Cabinet on Stand

A while ago, I created a small cabinet that had been designed to be table-mounted. Over time, the issue was lack of table space causing me to move the small cabinet here and there. It seemed to always be in the way. Of course, it could have been converted to a small jewelry cabinet, but there was no demand for this. A little thought went in to the next life of the cabinet and the idea of mounting it on a dedicated stand came up. So this is what I did. The cabinet itself is not deep and a stand would need to compensate and add depth to the structure. Unless the depth was increased, there would not be sufficient stability.

After some thought, re-visiting earlier designs of mine, and perusing though James Krenov's designs, it came to me. The cabinet would float over the stand allowing me to increase the depth by approximately 1.5 inches. Along with is, I introduced the technique of bird's feet at the bottom. These elongated, arced wood elements extended the depth or form another 2 inches. All told, the new depth was sufficient to make the cabinet on stand stable.

The build also consisted of some modifications to the actual European beech cabinet. New drawer faces, applied contrasting edging and lowering of the base. Cherry was selected for the stand to contrast with the much lighter beech of the cabinet. The cherry stand was built separately. Legs are rift-sawn cherry and the rails are staggered to lighten up the façade and introduce strength and rigidity. Since there are no lower rails in this stand design, the upper, offset rails would need to be mortised into the legs. I also added a contrasting piece of inlay to the upper front rail of the stand to balance the aesthetic. Images below are after the completion of the build and approximately a week later. Cherry has become darker since, as seen in later images.

Drawer makeover...

I have a small Krenov-inspired cabinet which I have enjoyed for the most part. The drawers not so much. The cabinet is solid beech but long ago the decision was made to make two stacked drawers with walnut fronts to provide contrast to the beech. I realized at the time that the contrast was not ideal, but for the sake of expediency, went ahead to see if it would grow on me. Well it hasn't. Another idea at the time was to have through-dovetails to attach the drawer fronts to the sides. This provided another level of contrast and introduced yet another wood to the mix. Overall, I wasn't pleased. So recently I decided to give the drawers a makeover and replace the drawer fronts with something more aesthetically pleasing and to provide not so harsh a contrast. Pic below of original drawer fronts.

My first attempt was to use some highly figured veneer I had stored away. It is commercial veneer so very thin. The veneer itself is beautiful, light in color and would make the interior of the beech cabinet pop. First step was to scrape down the surface of the drawer fronts and glued a piece of this veneer to each. Did this successfully and began to create the mortises for the new pulls. However, there is something about commercial veneer that doesn't sit well with me and I was not able to get past this. The thickness of the material is paper (thick paper) thin and brittle, too fragile for my taste.

Since it would be necessary to scrape the surfaces to get a polished aesthetic, this was entirely not possible with this thin, brittle veneer. I typically use shop-sawn resawn veneers in my work. Instead, I created some band-sawn ambrosia maple with beautiful figure between 1/16 and  3/32 in. thick. I decided to go ahead with this shop-sawn veneer instead. Next I band sawed the drawer front to the thickness of this shop-sawn figured ambrosia. Applied the veneer to the drawer fronts and I could not be more pleased with the outcome. Shop-sawn veneers are more workable and forgiving with hand tools.

I then created two new wide pulls out of blackwood. A single pull instead of two in the original drawer front. Also decided on eliminating the upper and lower shoulders of the pulls to be able to have them thinner. This would not take away from the figured fronts as much. This step introduced a level of risk in creating the mortises, since there is no drawer pull shoulder to rely on to hide an imperfect mortise.

After some judicious mortising using chisels and a mallet,, then some paring, the drawer pull mortises were created as seen above. The most critical part of this step is to remove the top-most layer of wood; it is so easy to tearout the surrounding wood if the chisel cuts are not clean. Then it is simply a matter of cutting and paring to the correct depth of the tenon for the drawer pull. Contemporary-styled blackwood pull temporarily inserted below.

So very happy with the outcome and will be completely replacing the doors of the cabinet next. I intend to use veneered figured wood for the doors, similar wood (Ambrosia Maple) as the drawer fronts. I plan to write a detailed article about this in the next issue of WOODSKILLS Magazine

Cabinet build...

I’ve been working on the components for a standalone cabinet lately. As well, working on the design of a second smaller cabinet with a unique focal point, to be discussed later. The cabinet on stand below features one of my favorite figured woods, domestic ambrosia maple. I have a small stash of this wood in planks so the decision was made to resaw the wide planks and create veneers. Veneers maximize the yield from the planks. The cabinet will have veneered front doors and side panels. The remainder of the cabinet, the top and bottom panels and back panel consist of conventional maple. Ambrosia maple, when finish is applied, exhibits a beautiful, warm color while accentuating the wild graphics it is renown for. The graphics are what draw me to ambrosia maple. Also, it is a member of the soft maple family, so not difficult to work with and to smooth the surfaces. One of the attached pics is an earlier cabinet I completed using ambrosia maple throughout.

I have yet to decide on the finish of the current cabinet build, definitely something that will highlight the wood graphics.The other pics are the almost completed panels I will be using in the build. The veneered panels are not exciting at this time, but application of a penetrating clear finish will pop the graphics, colors and grain. The frame and panel back is a work in progress at this time. The interior compartments will also be different but consist of dovetailed drawers in an unusual arrangement.

The dimensions in the current version will be close to that of the earlier version since the proportions appealed to me. I have not yet designed or created the components for the stand, so this might be different than the earlier version. What I typically do is build the cabinet, then begin work on the platform or stand. The process is not as overwhelming to me using this approach, as I prefer to work on a project in stages. The satisfaction of seeing tangible progress in the project motivates and excites me to continue :)   More details to follow on the individual components and joinery used.

"Rooted" book has arrived...

A few months ago I was notified that my entry had been selected for an upcoming book on contemporary furniture. I finally managed to get hold of the book and received it this week.

The Schiffer publication:   Rooted: Creating a Sense of Place: Contemporary Studio Furniture  features a selection of contemporary furniture typically created in furniture studios by a single maker.

Quote from Amazon.com: "The movement to buy locally, which has gained momentum in the areas of produce and food, is now spreading to arts and crafts. Through the work of over seventy contemporary furniture makers, the role of place in the creative process is explored and celebrated. Whether in terms of materials, inspiration, or the interaction with customers, these artists are rooted in their surroundings. What springs from these roots is usually unique, often edgy, and always beautiful furniture and accessories."

In a few days, I will post the first part of a series of videos on Furniture Design at my WoodSkills YouTube channel. Working on this as we speak. It began as a small exercise but I'm adding material and more of my knowledge on this topic.

Drawer pulls...

My process for creating and fitting drawer pulls is outlined here.This involves designing the pulls, selecting the preferred wood to use for the pulls, deciding on a size for the pulls, laying out the pulls, and shaping them. I need to admit this is one of my most enjoyable processes of a build. The build is at its final stages and this can be considered the "adding the icing" part. Pulls often add considerably to a cabinet both in aesthetics and design. The pulls are often a draw to the cabinet if they complement the cabinet yet impart a unique addition to the cabinet. In these photos, the pull design I is a rectangular one with a tenon extending out. The pulls are of mixed cocobolo so both heartwood and sapwood create an appealing contrast in colors. The tenon has shoulders on four sides to overlay the drawer front. This tenon fits into a matching mortise in the drawer front. The mortise is marked and created using hand tools, namely small chisels.

Creating the tenon is meticulous work and I used a small, fine saw to delineate the tenon from the actual pull area. Once this is done, I use a skew rabbet block plane and some small chisels to shape the sides of the tenon. The important part of this sequence is to accurately mark the mortise to fit the tenon. A mistake here could ruin the drawer front or involve a re-design of the pulls to correct the error. The tenons of the drawer pulls fit tightly into the mortise and then glued in. I also take some time to orient the drawer pull graphics and orientation to match each other.

After completing and installing the drawers pulls I proceed to adding a pull to the right door of this particular cabinet. This door pull is similar to the drawer pulls to maintain harmony in the design. This design involves one pull on this door to distinguish this door as the one to open first. I've always liked the idea of having a single pull on the cabinet front, it just looks like a clean, minimalist design. This door pull is also slightly offset towards the bottom of the door to minimize any impact it might have on the door graphics as more of the door graphics are now visible above the door pull.