Floreana's Treasure

 When I found out I'll be a Great Uncle I was very happy, and being a woodworker I thought I should make something special for a special little Girl. So I made a little treasure box for my treasured great niece. 

I made it out of one 1 x 10 x 14 ft yellow birch plank, except the bottom of the box and tray were made from 1/4 inch plywood with Cherry veneer applied, to help with stability. The panels are floating with small rubber bumpers inside to keep them from rattling and to allow the panels to move, depending on the humidity at any give time. I first cut the pieces to rough size and let them sit in the heated shop to acclimatize a bit before final milling. I used a spline to attach the sides to the front and back and a rabbit for the bottom. The top I first made square and then hand planed it over for a softer look. I used brass  hinges and hasp, then attached leather straps for handles. It was finished off with a few coats of poly. 

I know she'll like it more when she get a little older but for now it looks like it's perfect, a treasure box for a little treasure.

 

Treasure Box

Another treasure box made for a friend of the family, but from what I was told I don't think it'll get there, she likes it too much. It's made from Birdseye maple with strips of walnut around the top and a little piece of purple heart at one end on the under side of the top, to create a little shadow to hide the cut line. The corners are mitered and there are three coats of poly.

I love Birdseye Maple.

A little inlaid trim.

Pull out sliding top.

Birdseye everywhere.

A Gift Reworked

A few years ago a family friend, Steve, gave me a cut off of a piece of wood he works with making cabinets. Not just an ordinary piece of maple or oak but Zebra wood, which by the way was 2 inches thick, 10 inches wide and 24 inches long. It has a few flaws in it which wouldn't work for him but for me well this was gold. I didn't know exactly what I wanted to do with it and it sat there waiting to be worked on, until one day I heard that our friends, Dolly and Steve, became Grand Parents to a little girl named Rayna, and I thought maybe Dolly would like a box for keepsakes from baby Rayna and so I now had a purpose for the Zebra wood. Thus a gift of a block of wood to me is returned to them as a box for Dolly.

This box is 5 x 5 x 10 inches with a curly maple ascent.

The top is just a simple slider, but it works very well.

A Custom Box

This box was made for our friend Kathy, she has finally retired, we gave her a bottle of Ice wine and Brandy, along with a couple of fine glasses to enjoy the wine. And what better way to protect them, than in a custom box. This box is made from birch, with mitered corners and a couple of supports inside to keep the glasses steady.

Nothing To Sneeze At

Well I got tired when I would pull out the Kleenex, I get the box as well, so I thought I would build a little Kleenex box, box. It is made from re-sawn birch, mitered corners and no bottom. They fit nice and snug, easy to pull out a tissue and only a tissue comes. Just a weekend project, while the glue dried I got to cut the lawn.

Something for Kathy

This box was made for Kathy, a simple wooden box, for keep sakes or whatever, with mitred corners and a slider top. It is birdseye maple with red mahogany stained and 4 coats of polyurethane.

For my Mother-in-Law, Marjorie Graves

On July 30, 2010 we lost my Mother-in-Law to cancer, and my Father-in-Law honoured me with making a box for her. He gave me quarter sawn oak from their property to make the box, the wood was great to work with and the grain from being quarter sawn is excellent.

Higby's Box

Here is my latest project, a box for our Dalmatian, Higby, her registered name is “Yule Higby Avalon Paterson”. She was 13 ½ years old (24 October 1996- 21 May 2010) when we lost her and I felt it was fitting that she be placed in a birds eye maple box, somewhat spotted.

Wooden Boxes

Here are a few boxes I have made over the years, most are simple construction, mitred corners, dados for the bottom and top sliders. Some have inlayed work, a very new experience. Materials vary maple (plane, birdseye and curley), walnut, purpleheart, pine, and zebra wood, one is two old sewing boxes converted into one large box.

Walnut box for Brian.

My early venire (cherry) and inlay (maple & beach) work, a chisel box for Murray.

Birdseye maple with walnut trim for Mom.

Two inlayed boxes for Mom, one pine the other maple.

Two sewing boxed made into one.

My tool box in Cold Lake, it kept everything clean and in one place, not much storage.

A simple walnut box with a fitted top.

Walnut with an insert shelf, two laying tools for Fibre Artists, the top slides in.

Zebra wood with laying tools, an insert and slider top.

Purple heart with walnut inlayed around the box, an insert and slider top.

Purple hear with an insert, and a fitted top.

Walnut with insert and fitted lid for Shelley.

Curley maple wit dividers and slider top for Murratte and Joe.

Walnut with purple heart banding, sun inlay (maple) a slider lid and a secret bottom, for Dale.