Arts and Crafts Table

Very beautiful table. I really like the accents that you have used on the table. Excellent craftsmanship.

-- Max "Desperado", Salt Lake City, UT

Really nice work.

-- I am always doing that which I can not do, in order that I may learn how to do it. - Pablo Picasso

Beautiful work!

-- You can discover more about a person in an hour of play than in a year of conversation. (Plato)

Looks Great. I would be very interested in how you did the secret box.

-- Che.

Thank you all for posting such nice comments!
@Che-The hidden box is very simple,in this case it is about 4”W x 6”L x 3”D.It sets just under the top like a drawer would, but drops downward by reaching up and pulling on a strap I made from leather off of an old boot.The hardware is an Amerock hinge used for mounting a rack for cookbooks on the underside of an upper cabinet.It lets the box drop and move to the front, but a tipout tray hinge would work also.

-- " If I can make it,so can you" Andy in Oregon

Beautiful, please post more pics!

-- Dan in Central Oklahoma, Able to turn good wood into saw dust in the blink of an eye!

Great table, i like your details and choice in wood. Is that white or red oak, I always have a hard time telling if I can’t smell it. how did you decide on the “inlays” for your mortise work?

-- --Spoon

Beautiful detail work, Andy!

-- Charlie M. "Woodworking - patience = firewood"

Fantastic, great job! I’d echo what’s been said above – I’d love to see some more pictures when you have time.

-- Robb

Very nice. Can’t wait to see the other pics. Question: For your inlay accents, what was the process to clean them up? Planes or power sanding? Thanks.

-- Jeff, St. Paul, MN

Beautiful table Andy. I love the detail work you did on it. Nice color also.

-- Greg Mitchell--Lowell, AR--gdamitchell@sbcglobal.net

Very, very nice. Can’t wait for more. Love the detail.

-- Bob, Carver Massachusetts, Sawdust Maker http://www.capecodbaychallenge.org

Andy -

Very nice clean work! Quite the teaser to only post one detail photo :-) !

-- http://foldingrule.blogspot.com

Wish we could see more of this. Your work is outstanding, James.

-- CanuckDon "I just love small wooden boxes!" http://www.hilsbiblechurch.org/

beautiful looking so far. I am only able to see one photo, but what I have seen looks great. I like the use of walnut and quartersawn oak together, I have used that combination several times myself.

good posting,
Mark

-- Mark DeCou - American Contemporary Craft Artisan - www.decoustudio.com

beautiful wood

-- http://www.woodsongsfurniture.com

More great work Andy. Your attention to detail is really wonderful. Looking forward to seeing more of your pieces and thanks for posting this.

-- Better to say nothing and be thought the fool... then to speak and erase all doubt.

Thank you all!
@Spoon-I do a mock up with scrap cubes of the contrasting wood, using double face tape,and keep playing with the arrangement until it looks right.I like to add a detail that works with the overall feel of the piece, but still keep it pretty simple.I always try to find the easiest and most repeatable way to do something, but never make two of the same thing.I get bored quite easily.
SO…..these “inlays” are simply 1/2” and 3/4” mortises cut using a benchtop mortiser.I am sure others know about this, but I had never seen it done before and came up with this simple effective way to add embelishments.It is quite straight forward to do, just mark equally spaced layout lines and set the chisel square to the fence or at an angle for the diamonds,flipping the board end for end and edge for edge for each setting. Simple. Dampen the surface to help prevent tearing around the perimeter of the mortises.Make your square stock to fit tight and only glue the bottom.You dont want glue showing, or need to use putty.I have used this for accents in cutting boards also, sometimes overlapping one color over another,and at odd angles.I will post some more in the future.

-- " If I can make it,so can you" Andy in Oregon

as other have said the attention to detail is great….very nice looking table

-- Todd, Oak Ridge, TN, Hello my name is Todd and I'm a Toolholic, I bought my last tool 10 days, no 4 days, oh heck I bought a tool on the way here! †

I hate to repeat what other said but… Beautiful table, amazing work. The mitred legs are impeccable, etc, etc

-- The woods are lovely, dark and deep, but I have promises to keep...

Great work, I have an elementary question? How do you do the drawer out of one board, how do you make the cut?

-- Billp

Thanks Bill.
You can use a scroll saw and drill a hole and cut out the drawer face,sand both edges minimally so as not to have any larger gap than needed.

In this desk,I simply ripped the top and bottom off of the table front,then cross cut the ends off,making the drawer front the desired length.Realign the top,bottom with the short end pieces and carefully glue it all together leaving the hole in the center for the front.Carefully sand all the interior edges of the opening,and then ease the edges a little to prevent dents and chipping of the leading edges.Sand the four sides of the drawer front,but only as needed,this is important to keep the gap very small.Ease its edges too.
But…the real tricky part is making and installing the box,so that the drawer front will slide in and out smoothly and still maintain an even reveal,flush out with the face,and not have any slop.
Thats something you will just have to work through and will make sense as you start doing it.

Tips:

Turn the table upside down on a bench so it is at a comfortable height.
Put small wedges around the drawer face to even up the reveal and to hold it in place.
Make your box smaller than the opening by a fair bit to allow for adjustment.
Shim up the box off of the underside of the top until it is centered on the front,top-bottom and side-side.
Double stick tape to the front and put 2 screws in.
Then make your side rails and attach your hardware.Attach this to the underside of the top.

I promise this will make more sense when you are actually doing it.

Have fun.

-- " If I can make it,so can you" Andy in Oregon

Very nicely done this is abeauty.Alistair

-- excuse my typing as I have a form of parkinsons disease

Thanks Andy

-- Billp

Hi Andy, This is a very nice piece!!!

I haven’t seen you around lately. You must be taking a break. Are your working on your next master piece.

-- Dennis Zongker

I must have missed this in the past, wonderful work andy just out and out great.

-- Jim from Heirloom Woodshop Southern Oregon

Thanks Dennis,yes I am actually playing around with another box design.I am not sure it is as cool as I envisioned,but is an idea I have had for some time and had to pursue it.

Thanks you Jim!

-- " If I can make it,so can you" Andy in Oregon

that is a truly beautiful piece, great work!
your son and daughter-in-law must be thrilled!

-- www.darrylmasterson.com ~ www.darrylmasterson.etsy.com

Thank you Darryl,they were very surprised and excited.

-- " If I can make it,so can you" Andy in Oregon

Very nice table

-- God grant me the serenity to accept "design changes" which I can not "fix".