Inspired Design #3: Henry Built
Known mainly for their kitchens, Henry Built produces some stunning modern wood furniture.
"Art Box" Tutorial #2: What wood?
Let the fun begin! I know everyone is hoping I will just shut up and just get down to the cutting and sanding :) BUT…..This is very important to those of you who are trying to imitate my process from beginning to end.Many of you have admitted that you have never built a box before and would like to know how to select a winning combination.So,the first bit of business is to select the wood you will be using.This decision will be based on A) what you find appealing.This is totally s...
"Art Box" Tutorial #3: Box and miters
Now that everyone has their wood selected,lets get started. Note. There will not be your typical cut list of material sizes when making this box.We will cut the box body and a dado for the bottom.The size of the bottom will be measured off of that. We will then route out for the lid and its size will be determined from that. Lastly, we will route the recess for the medallion and we will get our final measurement from that. Note:Depending on your skill level and how clear my instru...
"Art Box" Tutorial #14: Final Chapter
This box required a great deal more time and care during the final sanding,mostly in trying to maintain the edge of the ridges.At first I intended to keep them as crisp as possible…which took alot of time…but I didnt care for the look afterwards.It just looked too machine made,not as organic as like.I started out with a concept of sand dunes that I thought would tie in nicely with the grain of the Myrtlewood,but thats about it.I dont try and plan out every detail of the shaping a...
Hall Table Designs Would like Your Feedback
I recently picked up some 8/4 Walnut and a beautiful piece of 4/4 Jatoba. I have decided to build a Hall table and have come up with two designs that would exploit the grain of the Jatoba. I would like your input on which design you lean toward. Idea 1 is modern and the concept is that the frame is mitered in two directions to create a continuous “ribbon” of walnut that is unbroken. I will either do a contrasting keyed miter joint or a miter slip joint. I may or may not ...
"Art Box" Tutorial #4: Splines
We now have our box body assembled and glued up.Take off the tape and clean off any dried glue.This is a good time to smooth up the bottom to get rid of any rocking.You can double stick sandpaper onto a very flat and firm surface and slide the bottom across that.The problem with this approach is that sheet sandpaper is way too small.You can stick down several sheets and if you go very slow you may not tear the paper. Tip:I designed this sanding platform for leveling boxes and flushing out ...
"Art Box" Tutorial #7: Put a lid on it.
Three lid choices. DO NOT CUT THE LID TO SIZE UNTIL YOU ARE SURE OF THE STYLE OF BOX YOU WANT TO MAKE! At the start of this tutorial I mentioned that we would look at three ways to make this box. We are at a point in the project,where we need to decide how we want our lid to open.You will need to look at each type and decide which is your favorite or the easiest for you to make. I suggest following on with this tutorial and weighing the pros and cons of construction,before making a f...
"Art Box" Tutorial #5: Cut the lip
At this point we have a box body with corner splines.Our lid is still oversized, so we can stop here and just use it to make a traditional box,one where the lid sets on top. DO NOT CUT THE LID TO SIZE UNTIL YOU ARE SURE OF THE STYLE OF BOX YOU WANT TO MAKE! For some, this may be the best option.They may not have all the required tools or may feel their skills need a little more honing.Or, you could leapfrog over the next few stages and pick up the project again when we do the medallion....
Modern Modular Bookcase
This is my entry for the bookcase challenge. I designed my bookcase to be modular and have simple modern lines. I eliminated the “top” and “bottom” to give the piece an open feel and to reinforce the feeling that the shelves are “floating”. The case or “shroud” is 1-1/2” thick and made up of (2) 3/4” qtr sawn ash plywood or veneered mdf. The sides would be clear coated to contrast with the walnut shelves. The back would be...
"Art Box" Tutorial #10: Curves Ahead
This is the fun part! Up to this point,everything we have done has been carefully layed out and measured.This phase is more free form,its where we can cut loose a little, and see what we get.But a little care must be used or we can wind up with a ruined box.That happened on occasion when I first started playing around with this concept a few years ago.Just go slow and you will be fine. I like to mount my box to the “Moaning Stool”,to keep it from moving.This places it at a...
