Cherry and Walnut Hope Chest
- 12/14/06
CAD drawing of Front
Elevation & Dimensions
A
commissioned piece, this Cherry and Walnut Hope Chest is being made for a
special young lady as a Christmas 2006 gift from a very special aunt.
It will be comprised
of a cherry trunk/case; a walnut base, with divider and drawer space; 3 walnut fronted maple drawers; a walnut
lid; and an interior cherry storage tray. The interior will be lined with aromatic cedar.
Raw
materials to start the ball rolling:
Extra wide cherry boards, carefully selected for
the casework, on the left; and nicely figured black walnut for the chest's base, drawers and
lid, on the right, have all been acclimating in the shop for a week or so ...
a necessary step to allow the moisture content of the wood to reach
equilibrium before milling/cutting to project dimensions.
Cherry
Casework/Trunk: - 12/16-17/06
The four cherry panels (20"
W x 15" H for the sides; and 38" W x 15" H for the front and back) were rough
cut from the above stock, glued into wider panels, then cut to project
dimensions and through dovetail 'pins and tails' cut into the sides of each
panel for casework joinery.
Since this
piece will be made entirely of hardwoods, the through dovetails, besides being
a traditional
joinery method for a case of this type (allowing for the inevitable wood
movement of the solid boards and adding strength), add a touch of class and
beauty.
Walnut
Base: 12/18/06
Dry fit of the basic frame for the walnut base, with drawer openings and
through dovetails cut. Two curves still need to be cut in bottom of the base front, and
on each side piece:
Glued up base frame, with the curves cut, and with the router templates used
to duplicate the curves in the foreground.
Walnut/plywood Divider: 12/19/06
The divider, between the
base and the trunk, is made from 3/4" plywood (for dimensional stability) with
the mitered walnut trim overhanging to provide a visual balance with the lid, which
will be the same dimension.
The trunk sitting in its
final resting place atop the base and divider to get an idea of how the shape
of the piece is starting to show.
Walnut
Lid:
The walnut lid is the next piece to fabricate.
Once that is complete, it
will be time to sand to all the parts fabricated thus far to final grit in
preparation for joining them into one piece ... a challenge in itself.
The Casework, Base and Lid: 12/20-21/06
All the basic components put
into relative position for the first time.
It is now time to connect
all these parts into one unit, then start work on the three drawers and the
interior tray.
Drawers:
12/22/06
Fabrication commences on the
three drawers.
Made of 1/2"
maple stock, they each require half-blind dovetails in their fronts, and a
dado cut around the interior of all sides to hold the bottom, a 1/4" cherry
plywood panel. A "false" overlay front of walnut will then complete the
drawers.
12/23/06 - The three drawers completed,
mounted, and the false fronts attached.
... and with that done and,
except for a bit of touch-up sanding, applying a finish and the hardware, the
exterior of the Hope Chest is complete:
Work has
started on applying the aromatic cedar to the interior and fabricating the
interior cherry tray.
Cedar
Lining: 12/24/06
With the aromatic cedar lining installed, the chest is now officially a
"cedar" Hope Chest. Note the beveled edges in the top of the cedar
in above right photo.
12/25/06
- The cold,
rainy weather
precluded applying any finish whatsoever, the interior tray is not complete,
and none of the hardware could be mounted without unduly rushing an important
and exacting task to the possible detriment of much good work.
However, and
despite these last few finishing touches, the chest was complete enough to be
able to make its appearance under the tree, where it was filled (drawers and
all) to the brim with the young lady's other Christmas gifts, to the delight of all concerned:
...
whereupon it will be returned to the shop to apply the finish and mount the
hardware.
12/26/06
- The removable cherry interior tray, mounted with two mortised keyhole fasteners
in the back, a
cherry ledger strip for bottom support, and with three coats of clear shellac sprayed on:
1/06/07
-After 8 more days, 5 coats of poly/oil, two of oil/wax, the finished
product:
... and,
most importantly,
From this:
to this ...
a happy young lady:
... That's
all folks!
Page
1 (Bedside
Table; Kitchen Cabinets)
Page 2
(Trivet; Writing
Desk; Trad. End Table; Lamp)
Page 3 (A&C Coffee
Table; TV Cabinet; Walnut Coffee Table; A&C End Table)
Page 4 (Walnut Hall
Table; Granite Top Mission Table; Mission Hall Table)
Page 5 (708 Style Writing Table)
(Mission Trestle Table)
Page 6 (Arts and
Crafts Bench)
Page 7 (New
Construction 2005-Kitchen)
Page 8 (Tool
Drawers; Stacked Tansu)
Page 9 (Plan
Rack; Door Restoration; Spice Rack; A&C House# Frame)
Page 10 (Craftsman
Chair Reproduction)
Page 11 (A&C
Kitchen Dining Set)
Page 12 (Cherry/Walnut Hope Chest)
Page 13 (Mission
Sideboard)
Page 14 (Kitchen
Drawers; Calendar Frames)
Page 15 (Corner
Cabinet)
Page 16 (2008
Kitchen Project/Trash Pullout)
Back
to home page
