In the shop, there was only one project of interest.  I was asked to make 24 picture frames.  I used pine, milled to 3/4″, then ripped to 5/8″, and rabbeted to accept the art and the glass.  Then I mitered 48 short sides and 48 long sides, taped them alternately end to end, glued the miters and taped the last corner.  Once the glue was dry I cross nailed each corner, countersunk and filled the holes.  Then each frame had to be sanded, and finally painted.  Two coats satin black, with a brush, not sprayed..  They turned out quite well.  Fortunately, they were all the same size, which made it much easier.

The rest of the month was spent typing the book, taking photos and arranging everything in order.  I needed 30 photomicrographs of end-grain wood samples, and the good folks at the University of Maine School of Forest Resources sent me samples from their collection.  At left is my wood of choice, black cherry (Prunus serotina) magnified about 25x.  The wood is diffuse porous, meaning that the pores are distributed more or less evenly throughout the growth ring.  The pores are small and consistent in size, making the wood a joy to work with.

I’ve spent more time at the computer this month than in the shop.  As I mentioned previously, I shot a DVD at Lie-Nielsen Toolworks, which should be out next month.  In the process, I also had to build a teaching cabinet, showing how a typical solid-wood case goes together:  two different backs, two different tops, removable web frame and inner shelf, removable mitered base, and drawers, panel door with inset spinner, etc.

While doing the DVD, I decided to have my 30 year old book re-printed.  I got in touch with John Hoffman and Chris Schwarz at Lost Art Press, and they agreed to re-publish it in hardback (printed in the USA).  So the entire book had to be typed onto my Apple.  Of course, a lot has changed in 30 years, so every chapter needs updating.  And the last chapter on Working with Solid Wood had to be completely re-written.  Its keeping me busy.  Lastly, the 30 photomicrographs of wood end-grain were not returned by the original publisher, so they will need to be re-shot at the Univ. of Maine wood lab.  If all goes well, it should be off the press in early fall.  Stay tuned.

In and around the shop, I’ve been busy with variety of jobs and chores.  As I  mentioned in Dec/Jan., I designed and built a new coffee table, complete with Freshwater Pearl granite inlay.  Very handsome, shown below with the chairs.

And the aforementioned new chairs designs were finally completed.  This is what resulted from the prototype (February Shop Notes) that was kicking around the attic for about ten years.  Yes, they are definitely of Danish influence, and no, they are not cutting edge. But they are comfortable, and well made:  a bentwood seat with a dense foam core,  oil-tanned leather upholstery, steamed cherry back and cherry frame. Comfort and structural integrity are my most important criteria for chair designs.  There are a lot of good looking chairs on the market, but only a few you’d want to spend time sitting on. Mine are available as armchairs and side chairs.  A professional photo, and prices will be posted in the New Work, Prototypes & One of a Kind section of the site soon.

The rest of the month has has been taken up with a chair design that has been sitting in the attic since around 2002 (notice the darkening of the seat, which had a few things placed on it).  This mock-up was made with fir 2 x 2s, bent plywood and drywall screws.   I added arms (not yet shown), and discovered that the chair is really quite comfortable, which beside structural integrity, is most important. I plan on a side chair and an arm chair, cherry, with formed lumbar support and a padded leather seat.  The lower side rails will be moved up, under the seat.

Definitely a Danish influenced design.

From years of restoring furniture for the last Shaker community at Sabbathday Lake, ME, my motto has always been, “Not how cheap can I make it, rather, how good can I make it”

The project was a lidded chest with two drawers.  Walnut is a bit of a challenge, since it’s hard to see pencil marks.  the chest was fully dovetailed,  maple interior, soft-close lid support and a beautiful quarter-sawn top.  The client wanted bun feet, which I’m not too fond off.  Nonetheless, I turned all four feet out of a real nice short piece of 16/4 stock that I managed to find.  The piece turned out rather nice, with black hardware.

January is always a slow time, a let down after the holidays.  I worked on two FWW articles and revived a long dormant coffee table design.  An updated boat-shaped, floating top with a granite inlay.  The table, of which I’m justly proud, is waiting for a a real photo shoot.

We had a white Thanksgiving this year.  About 11″ here in New Gloucester.  Made for some messy driving, especially since my snow tires were still in the shed.  Deer season ended on Saturday, so we can stop wearing our florescent orange hats, vests and jackets.  The Sunday after the end of deer season I spend about 4 hours in the woods clipping balsam fir branches to be made into wreaths by our long time friend, Willow.  Most years it takes 70 to 90 pounds of fir tips.  Clients who purchased one or more of my pieces during the preceding year get a decorated wreath for Christmas. I think this is the 21st or 22nd year I’ve carried on this tradition.

Music Stand VI was accepted into the “Maine Wood 2012″ exhibit at the Messler Gallery in Rockport, ME.  It features lyrics from “Small, Swift Birds” by Michael Timmins of the Canadian band the Cowboy Junkies, one of my favorite groups.  My music stands are engraved with a song or poem of your choice.  The top is adjustable by about 14″, by way of a sliding dovetail through the upper portion of the center post.  It is held in place by an ebony violin peg.  The base consists of a laminated parabola, curved inward 15° to meet the legs.

The exhibit runs through April 2012.

Of special interest this past month in the shop was a  commission I’ve been hoping for for a long time: a reader’s bed.  For years I’ve had a two big slabs of cherry sitting around, waiting for the right project.  A librarian wanted a reader’s bed, one that you can comfortable sit and read in.  I made a 26″ high, 72″ wide headboard from one of the slabs.  The best part was that the headboard was tilted back 20°.  It turned out very well.  I got to inset a small beach stone and carve two initials into the center.  The head posts have 18″ long bridle joints at the bend, while the foot posts have carved facets at the top, to match the live-edge carved surface at the top of the head board.

We made works of art out of scrap wood, driftwood, found wood, left overs, and exotic woods too precious to throw out.  Students ranged from very experienced wood workers to those for whom wood was an entirely new medium.

I was amazed at the diversity and creativity of the various projects.  We had driftwood sculptures, free-form containers with drawers, rolling pins, art objects, whimsical creations,  shelves, carvings and turnings.  One of the most challenging projects was a simple dovetailed white pine box with the most amazing paneled lid.  An irregular chain sawed, weathered slab, with nary a straight edge or flat surface was let into the top frame of the box.  The contrast between the light, carefully dovetailed box and the rough, weathered panel was a delight to behold.

Haystack is one of the most magical places in Maine. A place where creativity thrives and prospers.  It was an amazing 3 days.  The weather was perfect, for once, the food great, as usual, and the art produced in the other workshops was beyond description.  An October to remember.

The book case was a custom order, with three fixed shelves, at specific intervals for specific books.  The sides and back are frames with flush panels.  It would go well next to a bed, near a favorite chair or next to a desk .  At 36″ in height, the case would also make nice base for a piece of sculpture.

The small Shaker wall cabinet is something I’ve had various classes build throughout the years.  Not a strict copy, rather it is a melding of several Shaker designs.  Most of the smaller cabinets  (it’s only 18″ tall) had single board doors, but this one has a frame and panel door, with a small spinner inside the door.  The original, as well as the ones we usually build in classes are pine.  This one is cherry. The interior has two removable shelves.

Finally, the newest design: a book stand or lectern.  As usual, the most current project is always my favorite.  This one took a bit of brainstorming and a few pages of sketches.  I finally narrowed it down to 8 possibilities, and decided to build two: one for a client (same legs, but with a paraboloid base) and my favorite, the “Z” shape, with two straight feet.  Both were made of cherry, ebonized with dye and given a spray coat of satin lacquer.  Very graceful, lightweight yet sturdy.  I can even picture it in front of an orchestra.