In praise of the Kreg jig

I’ve mentioned the importance of getting the right tool for the right job before. But as I was bumbling through trying to manifest plans into reality last weekend, using my kreg jig really drove that point home. This thing is the absolute best.

A little tool that does A LOT of work.

The patio table that got me started in the new house was actually not my first attempt at building a table; I put together a cheap writing table to replace a terrible IKEA desk at our old condo. All it is is two scrap boards attached with two longer pieces of scrap and metal legs screwed on. Sanded, stained, and sealed, it’s not fancy but it’s level and survived the move so it must not be too terrible. But my experience putting that together was not inspiring much confidence in being able to build a patio table from scratch. Having a kreg then would have been helpful, and saved me a lot of time.

Since I picked this up to work on the table, I’ve used it on practically everything else as well. The console table, the sandbox, the lounge chairs, all have multiple kreg joints in them. The patio table probably has at least 50 in it by itself, between the table boards, skirt, and legs. All of them as tight and clean as possible thanks to this handy jig. That table would have been an even bigger mess without a kreg.

This is not a sponsored post, I just love my kreg and using this weekend reminded me of that. Best $40 I’ve spent in a while. So if you’re planning on doing some of your own DIY, pick up one of these. You won’t be disappointed.