# cedar lining on a blanket chest



## freighttrain (Mar 21, 2011)

im going to make a blanket chest for my daughter and she wants it lined with aromatic cedar anyone know the best way to add the lining the outside will be walnut im concerned about just cluing strips of cedar flat to the walnut is that ok or is there a better way any help will be much appreciated!


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## jusfine (May 22, 2010)

I would make or use Tongue and Groove pieces, and nail them just enough to hold. That way you don't cause problems with possible wood movement.


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## ELCfinefurniture (Jan 18, 2012)

Cedar is a very aromatic wood and is prone to heavy movement. Gluing it can cause some problematic issues so do as was stated. Tounge and groove. Spend the time to fit it in snugly an there should be no issue. A good resource for cedar lining is humidors. They are a great example of how to fit cedar and execute it properly.


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## bondogaposis (Dec 18, 2011)

Another way to go is to line it w/ cedar closet liner. It comes in 4×8 sheets, 1/4" thick and is essentially Tennessee red cedar flake board. It is also very cheap at Home Depot. I would imagine that it would be stable due to the random orientation of the fibers. Here is the link.


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## jcwalleye (Dec 26, 2009)

I just finished one of those up a while ago. Here's a link.

I used tongue and groove closet lining from the local BORG. It was pretty low quality so I purchased twice what I expected to use and picked through it. To attach, I nailed it with 18 guage brads close to the bottom and top. Then I captured both ends with pieces of cherry. The bottom was a quarter round piece and the top was kind of an L shaped. Good luck and post some pics when done.


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## freighttrain (Mar 21, 2011)

i think im going to build it using horizontal dovetailed boards out of walnut and if i can get some cedar thick enough i was thinking of making the bottom panel out of the cedar and then line the side with thinner cedar i was told if i build it this way i could glue the side on without worry of expansion because they run the same direction as the walnut. what do you guys think would this work or should i use say maybe plywood for the bottom and just float a panel of cedar on top of that.and should i tongue and groove the side and attach with brads no glue. i reaaly appreciate all your help! looking forward to you comments and thanks for the ones you posted already they do help me !


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## Finn (May 26, 2010)

I make cedar trunks of aromatic cedar and I put a "floating bottom" in them. ie. Just 1/4" slats of random widths butted together, no glue.


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## woodnewbieva (Nov 25, 2014)

Morning,

I have an old chest that I want to line with cedar that belonged to my grandfather. I have a decent stack of it in varing sizes. It's all rough cut and I will need to cut and plane. The chest os not a fine piece of furniture.
My take away from this string is that for the bottom I can simply cut to size leaving a bit of space for expansion say 1/8" each end? I am unclear concerning the sides.
Should I cut to fit and leave the same space for expansion and then tack in place near the center for the long sides?
From here and a few other blogs the general consensus for thickness is 1/4"?
First tiem lining a chest and hope to gain from your combined wealth of knowledge.


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## HerbC (Jul 28, 2010)

You should leave room for expansion on the sides. There is little, if any, expansion along the length (with the grain) so you don't need to leave very much gap for expansion on the ends. The sides will need a larger gap.

Good Luck!

Be Careful!

Herb


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## LiveEdge (Dec 18, 2013)

Can I just ask an obvious question (which I'm sure has an obvious answer)? If you nail the cedar lining to the rest of the chest, how does that allow for wood movement more than gluing? Is the expansion then in each tongue and groove joint as each piece is moved along with the movement of the outer board it is nailed to? I'm trying to picture how nailing gives you more room to move.


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