Welding is the most popular permanent joining process used in structural, architectural, and general metal fabrication. Still, the quality of the weld is only as good as the joint from which it is built. This article looks at some of the common welding joint defects found in small-scale steel fabrication workshops, using pictures from a real steel fabrication job using mild steel angle bars and mild steel tubing. The paper summarizes the various types of welding joints: mitre (corner), butt, T-joints, and lap joints, and covers some common welding joint defects: poor fit-up and root gaps, porosity, incomplete fusion, undercut, spatter, and distortion. The causes of the problems are identified as joint preparation, welding parameters, electrode selection, operator skill, and environmental conditions, and references are made to the welding metallurgy and fabrication literature. The photographs show correct and incorrect practice at each of these stages, from marking to bevelling, arc welding to the finished product. Finally, the authors conclude that most of the defects that occur in an artisanal welding environment can be avoided by proper joint preparation, correct selection of welding parameters, and simple quality evaluation and control practices, and suggest practical suggestions for reducing the occurrence of defects in resource-challenged welding environments like those found in Ghana and the rest of the West African sub-region.