The Kist (or blanket chest)

As I tell my evening class students, by the time you have made a kist, you are well on the way to being a furniture maker! This is project 7 in our furniture making course at Lethenty Mill – and it is a pretty demanding one.

Traditional kists always had a lock, as papers and personal possessions were stored in them. They often had a string attached inside the top for ties. The carrying handles were often blacksmith made in wrought iron and painted black.

More recently, kists have been used for storing blankets and are called “blanket chests” as a result. When I started making furniture, I restored quite a few of these. Some of them “scrubbed up” very nicely, despite unpromising beginnings.

The kist pictured breaks from tradition in two ways; traditionally, tops were always nailed on and then punched and filled as kists were utility items. I suggest that the top is dowelled so that the fixings are hidden. I also suggest that a stay is fitted to prevent the top from falling back. Most of the kists I have restored have been damaged by this in the past and have been repaired in many ways!

The dimensions of the kist in the photographs are as follows:
530mm (H)
522mm (W)
896mm (L).

Our kits and courses website, http://www.lethenty-mill.com also has a little more information on this project (go to the intermediate kits and courses section).

-- Allan Fyfe, Lethenty Mill Furniture, http://www.lethenty-mill.com