My last blog post on UnpluggedShop.com

12 Replies

It’s been four years and counting since I started UnpluggedShop.com as a hobby site.

I wanted to learn hand tool woodworking and figured I might as well share.

In both of those areas, the site has been a smashing success. I still have fond memories of those early days of the site when Chris Schwartz, Steven Shepherd, Kari Hultman, and Gary Roberts, among others were some of the most prominent bloggers.

UnpluggedShop.com has grown enormously even though I have seldom given it the attention I thought it deserved and have ignored its upkeep for months at a time as life got in the way.

Even now, the site desperately needs an upgrade, and I just don’t have the time to do it without financial compensation.

I have thought long and hard about working to give UnpluggedShop.com a stable financial backing. I have been convinced that is the best way forward and have been able to come up with suitable business models, but none I personally wanted to pursue at this point in my life.

Selling the site is also a difficult proposition as I am emotionally attached to the site both for reasons of its history and its mission. Frankly, there are very few people I could think of I might sell the site to.

A while back, I was contacted by Paul and Joseph Sellers. They made it known they appreciated the mission of UnpluggedShop.com and might be interested in purchasing it in order to keep it going and improve it.

As they expressed their vision for the site, I realized it was precisely the direction I felt it should go, and that they are in a wonderful position to make it happen.

Even though I won’t be running UnpluggedShop.com, I plan to continue hand tool woodworking, lathe turning, and cutting lumber.

I’m setting up a new blog to talk about it from time to time at www.LukesWoodArt.com.

I know many of you are also in to gardening and homesteading. You can find me atwww.GettingThingsGrowing.com

My thanks to all who have blogged, made suggestions, commented, contributed money, and otherwise participated in the site.

I trust you will continue to enjoy the site, send suggestions for new sites to track, checkout the new stuff as it appears, and recommend UnpluggedShop.com to your friends.

May your shavings be wispy and your tearout obscure,
Luke Townsley

  • Jim Marsh

    Congratulations and best of luck with your new pursuits. It is always sad when a change is made and it is always a difficult thing to accept even so change is the one constant in life. I look forward to reading your new blog.

    Jim

  • Follansbee

    Luke – thanks for all that hard work making this happen. I’m sorry to see you go, but completely understand. Your site is/was a treasure trove…
    P. Follansbee

  • tico vogt

    You were tuned in to something really good when you brought Unpluggedshop.com into existence. Countless woodworkers have made friends, learned about the craft, and had their worlds expanded as a result. Best wishes for all your future work.

    Tico vogt

  • Nathan Wolfenbarger

    Mr. Townsley:-

    Thank you very much for all the work and effort you have put into this sight. It has brought me in contact with so many wonderful people, and has proved to be a valuable resource to my wood working journey.

    God speed in your future work

  • Luke Townsley

    Thank you everyone for the kids words. I’m glad you enjoy UnpluggedShop.com and hope you are as inspired from it as I am.

  • Literary Workshop

    I couldn’t think of a better new owner for this site. I’m grateful to you, Luke, for all the work you’ve put into the aggregator, and I have enjoyed reading many blogs that I would never have found otherwise. (Thank you, too, for letting my blog be a part of the community here.) It’s been a pleasure all around. I’m looking forward to good things here.

    - Steve S.

  • http://www.facebook.com/people/Robin-Wood/722315437 Robin Wood

    Thanks so much for the 4 years hard work Luke, it has been appreciated by a great many, if only you had a cent for every site visit, enjoy whatever the future holds.

  • Rick

    Luke, thanks for everything, I have learned so much reading the sites you included in this blog and I always will appreciate you contacting me to add mine. Best wishes for the future, Rick, First Light Woodworking

  • Jon Mac

    I appreciate all your hard work Luke.
    The best of luck from us here in Hennock for your new ventures…
    Jon Mac.

  • Kari Hultman

    I’ll echo what everyone else has been saying, Luke. Thank you for bringing the hand tool world together and providing a landing place for us. I will never forget four years ago on Christmas Eve when you and I corresponded back and forth via email. It was great to meet you then and I’ve more than enjoyed your website. I would not have found all the other hand tool bloggers otherwise.

  • Bolas

    What a load of bullshit…if you’re so hard up why not just add a donate button…make your site better, and trust people… your domain name was bought only obliterate all that hard work….good luck

  • Steve Branam

    Wow, I haven’t been paying attention! Best of luck, Luke, and I think you’ve made a great choice turning the site over to Paul. UnpluggedShop.com has always been one of my top referring sites, so I’d like to thank you for sending all the traffic my way!