Cherry & Wenge Mirror Frame

Some projects can’t be over soon enough and take seemingly forever to finish. Others provide so much more fun in the process because of the enjoyment of the discovery; the learning that yields a sense of accomplishment when it comes through. In times like that, I almost don’t want the process to end as it seems to almost create itself while I witness as a helper. This was one of those experiences.

This comes straight from the example set by David Marks and generally followed his design and technique. The etched mirror was from a 1940 antique given to me from a neighbor almost 20 years ago. It had no frame, as it was only held by some U brackets. For a long time it reflected only the underside of my bed (to avoid being damaged). I finally came upon some stock and some time to create the frame.

Doing so utilized cherry as the main material with splines as joinery. I then routed out the shape for the wenge keystones – about 1/3 the way through the stock. I used a reversed shape of the mirror’s curvature to remove the material from the underside of the wenge so that it would fit snugly over and around the cherry while snapping into the wedges routed out for fluidity. From either curve – the outside or inside- it clicks into place to create the hidden joinery. The last image demonstrates the spline joinery. The piece began as a single piece of 6/4 cherry joined to create a square and then shaped into a perfect circle.

I hope you get the sense of how much fun this was to create. It’s something I’ll reflect on for years to come.