The Handmade Skateboard
Before taking on his latest book, “The Handmade Teardrop Trailer,” Matt spent nearly a decade exploring the story behind the skateboard from its invention in a 1950s garage by a collective culture of kids who pulled the wheels of a set of roller skates and a nailed them to a plank of wood. His first book, “The Handmade Skateboard,” is a definitive guide to designing and building a skateboard or longboard from scratch. The book’s publication in September 2014, helped ignite a revival in small-batch skateboard manufacturing that has spread to communities around the world. Matt continues to design and build skateboards and teach others the process through his series of two-day SK8Maker workshops around the San Francisco Bay Area.
Fine Woodworking
Matt earned his stripes in the woodshop as an editor at Fine Woodworking magazine, where he launched FineWoodworking.com, and produced and starred in how-to videos for the website, including a videos series and special issue magazine “Start Woodworking.”
Collaborating with some of the best woodworking authors and educators around the country, Matt developed an interest in traditional woodworking tools and techniques; many of the early furniture and woodworking projects he’s completed are inspired by the articles and videos he developed and produced.
