Little Boxes

[my63]

Hi Fuchsiaprincess

No nails just waterproof pva I would add some strengthening if the wood was much larger.

The top and base will add strength to the joints.

[my63]

I thought I would share the latest little boxes I finished this afternnon they are called teachers boxes as they have been made for my daughters head of year and form tutor as her leaving present to them.

They will both have two fountain pens made in the year of their birth along with to sample bottles of diamine ink.

 

The light box is red oak burr with burgundy suede interior

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7403/8869976018_58ff76067b_z.jpg
IMG_3768 by my0771, on Flickr

 

 

 

http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5464/8869330407_6da423b1d5_z.jpg
IMG_3756 by my0771, on Flickr

 

The dark box is brazilian walnut burr with cobalt blue interior

 

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7428/8869323359_27b3f2098a_z.jpg
IMG_3753 by my0771, on Flickr

 

 

 

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7335/8869302989_6c7799c0b0_z.jpg
IMG_3746 by my0771, on Flickr

 

Thanks for looking

 

Michael

[leofoam]

These are truly amazing. Will you be trying to sell them anytime soon? If so, I am sure you would find more than a few buyers. myself included.

Edited May 28, 2013 by leofoam

[my63]

Thanks Leofoam

I have thought about selling them the desgin is just about right now.

Let me know if you want one.

Michael

[my63]

I managed to get some work done on the mhguda box yesterday in between shopping for final prom stuff and a visit to staples where I managed to acquire one of the new red arc folders .

It is great to have a place where the love of stationary and such like is not considered abnormal.

 

mjguda s box I trimmed up the edges and gave the whole box a rub over with sandpaper I then marked out the rough size of the pieces on the veneer being careful to match the front and top. I use a safety ruler and a sharp knife to cut the veneer to the rough size.

Time to start applying the glue this is waterproof pva.

http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3726/8893901177_fdfa4e0818_z.jpg
IMG_3782 by my0771, on Flickr

 

As you can see I use pleanty of glue as I need to ensure full coverage.

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7334/8893904851_94b4e0b53a_z.jpg
IMG_3784_1 by my0771, on Flickr

 

I then start to apply the veneer the first piece is the back the idea is to reduce the number of edges that are seen from the front of the box.

 

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8132/8894503168_91c03cec66_z.jpg
IMG_3774 by my0771, on Flickr

 

The first piece is now in place and just requires heat or pressure to force the two pieces together in this case heat.

 

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8274/8893892715_d949f32940_z.jpg
IMG_3778 by my0771, on Flickr

 

When applying heat you have to be very carefull as the wood remains hot after the iron is removed and the glue boils the only thing worse than getting glue on your fingers is getting boiling hot glue on your fingers

 

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7403/8894514810_54610a4f6f_z.jpg
IMG_3779 by my0771, on Flickr

 

Too much heat will cause the veneer to crack as you can see here it can also burn the surface of the veneer.

The sides are next to go on then the front followed by the top.

If you have a large enough piece of veneer it is possible to make the grain flow over the whole box but it is complicated and takes hours to get right.

 

Thanks for looking

Michael

 

 

[fuchsiaprincess]

That is amazing, Michael! Your daughter's teachers are going to be extremely pleased with their gifts.

 

You make the veneer application appear so easy and seamless

[OakIris]

As always, wonderful to watch the detailed process you go through to make your wonderful storage boxes- ugly duckling to swan!

 

I don't think I am ready to make a box from scratch, but with your excellent instructions and tips, Michael, I feel that I am almost ready to try my hand at veneering a box. Not quite ready to attempt this, but I think I will start looking for a likely box and for a good source of veneer - yay, future project!

 

Holly

[my63]

Thanks Fuchsia princess I try to show everyone it is not difficult to do if you have a few simple tools.

 

I wish you had mentioned that yesterday Holly I could have cut the pieces for you and sent them with your box.

Like a flat pack pen box kit

Veneering is not difficult especially if you use iron on veneer it is preglued ready to use.

I am more than happy to help you through every stage you know that.

[my63]

Next stage all of the veneer is now on I have started sanding the top 2 or 3 hours should do it

 

http://farm3.staticflickr.com/2817/8903418303_f5cbe51dc8_z.jpg
IMG_3786_1 by my0771, on Flickr

 

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8128/8903420249_d5dbca87bd_z.jpg
IMG_3787_1 by my0771, on Flickr

 

http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3705/8903422477_ec1c9c1a03_z.jpg
IMG_3788_1 by my0771, on Flickr

 

 

When I have finished sanding I will cut the top from the base.

Thanks for looking

Michael

 

[mhguda]

Looks beautiful already!

[my63]

The outer sanding is finished I have put one coat of wax onto the top and the usual masking tape around the sides to give a little protection to the veneer while I cut the box in half.

 

http://farm3.staticflickr.com/2851/8915799964_4070cc9b7a_z.jpg
IMG_3798_1 by my0771, on Flickr

 

http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3693/8915187349_26102e0e40_z.jpg
IMG_3800_1 by my0771, on Flickr

 

Time to get the saw out

 

Thanks for looking

Michael

[fuchsiaprincess]

What sort of saw do you use, Michael (I hope this doesn't come across sounding like a silly question!)?

[my63]

Hi Fuchsiaprincess

 

I use a Japanese pull saw I find it much easier to use than a traditional hand saw.

I am looking to upgrade this saw soon I bought a cheap one to try and I love it.

[PensMakeMemories]

Sadly it has been while since I have been on the site, but as I had stated in one of Michael's other threads I am beginning to make my own little box. Michael said he would have no problems sharing this thread as a place to post my progress, and I am definitely going to take advantage of that offer. However, I have actually almost completed my box, and often times forgot to take pictures, but I will post what I have and should finish my box and post pictures of the completed box tomorrow. Initially this small box was going to be designed to hold a collection of Esterbrook dollar pens, but during construction I came up with multiple improvements and design concepts that I wanted to implement in my pen box so this one became a jewelry box that I will be giving to my cousin for her wedding gift.

 

I have access to a mill and table saw through my previous employeer, and used that for this project, but will have my own table saw and personal tools by the time I start working on my own box. The mill made some of these cuts unbelievably easy, and I was able to make cuts accurate to the thousandth's of an inch (maybe a bit of an overkill for a wooden box that will be sanded, but the machines are typically used for steel parts).

 

The first images are some of the pieces that were cut straight from the mill.

 

 

 

 

This was the trickiest cut in the mill; I trimmed a thin layer .03" deep in the oak for me to veneer in a cherry trim. I will not be doing something like this ever again, but have thought up an easier and even better way to get this effect in later boxes.

 

 

The next images are of the box after it has been cut, but before the bottom and top of the box have been put in. I wanted to stain and finish the insides before attaching the top and bottom to make that process easier. The darker circles in the corners are lengths of oak dowel that have been glued in to add support, though this box is probably small enough to get away with not needing it.

 

 

 

This final picture is of the finished tray, and I will post a picture of the box tomorrow. The stain on the box wasn't quite dry enough for me to finish it yet, so I left it sit.

 

 

My process was pretty simple (although I had some mean machines to get it done), and could be replicated by anyone with some basic tools and a table saw, except where I milled the area for the veneer.

 

I started by cutting the edges (I used the mill, but this can be done nicely with a dado blade on a table saw), I then milled the cover, but in the future will simply cut the inner layer to a smaller width and length and will cut to length and glue lumber of whatever choice for the trim.

 

The next step was to measure and cut the sides of the box for the tray and actual box. I used a mitre saw for this, but could have used the table saw, or even done this with a hand saw (but then I would have to trust myself to cut a 45 degree angle nicely). After cutting the pieces it was time to glue them.

 

I had problems with this as I did not own the proper clamps, but will be purchasing a few to get the job done nicely in the future, including a couple of those wonderful belt clamps that Michael uses.

 

After the glue set, I drilled holes in the corner a little larger than 1/4" in diameter (the size of my dowels) and then inserted my glue covered dowel into those areas for strength. I used a drill press for this, but could have used a hand drill; I cannot think of a way to do this nicely without a power tool, but it is most likely not needed for a small box (I only did it for practice as I intend to work on larger projects after I gain some experience).

 

At this point, I cut the box to create the cover, and I cut the notches for my hinges to sit flush with the box. Again, I used the mill, but will be using a hand chisel set for this step in the future, or I may use a different style of hinge.

 

I then sanded, stained, and finished the inside of the box and tray, and the bottom of the box cover, so I would not have to deal with the corners and fabric that I would have in the finished product.

 

I then glued my fabric to the top of the box and tray bottoms, and glued them into the box.

 

The only thing left to do at this point was to sand and finish the rest of the tray and box. I used a natural stain to show off the natural beauty of the oak, and I had intended to use this on everything, but the cherry veneer didn't pop like I wanted it too (I used a practice piece to see the finished color before doing this on the box) so I used an American walnut stain on the cherry.

 

This was the first time I had ever worked with wood, and there were and are some problems, but it was a great learning experience, and overall I am very pleased with how the box turned out, despite not being a box for my fountain pens.

Edited June 3, 2013 by PensMakeMemories

[my63]

Nice work pensmakememories

That is a fine box you have made I hope that your cousin enjoys her jewlery box.

That reminds me I am supposed to be making a jewlery box for my wife

Looking forward to seeing your pen box when you start it.

[PensMakeMemories]

Nice work pensmakememories

That is a fine box you have made I hope that your cousin enjoys her jewlery box.

That reminds me I am supposed to be making a jewlery box for my wife

Looking forward to seeing your pen box when you start it.

 

Thanks! I will definitely try and post the production of the pen box as I go, and hope that I can get to that project soon, although right now I am waiting on some of the tools I will need to get started (including what seems to me to be the most important, the table saw).

 

As for what I have now, the jewelry box:

 

 

I was going to glue silk into the sections that lined up into the bottom piece and the cover piece in order to restrict the angle the box opens to, but I forgot... Oh well, Next time.

[my63]

I would like to have a table saw I could not use a full size one but proxxon make one that would be ideal.

The only power tools I use are a proxxon multi tool with press compound table and router frame and my bench sander.

I also have a compound mitre saw but it is designed to be used right handed so it is not much use to me now.

You could still add silk at this point that is when I do.

[PensMakeMemories]

I would like to have a table saw I could not use a full size one but proxxon make one that would be ideal.

The only power tools I use are a proxxon multi tool with press compound table and router frame and my bench sander.

I also have a compound mitre saw but it is designed to be used right handed so it is not much use to me now.

You could still add silk at this point that is when I do.

 

I am waiting on a nice DeWalt "portable" table saw. I guess compared to the full sized table saws it is portable, but it is still quite large and heavy. Other than that, the power tools I will continue to use are a mitre saw for cutting corners, a drill for creating mitre joints, and a hand sander.

 

What do you mean by router frame? I was looking at getting a plunge router, but I think I can get away without out it by using a dado blade in the table saw to make the joining cuts.

 

And how do you add the silk at this point? Wouldn't you see where the silk is glue in?

[my63]

I have a proxxon multi tool and it fits into this router frame which turns it into a plunge router I have a set of mini router bits it is ideal for little jobs.

http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5338/8951047792_eee5a9562a_z.jpg
IMG_3820_1 by my0771, on Flickr

 

With regard to the lining of the box I line all around the inside of the box so I would glue the silk in place the cut card to fit around the inside of the box Then cover the card with material and stick that over the top of the other piece.

I hope that makes sense.

I would then cut another piece of card to fit inside the lid cover that and stick that inside the lid.

That would hide all of the glued areas and stop the lid from opening too far I do this with all of my little boxes now.

 

Here are the pictures of the completed teachers boxes with the pens and sample ink bottles.

 

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7294/8939808558_a69667ca51_z.jpg
IMG_3808_1 by my0771, on Flickr

 

http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5327/8939821610_34f43e2e61_z.jpg
IMG_3813_1 by my0771, on Flickr

 

[PensMakeMemories]

Ahh, very cool multi-tool! I have seen some attachments like that before (including an attachment to turn your multi-tool into a band saw!), but I just wasn't getting it, thanks for the pic.

 

And your method for restricting the cover angle is very smart, but I didn't want to cover up that beautiful oak. I was planning on glueing the silk into the section that I set the bottom and cover in before I glued them into place so I wouldn't have any glue showing, but I forgot... I think I am just going to leave this one, and do my best to not forget steps next time.

 

I am already in the process of designing my pen box, but as of this point I haven't even finished creating a drawing of my plans; so everything is in a very rough stage.

 

I plan on using maple with oak for the trim. Since maple is such a light color and the oak trim will be just dark enough to set it off I am planning on using a light tan material on the inside. Last time I used a synthetic suede material, but I am hoping to find some real suede this time. The only problem I have with this is I can't find a place locally that sells any, and I don't know anywhere that will sell me small amounts online.

 

As always, your boxes are amazing, and an inspiration. I often look back at your projects to gain some insight when planning and working on my projects. Thanks!