Project 15 of 52

" I'm a Fan"

For this week's project I have been pretty busy with some other jobs, the idea actually came to me while on one of the job sites. It happened this morning while panicking again that I have not started something.










Living in Los Angeles, we have some of the best weather all year around. The summers are especially gorgeous because even when it is hot it tends to cool down nicely at night time. This project is for the days it's unbearably hot. Who doesn't need a pocket fan from time to time.

I decided to make this pocket fan out of Purple Heart and Cocobolo. The actually fan pieces were cut from a three quarter inch section of purple heart lengthwise for the strength and the covers were cut from a one eighth piece of Cocobolo. The shape of the fan resembles a baseball bat, because it is the sport of the summer. I drew out the design and cut the pieces on the band saw; then proceeded to hand sand the shape round.

The finished piece with a dowel in the center and fishing line for support measures 11 inches tall and 8 inches wide when fully opened up. It is also 1 inch thick.

The medallion on the bottom that acts as a pivot for the whole fan is what it looks like. A 2011 penny that I have to give my friend Tyler credit for thinking of while he was with me making this project. It really makes the piece stand out. It also is a sort of signature of when this piece was made.





This project will be in the Gallery showing at the end of the 52 weeks.

Project 14 of 52

" Cornered "

The design for this week's project was one I made a while ago thinking about doing medallion pieces or shadow boxes. I originally started this for St. Patrick's day because of the four leaf clover. In going back through my sketchbook I saw the design again and wanted to make it but as a corner bookcase.

I took some pieces of Birch Plywood and transferred the design. I used my band saw to cut out the pieces.

I glued and assembled them together. With the original design now folded in half it brings another element to it.

After the glue was dry I sanded the whole piece and decided to paint it black. The piece is 20 inches tall and 10 inches wide.

As you can see it fits quite nicely in a corner. One thing that is hard to show in a picture is something that is painted black. This was the best I could capture, but in person when you stand back it almost looks like there is a hole in the corner of the wall. It really is an interesting piece. If you were wondering all that is holding it up in this picture is super glue. I'll have some wall patching to do when I pull it off later.




This project will be in the Gallery showing at the end of the 52 weeks.

Project 13 of 52

"Quartered"

Many times when I am designing a new piece or even cabinets or furniture I always start with a concept. I really enjoyed the perspective piece I made recently and wanted to try it again just a little different this time. I showed this picture to a lot of people this past week and  thought about how I was going to build it for the longest time. I could have done another veneer but I already did those before. I could have made a carving but didn't have enough time, or the right piece of wood. So I decided to make a bookcase/spice rack out of maple ply I had in the shop.

I transferred my design onto a piece of half inch maple plywood and proceeded to make 4 six inch boxes and 4 four inch boxes.

I then glued each box to its corresponding position of the design. The hard part came next. Cutting each individual angle to work inside the different spaces. Every piece coming from a point of one of the boxes had to be cut at opposite 45 degrees angles. For these I had to use a dovetail saw and cut them by hand.

Overall, It came together quite nicely just a little time consuming. I then sanded all the sharp edges and any glue that was left seen.

I decided to paint the whole piece white because I still envision it in a kitchen as a unique spice rack, but could be used for anything. The overall dimensions are 24 inches tall by 24 inches wide by 4 inches deep. I named this "Quartered" because there are 24 spaces, if you look  at one space like a box for instance, there is exactly 3 more just the same. So in essence you are looking at 1 of 4. This piece marks the exact quarter mark of the project and I thought it would be fitting.

This project will be in the gallery at the end of the 52 weeks.

Project 12 of 52

" Jewels "

This week I wanted to get back into doing some jewelry  and thought what a perfect piece of wood I had in this Bolivian Rosewood.

I laid out the design on the piece of quarter inch think Rosewood and first started with my band saw to cut most of the material and switched to my scroll saw for the radius' and more intricate corners.

After every piece was cut I drilled through each one at the top for the leather banding to connect them.

After every piece was sanded I finished each jewel with mineral oil so it doesn't effect who ever is the lucky one to get to wear this. I did not attach the clasp yet until I can see someone with it on to see what height would work the best for the necklace. The biggest jewel piece is 2 and a half inches long by 1 and a half inches wide. The weight of this wood necklace is pretty light considering how big the jewels are. Bolivian Rosewood tends to be lighter than most other hardwoods.







This is kind of what the piece would look like on. I know a Styrofoam cone isn't quite a neck model but it was the only thing around at the time.







This project will be in the gallery at the end of the 52 weeks.

Project 11 of 52

" Steps "

What inspires you? I have been asked this a lot lately regarding pieces I'm making and just general work stuff. The answer is practically everything. I see beauty in sometimes the hardest places to find. All ten projects so far have been inspired by a wide range of things. This piece was not inspired, more a reaction to a feeling. This was not designed ahead of time, nor did I have any clue what it was going to become when I put the block of Cherry on my Lathe. I just started cutting into it and let what I was feeling dictate how it would turn out.

I came up with a coned shaped vase, and because I really had no plan I broke two other vases in the process until I got one that wanted to cooperate with me. The first piece of wood I turned the outside and when I went to hollow it found I had a rock solid piece of cherry and couldn't. The second one was working fine until I caught a bad edge and it broke off the base. Needless to say planning is always a good thing.

To support the pointed end of the vase I cut a piece of Jatoba for the base and 21 1 inch by 1 inch Bocote squares. I drilled into the jatoba and glued the vase inside.

I glued the 21 Bocote squares in a spiral staircase pattern around the vase. Each step alternating in grain pattern as well. I finished the vase with a gloss lacquer and filled the vase hole with a wood stabilizer so water and flowers will not affect the wood as much if not used.

The overall dimensions of the piece are 12 inches tall and 4 inches around at the biggest point.
































This project will be in the Gallery showing at the end of the 52 weeks.