Project Information
I'll give the project details first and then get into a little philosophy on this project and my woodworking in general. If the philosophy part doesn't interest you then just stop after the details.
This is a toy chest/blanket chest I built for my grandson's first Christmas. He won't be old enough this year to appreciate it but in the years to come; I believe he will.
This chest is built out of solid cherry with an unfinished cedar bottom. This chest is my own design after browsing the projects here and elsewhere to get my inspiration. It is obviously raised panel construction (a first for me) with a solid glued up top. I used General Finish's stains and topcoat for the finish.
The construction was straight forward using a rail and style set on my router table. I also used the router with a raised panel bit to raise the panels. I sanded everything to 150 grit and then applied two coats of 1 lb. cut shellac. Once the shellac dried I sanded to 220.
I applied two coats of Georgian Cherry gel stain and then one coat of Java stain. This gave me exactly the color I was looking for. Once everything dried, I applied three coats of Gel Topcoat.
This is the first time I used products by General Finish and they are simply amazing. Everything was wiped on with a cotton cloth and the finish is absolutely gorgious. No blotching on the cherry and the feel is silky. It does not have any of that "plastic" look or feel so common on commercial furniture nowadays.
Now for the philosophy.
I am a fortunate person who gets to do his woodworking strictly for pleasure. I have no pressure to produce for a living and get to work at my own pace on projects that interest me. When I make a mistake, I get to walk away regroup and come back when I reach my zen mode again. If this takes an hour or a day; it doesn't matter.
Wood is an remarkable material that takes on a life of it's own. When you buy a rough board, you only have a vague idea of what lies underneath. As the wood is taken from rough to smooth you begin to see it's true potential. As you cut and shape your pieces you begin to see your ideas come to light. Once your project is finished you get to stand back and admire. What a feeling!!!
When you look at the chest you can see the grain change where the rails and styles are joined. these joints are visible to the eye but when you close your eyes and rub your fingers across the joint they are absolutley invisible. This is exactly what I was trying to achieve. This chest has a silky rich feeling that is difficult to describe in words and impossible to show in the pictures.
I hope that this chest gets passed through the future generations of my family and becomes a family heirloom. Time will tell.
Thanks for letting me ramble and take some time to browse the many Lumberjocks projects for some inspiration.
This is a toy chest/blanket chest I built for my grandson's first Christmas. He won't be old enough this year to appreciate it but in the years to come; I believe he will.
This chest is built out of solid cherry with an unfinished cedar bottom. This chest is my own design after browsing the projects here and elsewhere to get my inspiration. It is obviously raised panel construction (a first for me) with a solid glued up top. I used General Finish's stains and topcoat for the finish.
The construction was straight forward using a rail and style set on my router table. I also used the router with a raised panel bit to raise the panels. I sanded everything to 150 grit and then applied two coats of 1 lb. cut shellac. Once the shellac dried I sanded to 220.
I applied two coats of Georgian Cherry gel stain and then one coat of Java stain. This gave me exactly the color I was looking for. Once everything dried, I applied three coats of Gel Topcoat.
This is the first time I used products by General Finish and they are simply amazing. Everything was wiped on with a cotton cloth and the finish is absolutely gorgious. No blotching on the cherry and the feel is silky. It does not have any of that "plastic" look or feel so common on commercial furniture nowadays.
Now for the philosophy.
I am a fortunate person who gets to do his woodworking strictly for pleasure. I have no pressure to produce for a living and get to work at my own pace on projects that interest me. When I make a mistake, I get to walk away regroup and come back when I reach my zen mode again. If this takes an hour or a day; it doesn't matter.
Wood is an remarkable material that takes on a life of it's own. When you buy a rough board, you only have a vague idea of what lies underneath. As the wood is taken from rough to smooth you begin to see it's true potential. As you cut and shape your pieces you begin to see your ideas come to light. Once your project is finished you get to stand back and admire. What a feeling!!!
When you look at the chest you can see the grain change where the rails and styles are joined. these joints are visible to the eye but when you close your eyes and rub your fingers across the joint they are absolutley invisible. This is exactly what I was trying to achieve. This chest has a silky rich feeling that is difficult to describe in words and impossible to show in the pictures.
I hope that this chest gets passed through the future generations of my family and becomes a family heirloom. Time will tell.
Thanks for letting me ramble and take some time to browse the many Lumberjocks projects for some inspiration.