Shaker Step Stool - Unplugged

Starting off the new year with a project I have been wanting to do for awhile now and I finally got around to it. This is my version of the step stool featured in the Jan/Feb 09 issue of FWW. (I believe this was also shown on Rough Cut Woodworking with Tommy Mac). This is a milestone of sorts for me as I built this entire unit with hand tools, the only power involved were the lights in my shop. It is constructed from Cherry and Maple.

The Parts

The parts are cut and ready for assembly. All of the dovetails are hand cut of course, the boards were ripped and cross cut with hand saws, the pieces planed smooth using hand planes. One challenge I had was jointing the edges of the longer pieces and keeping those edges square. Not shown in the photo of the tools I used in the Stanley #6 plane I used for that task. I think I will need to add a #7 or #8 to the tool chest for that task in the future.

The Tools

 

The tools I used are shown above with the except of the aforementioned #6 and my saw bench. 

The finish is General Finishes Vintage Cherry Dye stain and that tamed the sap wood that was throughout the cherry I had on hand to build this. I added a top coat of General finishes Arm-R-Coat. Overall dimensions are 20"wide, 14" deep, and 20" high. Slightly smaller that that shown in the article.

I really enjoyed building this project. While this isn't the first time I have cut dovetails, this is the first time I started from scratch with hand tools. While I am happy with most of the joinery, I thought back to the saying  "Better is the enemy of good" (If you been to New Hampshire you know where I learned that) and was satisfied that the next time I cut dovetails there will be an improvement. I also was reminded that sharp tools make the task much easier. Am I ready to sell the table saw yet?, no, but I think I am one step closer.

Student Desk / Christmas Gift

Full extension drawer slides

This desk was made for our oldest granddaughter for a Christmas gift. The entire desk, with the exception of the side panels, is made of soft maple. Mortise and tenon joinery throughout. Top is 26" x 51".

Desk with drawers closed

The desk is finished with General Finishes Vintage Cherry dye stain to best compliment the colors of the other furniture in her room. I had used a sanding sealer but still had to deal with some blotching in some areas of the desk, but overall I think it came out okay. This desk is very solid and very heavy, I'm sure it will be around for a long time. I used a plan from WOOD and made changes along the way. 

Windsor Chair - Repair

A local lady contacted me to see if I could repair a chair she became attached to over the years. Best I can tell, it was originally built as a rocker with a shaw or comb back and was converted to a chair for reasons I can't determine. She bought it at a collectables dealer. The bottom of the legs had been cut with a dowel installed and another piece added (front legs).  I replaced the two broken back legs, the back stretcher, glued and wedged the other loose joints, and glued the large crack running front to back on the seat. If you look at the seat in the "before" pics, you will see a large burn mark. I tried to sand that mark out and math the finish color. The finish is a mix of General Finishes Salem Maple and Minwax Oak. Photos with captions follow. 

"Can you fix this please"? This is how the chair arrived to my shop. 

There was something attached at one time, looks like the spindles were cut off.

Bottom of chair with what is left of the legs broken off in the seat. Looks like a spoon 

bit was used since the legs holes were not drilled through the seat.

One way to fix a broken leg and a cracked set at the same time I guess

Burn on lower left front of seat, crack down the right side

Finished Chair -turned back legs and stretcher from hard maple, repaired burn mark on seat.

Adirondack Settee

Adirondack Settee built for one of the guys in the weekday golf group. Made of Poplar, stainless steel screws and waterproof glue used during assembly, and finished in a good quality exterior latex.  I enjoyed making this and he and his wife are enjoying it now that it has found a home on their deck.

Finished Sack Back Windsor

This is the Sack Back Windsor chair I made during my week long class at the Windsor Institute in late July. You can read about my experience in a previous blog posting. I chose the traditional milk paint finish and the color is a deep Windsor Green. Once the paint was dry, I finished it with danish oil to give it a nice sheen.

chair sanded and ready for the milk paint

Another view

Child's Table and Chairs

My son and daughter in law asked that I build a chair and table set for our grandson for his play room. The table is 24" square and is made of  white limba, a wood I haven't used before and chose based on the recommendation of my lumber dealer. It works very much like poplar or soft maple. It is also only $1.80 bd. ft. There is also black limba, a beautiful wood, and is a little more.

I built two chairs and added a walnut strip for a little detail in the seat. I will deliver the set this weekend on our next visit north this weekend. I enjoyed building this set. I had built an identical set for our grand daughter about 7 or 8 years ago.

Jewelry Box - Curly Maple and Wenge'

Just completed this commission piece for a client who had made a previous purchase. The box measures 14"w x 9"d x 6 1/2" h and is constructed from soft curly maple, also known as ambrosia maple, and wenge' (wen-gay). The drawer liners are craft foam and worked out surprisingly well. I wanted something different than the traditional felt.

Shown with the lid and drawers closed, note the shape of the front and rear legs.

The curve of the drawer pulls match the curve of the lid handle giving the viewer the impression that there are 3 drawers.