A carved box in walnut with a linden top and bottom, 13″ deep by 25″ wide by 9″ high.
As with most of my boxes, l sketched out a pattern with chalk, some inverted lunettes on the front, and S-scrolls on the sides.
I love mannerist carving. There’s nothing to it really just place the gouge in the right spot and give it a whack with a mallet! It's like drawing with an extremely sharp pencil.
Sawing through the carved board is quite unnerving, but what an exercise in improving one's saw skills!
With the individual parts freed, I cut rebates and formed the pintles. Then grooves and dados were cut for the till. Usually, the till is of pine, but in this case, I used some resawn mahogany. Why not?
Once the till parts are wedged nicely between the front and back, and a little glue applied at the corners, clamps help assure squareness until nails can secure things properly.
While the glue dried on the carcase, I thought I’d try something a little different with this box. Having made a version of wood dye, from ground walnut hulls, I decided to slather a bit on the poplar lid and bottom, in the hopes of offering some semblance of age. As the pieces soaked up the dye, I fashioned a pair of hinge cleats from a stick of pine.
The poplar most definitely darkened, making the walnut look rather anaemic! But, after affixing the hinge cleats with glue and wooden pegs, I slathered the whole box with boiled linseed oil and turpentine, and things evened out just fine!
Thanks in advance for hitting the thumbs-up!
Knowing how to use a tool is more important than the tool in and of itself. - Ron Aylor
Beautiful all around; the carving which is fantastic and the coloring & grain. I could never saw to the finished edge like in the video, would have to use a shooting board.
Oldtool commented about 3 hours ago Beautiful all around; the carving which is fantastic and the coloring & grain. I could never saw to the finished edge like in the video, would have to use a shooting board.
Thank you! I always scribe lines 1/16-inch apart and saw between them. Clean-up is done with just a file and sandpaper.
Knowing how to use a tool is more important than the tool in and of itself. - Ron Aylor
