Tiny Art Deco Cabinet for Tea Bag Holders

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This tiny cabinet was built as a thank you gift for a supply of walnut given to me several years ago. I picked up the wood in 2013 and finished this project in 2021. That is a bit too long to deliver a thank you gift but I think the wait was worth it. The caddy is designed to store the tea bag holders shown in the first photo. I worked with the recipient to come up with the basic shape and I proposed the Art Deco styling.
 
 The case is made from the walnut I had received. The hinges are from Brusso.


The discs are spalted maple and the black accents are ebony. The spalted maple comes from a remnant from building a picture frame that was completed in late 2013. The walnut in that frame is from the batch that was given to me.


In the back one can find a surprise envelope.


Inside the envelope is a small card detailing the history of the walnut, maple, bag holders, and the construction of the cabinet.


There is a lot of detail in a small project. Fortunately I enjoy detail work and I had a lot of fun with this one.
 
The closed cabinet measures 5 3/8" wide by 4 5/16" deep by 5 9/16 tall.
 
It sits on a corner of the owners kitchen counter. Even though it is less than 6 inches tall and wide, it draws enough attention for guests to ask about it. Then they get to pull it out and show them the story hidden in the back.







There is an 11 chapter blog of the build which covers the 6 week build. The whole project took just under 100 hours. That includes just over 30 hours of design time. 

13 Comments

Interesting cabinet and story!

Ron

Excellent!!

You can have my girl but don't touch my hat! Lyle Lovett

That's purty! I'm going to have to switch to tea. The acid in coffee is doing me in.

Steven- Random Orbital Nailer

That piece is very stylish, great job Steve.
I followed along with most of the build but my brain didn't catch that it was for the holders.
Really cool and the art deco comes across nicely.

"Duck and Bob would be out doin some farming with funny hats on." chrisstef

Really nice. Lot of work in this project. 

TimV, "The understanding eye sees the maker's fingerprints, they are evident in every detail, leave Fingerprints." James Krenov

well done steve. i enjoyed following your blog on the build, i just didn't comment.

working with my hands is a joy,it gives me a sense of fulfillment,somthing so many seek and so few find.-SAM MALOOF.

Nicely done! Love the art deco. 

Ryan/// ~sigh~ I blew up another bowl. Moke told me "I made the inside bigger than the outside".

Came out fantastic Steve. Great work.
Thanks for the comments all, this is one of my favorite builds and I'm glad I got to share it here.
I love that, Steve! It’s a bit of nostalgia, a bit of whimsy, and a whole lot of meaning. It’s easy to understand why it’s such a conversation piece.