Davenport desk part 3

I'm almost finished with the desk, all I have to do is get another coat of stain on the drawer fronts, find something for the knobs and four legs.

This is going to be a bit of a long post, I just wanted to show the progress I've made.

Ok, first let me show you what the table looks like assembled, but still without drawers.

I had to rethink the top of the desk. I don't have any mini hinges so I had to improvise. I decided to shrink the top of the table so it fit inside the frame and then I was able to get little nails inside so they act like hinges. The top opens and closes as needed.

This is what I came up with. 

Some of the pieces drying from the first coat of stain. I put a bit of plasticine like glue on the bottom of the piece, and put a leftover stick on it. This way I can hold the piece and stain everything in one shot. Then I just flip it around and finish the underside.

Finished top of the desk. It's a bit of a snug fit since I forgot that after staining, everything would be a bit more bulky.

And the open top.

Finally the desk is assembled!! 

And with the drawers. I have to get another coat of stain on the fronts. And I will have to rethink the veneer on the bottom for the next desk, since it shows that it's there. Either I'll have to glue everything around the veneer or make the front in the end. 

And the other side. This side isn't as good as the other one, so maybe I'll leave some of the drawers open on this side and let the table face the other side. 

I'm thinking I might make a new drawer to replace the second one from the bottom, since that one has the biggest hole.

All of the drawers. 

Tomorrow I'll try to find some knobs and legs. I was thinking beads for the legs, except I don't know what that'll look like since they're not made of wood. And for the knobs I was thinking I'd snip off the kind of nails I used for the opening top but leave them to stick out a little. I'll have to try that, but if that doesn't work I'll have to think of something else. I just don't know what yet... 

Well, all in all it was great building this desk and I can't wait to make another one. I'll do some things differently and I hope that it'll turn out better than this one. I like almost everything on this one, except the drawers. I'll have to work on that on the next one. 

Well, it was silly to expect that on my first try the drawers would turn out perfectly so for a first try I'm satisfied with them.

Until next time!

*Poof*

Davenport desk part 2

I made a lot of progress on my desk today. First of all, let me show you the progress so far and then we'll get to the process part.

This is the desk so far. The top part is still not finished, but I hope to have everything done tomorrow.

Now for the process. First I started working on the legs. I made the design myself from looking at a lot of pictures of actal Davenport desks. So these legs are my own design. If anyone wants to use the design that's ok, but only for personal projects and a link back would be appreciated.

These are actually flat legs, not like cabriole legs. The leg process... template, transfer on wood, cut leg.

And this is the result, after sanding both. I decided to give them a bit of curved edges, since the sharp ones didn't look good to me. 

Next up was working on the decoration for the front of the table. I decided to add some 1mm veneer. I think it totally transforms the whole thing, especially once painted. And there's also the lowert part of the table, where the legs go. Now I need to find something for the four little legs on the bottom of everything. 

Of course I couldn't resisit a dry fit and so far it looks great!

I changed the top a bit but didn't take any photos of the new one. 

And now for the most feared part of this project.... drawers!!! I managed to make these 4, since I have to cut them one by one. They turned out pretty ok for a first try, although they don't fit as snugly as I would like.

I'm hoping that the little mistakes won't be as noticable after some paint. If not I'll have to make fronts for all of them. I'll se how they look once I have them all assembled and painted.

The drawers don't look half bad when they're open....

Well, this is it for today, I'm hoping to have the whole thing finished tomorrow, but we'll see.

Until next time

*Poof*

Davenport desk part 1

Ok, I finally decided to try my hand at making something with drawers. I'm still not sure how it will all turn out but that's part of the fun!
I've decided to make a Davenport style desk. I recently discovered this style and I instantly knew I had to make something similar in miniature.
So today I got all the parts cut and sanded (except for the drawers, I'll make those in the end so I can measure everything properly) and assembled part of the desk.

This (and other similar designs) was the initial inspiration for my table. Of course mine won't be as detailed but I'll try to do my best.

My so called plan. I'm useless at reading actual plans so I have to draw every piece and know where it goes in my mind. I know, I know, makes no sense but there it is anyway :) My process of working. Unprofessional, yes, but it works for me.

And I've assembled the main part of the table. Drawers will go in both sides, I'm just hoping I'll be able to make them *fingers crossed* I've also stained this piece already but forgot to take a picture. Of course it'll need a couple more stains before it's completely finished.

And my very special friends.... LEGOS!! I love these, used to play with them all the time as a kid. Forget Barbies, I wanted Legos :) And they're useful for so many things!

Well, tomorrow I have to assemble the top and shape some parts. And of course I still have to make the legs. I love making them so it shouldn't be a problem.

Until next time!

*Poof*

Test tubes + stand

Finally, a new mini to show! Been very busy with the real life kitchen, which is coming along nicely.

As we were cleaning some things out I came across some q-tips, that are flat on one side and pointy on the other. I think they're generally used for make-up. I bought them a long time ago (don't know what for) and was just about to throw them out but then I decided I could probably use them for something in miniatures.

I sat down at my table today and saw the whole box. And to my surprise I saw that the "stems" were clear plastic and actually hollow.
And so I got the idea for test tubes!

Half assembled stand and "test tubes". And the q-tip I made them from. The "test tubes" don't have a rounded bottom but I drilled slightly deeper holes in the bottom of the stand so I think they look pretty realistic. The bottom is made from pearwood and the sides are made from 1mm thick veneer. Had to cut that very carefully. I did try it with 3mm veneer but I think it all looked too bulky.

And the finished result. I decided to paint the stand antique gold, I think it adds a certain magical touch to the whole thing.

The test tubes are 1cm long and 2mm in diameter. The whole stand is 3,1cm long.

These will look great on Faye's table. I might try filling them but the holes are so small I think it would be nearly impossible. All in all I like how this turned out. 

Until next time!

*Poof*