somehow distancing me from the work I was doing. I wanted to do more with less. I wanted to take off the safety glasses and the ear protection, get away from the harsh chemical smells. This desire to work more closely and in harmony with the wood led me to a book on Japanese joinery techniques, which in turn led me to a catalog of Japanese tools. I will never forget the first time I used a Japanese pull-saw. The speed, the ease and delicacy of the cut… I was overcome.

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Even though it is relatively easy to acquire the tools, the practice is still somewhat shrouded in mystery. There are a handful of books out there, as well as some very good Youtube videos, but if a westerner really wants to learn the art of Japanese joinery, he or she must be committed to apprenticing themselves. Therefore, I have, and continue day by day, to teach myself this extraordinary craft. To me, sashimono is synonymous with refinement, not just of the skills required to mill and assemble materials properly and precisely, but of who I am as a person.