Tiger cedar chest
This is my third project using a chevalet de marqueterie. The chest measures roughly 30”X20”X20”. The front is made using almost twenty different veneers some of which I dyed myself, I just couldn’t find a tree that made blue wood. The other parts of the outside are Makore.On the last blanket chest I made I used Cherry for the inside but I found some red cedar veneer and figured it was probably a better choice, I also left it unfinished. I used 1/4 cedar tong and groove from a box store for the bottom so if the cedar lost its smell the bottom could still be sanded. The frame is made from white oak and then ebonized black, I was trying to give it an Asian feel. Tigers are indigenous to Asia so the background came from a photo of somewhere in China. The top has Chinese characters for the Chinese proverb ””Three men make a tiger This was a fun project and as the marquetry was packet cut I have three more fronts to use, I already have the wood rough cut for another three chest so if they turn out different enough I’ll post them. Thanks for looking.
-- -- Paul--- Creativity is allowing yourself to make mistakes. Art is knowing which ones to keep. — Scott Adams
Wow! Gorgeous work! Just absolutely stunning!
Great piece Paul.
How big was your biggest packet?
It’s always nice to see more chevalet work and yours is lovely.
-- The early bird gets the worm but its the second mouse that gets the cheese.
Nice composition Paul . Seems you have found your way to peach
blossom valley with this one . I could certainly live with a piece of
furniture as nice and colorful as this . Sweet .
Wow! This is an incredible piece Paul.
I like the flow all the elements are in harmony.
-- Abbas, Castro Valley, CA
This is a real beauty Paul. Very impressive work on the marquetry and the chest. How did you manage to get that large marquetry panel pressed?
-- Mike, an American living in Norway
A marvelous looking chest and piece of artwork .
I like the Asian look of the chest as it is very befitting to the marquetry .
Klaus
Paul (shipwright) my biggest packet was about half the length of the front about 16", It pushed my chevys arm length to the limit :) . I broke it up using the water in the middle. I have to admit I cheated on the background sky which I planed on doing in two pieces but it was just a bit to long for my chevys arms so I cut it with an exacto knife. I think it was much harder to cut that way so it wasn’t much of a cheat, I should have done it in three.
Mike 40 , I have a vacuum press with a bag that the biggest panels fit in so it was a piece of cake to press.
Thanks to everyone for the nice comments!
-- -- Paul--- Creativity is allowing yourself to make mistakes. Art is knowing which ones to keep. — Scott Adams
Paul, the marquetry on this box is stunning. You have real talent. I am currently in the process of being introduced to woodworking through making boxes, my second of which I have just posted. I would love to combine the skills I am aiming to achieve in combination with marquetry. A friend of mine actually just completed a 2 week course learning your specific type of marquetry. Where did you learn marquetry from? I am wondering if it can be learned from videos or books.
Well done.
Eyal
A stunning piece of work! Love the woods and the detail. A beautiful work of art.
-- Anna
Eyal, I have taken several veneer and marquetry classes at Marc Adams School of Woodworking in Franklin IN. I don’t think there is anything like a hands on experience that taking a class gives but I also have Marc Adams and Paul Schurch video’s both of which use a different approach. Marc’s process is a double bevel cutting method and Paul’s is a packet cutting method, both are excellent video’s. The Tiger chest was cut using a chevalet (of which I am a novice) in the classic style of cutting in a packet but cutting each piece separately. If you are interested in building or the use of a chevalet de marqueterie you need to Google search Patrick Edwards at the American School of French Marquetry or contact our own “Shipwright” who helped me with building mine,. I think you could definitely learn to do marquetry from a book or video. Good luck and hopefully we will see some of your endeavors hear on W.W.
-- -- Paul--- Creativity is allowing yourself to make mistakes. Art is knowing which ones to keep. — Scott Adams
This is a wonderful work of art,outstanding workmanship.
-- woodworking classes, custom furniture maker
Wow! Amazing! That should fetch a nice price. At least the two you have yet to make because I’m sure you want to keep the first one. Very beautiful. How long did it take to make?
-- Losing fingers since 1969