6' Bench on Schedule, making it right.

I have a hole in my work schedule due to needed mattress dimensions from a client, so this gave me a chance to get a project done on time for another client's desired delivery date for their party.  So far, I am on schedule.
I don't consider myself to be a very compulsive person but in some ways I guess I can be.  When something is not right in my work, I do everything that I can to make it right.   I had to throw out the first crest rail that I made for this bench.  I rushed the drilling and neglected to look at my notes from past jobs.  This resulted in a rail that would have been passable but would not have given the spindles the grace that they should have.  So, out came the glue-up jig again and I made a new one.

Then.... after the bench had its first coat of oil on,  I noticed some blemishes due to incomplete sanding on the seat.  (many times things are visible after oiling that are not visible before)  I consulted some friends about the look who said it was fine but I really hate to let things like that go.  I really noticed it, so last night I took the whole seat down to bare wood again with 40grit paper and bringing it back to 220. It had to be done last night in order to meet the delivery date.   Now it looks great.

For me, the extra work is worth it since the reward is being able to deliver a piece that has my full confidence.  I sleep better too.

Below are some shots showing a stack of cherry veneers (you can see the edge of the log on the left side of this first shot) .  The veneers are sawn into strips and then glued and clamped over a jig to form a rail with matching grain and great strength.

arm rail, just off the glue jig

seat blank, drilled for spindles, before shaping

finding the right splay for the end spindles

adding spindles, first two, then one at a time, unlike a chair that gets them all at once. This is actually easier than a chair because I can leave it unfinished to go have dinner or run an errand.

grinding the seat down to bare wood and below blemishes.

The seat after finish sanding for the second time.  Ready for oil, again. (the line in the middle is a shadow)

I forgot to mention that this was a custom bench. The client asked to have the bench as shallow (front to back) as I could make it in order to fit in a specific space.  I took an inch off of the depth and I actually like the look. It did not suffer for it.  I may make them this way in the future.

Well, we have great snow here today and warmer temps.  Later this morning my wife, kid and I  will head off to go snowboarding at the Middlebury College Snow Bowl.

Have a good one,
Tim

Getting Things Done: Custom Work Stools

The four custom walnut and ash stools are finally done, boxed and ready to go to their new home in NYC.  Three of them are pictured below while being finished.

Below is one of the walnut stools with one with an ash seat.  Usually I make these stools 26" tall with cherry seats. These are all 28" tall as specified by the customer.

And the finished shot of the walnut seated stool alone.

My next project is a 6' Cod Rib Settee.  I am hoping to get that done for a party that the clients are having.  We'll see.  I would need to deliver it on January 21. The party is on the 22nd.

Stuck in New Hampshire and Stocking Stuffers

These are some of my pens that I made for stocking stuffers this year. Below are two made of curly maple and one of mahogany.  It is fun to have something that I have made and that is so useful that I can carry in my pocket.  I love them and my family seemed to really like them.  Let me know if you are interested. 

  

We came to New Hampshire for Christmas and may be here for another day. The snow storm is still going strong at about 11am on Monday.  I have things that I want to get done in the shop but I don't think it is worth having a hectic 8 hour drive home that would normally be 3 hours. 

Below is a project that I need to get back to.  It will be 4 custom High Work Stools with walnut seats and a 28" height.  The ash legs are all shaped and ready, the seats are rough cut and drilled.  The seats still need to be sculpted and the stretchers will need to made. See my High Work Stool here.

Happy Snow Day.

'Twas the Night Before Christmas... Stealth Windsors

Just a few shots to show the progress on my 10 Waltham chairs.  

A few hanging in the raw awaiting their first coat of milk paint.  10 chairs in the shop take up a lot of space, so hanging them up helps clear up the floor quite a bit.

All lined up after the first coat of paint, The arm chairs in the foreground have been buffed. You can see that they are a bit more grey looking.  Before the buffing, they are very flat black and rough.  They remind me of stealth bombers at this point. They almost absorb light.  Maybe I can get a lucrative contract making Stealth Windsors for the Pentagon.

 Have a Merry Christmas,

Tim

Time to make the spindles...

Below are shots of the shaving horse and some of the 90 spindles that I am making for a set of 10 Waltham chairs.  I rough them out on the table saw and jointer but the final rounding and sizing is done on the shaving horse with a hand plane.  In order to make them match, they are laid out side by side.  If one is larger than the others it will be evident.  The eye is very good at detecting something that is not like the others.  The image at the bottom is a clump of ash shavings  (don't say this at home).  Ash is chosen for spindles because of its strength along the grain.  Even the shavings can be molded into a ball.  If you were to try this with cherry, you would end up with a pile of dust.

Our first real snow came yesterday. We got enough to plow. Today, I managed to get the chains on the tractor.  Each one weighs around 70 lbs so it is not an easy task. It seems that there is always a project get in the way of paying work. Especially this time of year.

Happy snow.

     

Making Some Progress on 10 Waltham Windsor Chairs

I have just finished assembling the seat and legs for 2 Waltham arm chairs and 8 Waltham side chairs.  These will be painted with black milk paint.  The seats on my painted chairs are made of Poplar which is not very pretty but it is strong and it paints well.  The legs are made of ash.  The chair on the table saw still has all of its wedged tenon joints untrimmed.   That chair is having its feet marked for leveling on the table saw. Then I have it in the vise in order to saw to the marked lines and to clean up the other joints on the legs.  The backs will go on soon. First I have to finish shaving the 90 plus spindles.
See my chair page on my website to see all of my chair designs.

More Wining?

I am actually getting some work done on furniture orders even though it may not seem like it. Sometimes in the evenings though, I would rather take a break and work on the lathe.  Here are some of my latest designs for wine stoppers.
Let me know if any of these strike your fancy. These are headed to the Art on Main
Gallery in Bristol and to the Studio V Holiday Sale in Vergennes.    I was right that the black background made the photos come out a lot better.  If I knew more about photography maybe I could make a white background work but all I know is that the camera does not like it.  Too much brightness I guess.  Enjoy the nice weather.
Tim