About
A bit about me
I’m Steve Bell — a lifelong woodworker, former mental health nurse, and someone who finds meaning in making things, even when they go a bit wonky. I live in North Yorkshire, and I’ve been working with wood in some shape or form since I was 13, when I built my first bench out of a fencepost and a door.
These days, I try to make a YouTube video every month — some months I manage, some I don’t — and I co-host the Three Northern Makers podcast. I spend a lot of time in my workshop, though not always making. Sometimes I’m just thinking, with a cup of tea in hand.
Why I started Making It Square
This newsletter isn’t about trends, algorithms, or ten quick tips to improve your routing technique. There’s already plenty of that online.
Making It Square is about something slower. It’s where I write about what making teaches us if we’re paying attention — things like patience, failure, craftsmanship, fatherhood, creativity, stress, memory, and meaning.
Sometimes it’s philosophical. Sometimes it’s personal. Sometimes it’s just a story from the workshop where things didn’t go as planned — and what I learned by not forcing it.
I started this because there were things I wanted to say that didn’t quite fit in a video or a podcast episode. Writing gives them room to breathe.
What to expect
I try to make a new video every month, and I’ll post a newsletter at least once a month — more often if something else is rattling around in my head and won’t leave me alone.
Each one is a quiet letter from the workshop. Not too long, not too polished. I’ll share what I’ve been working on (or putting off), what I’ve been thinking about, and maybe the odd photo or story from behind the scenes.
You won’t get marketing fluff or endless calls to subscribe. Just honest, thoughtful writing — something you can read with a cuppa and a bit of breathing space.
Elsewhere
If you’re curious about the kind of things I make, you can find me on YouTube where I post woodworking videos now and then. I also co-host the Three Northern Makers podcast, where I chat with Pierre (The Swedish Maker) about life, making, and the usual nonsense that comes up when two makers start talking.
But if you’ve found your way here — to Making It Square — then I think you’ve found the good bit.
Pull up a chair
If that sounds like your kind of pace — honest words from a North Yorkshire workshop, written with tea nearby and no rush to impress — you’re very welcome here.
You can sign up for Making It Square below. It’s free, thoughtful, and sent just once a month — or now and then when there’s something I need to say.
No noise. No pressure. Just space to think, and a reminder that the work we do with our hands can shape how we live.