November 11, 2013

A chair!


This time things actually went as planned!! I'm super excited to share my newest creation with all of you, my dear readers! Finally, after many failed attempts..... I present to you.... a chair! :)


This is the end result and my first chair made from scratch. I like how it turned out although I might have been a bit too impatient to finish it and see how it will look. I could have done some more sanding on the back but all in all I think it's great for a first try.

Now as promised in my last post, I'd like to show you my new working area....

This is my father's workshop. As you can see he isn't exactly accustomed to keeping things clean. And I completely understand that you can't have a clean workshop if you actually work in it. You can see the large lathe he has on the left. Too bad it's not small enough for making minis....

This is the other part of the workshop where I'm currently taking up space :) It's too cold to work outside now but at least here I don't have to worry about bad weather and can work any time I like (unlike on my balcony).

And another view.... You can see the saw we use to cut the wood for my minis. Actually, my dad cuts everything to the correct thickness.... I guess it's for the best since I would probably loose a finger or two trying to operate this thing.

Now for some pictures of work in progress on the chair. It took me quite some time to figure out the best way for making mini chairs that would stick together. I'm very aware that these are not even a little close to what they could be like but for now I'm satisfied they stay glued together. The chair is made out of pear wood.


This is how I started....  These two seats are for the new chairs, I forgot to take pictures of the "prototype".

And this is the actual chair in the making (from the picture above). I had so much fun cutting out these tiny cabriole legs! They're a lot easier to cut than the ones for tables since they're about two times thinner to begin with.

Then it was time for the back of the chair. I drew my own pattern so there isn't another chair like this in the world. And of course some holes and a lot more sawing. 

And this is the semi finished result. I love how it turned out! After I figured out the lower part and forced it to stick together I got a little worried about the back. But it all worked out perfectly.

And here it is, fully assembled although not yet completely sanded.

If you look closely you can see that the legs are made of different wood. I just had a spare piece of walnut the right size and since this was a "prototype" I didn't want to bug my dad with cutting me pear for the legs. Now that I've seen it sticks together and how it works I do have pear wood for legs also.


And the end result. I wanted to make it into a shabby chic style but I can't decide if I should leave it like this (just white) or should I sand some parts and make it look a bit work and more shabby-chic-like. Any thoughts?

I couldn't resist trying it with one of my tables. Although this table is actually meant to be more of a side table or something standing in a foyer, not a table you would put a chair to..... but still, I had to see how it would look. I think I'm going to have to make a shabby chic dining table and some more chairs.

I was thinking of making some very light pink or lavender chair colours..... Hmm..... I think those would be lovely although I'm not sure they would fit into any settings.... Or perhaps I should just leave them a natural colour? Any suggestions on chair colours? 

Now I can't wait to make more chairs! Seems like once I understand how something works I can't wait to make more. I'm sure I'll make some walnut ones (finished with shellac) in the future but right now I'd like to get some more practice with pear wood (we have a lot more of pear than walnut wood at home). And I don't feel bad about colouring pear but I wouldn't dream of colouring walnut (except for the scrap piece I had for this chair legs) or much less mahogany.

Until next time!

*Poof*









November 9, 2013

Mahogany table

I know, it's been almost an entire month since I last posted..... I just can't believe how sometimes real life get's so busy I have next to no time for myself, let alone my minis!

I've wanted to show you this table I've been working on but haven't had the time until now. I started making this table right after the newspapers but then I got so busy with work and family obligations that I put it aside. It's still sitting like this but I'm hoping I'll be able to finish it next week. I'm very happy to report I have a whole week of mini time ahead of me so that means a lot of new ideas.

I got some very nice mahogany wood from a friend. I'm very excited to see the finished piece and set it next to the walnut table! It's a lovely wood to work with. Although I don't have very much so I have to be very careful with how I use it.

Here you can see the difference between mahogany and walnut. Both are still completely bare, without any shellac or even oil. The colour will pop and be a bit more intense when I apply the finish.

And what I've gotten done so far on the table. You can see my rotary tool kit under the pieces. This is probably the single most important thing in my process of making furniture.... besides my saws and sandpaper of course.

Now I've had a bit of time today to come up with some plans for a chair. So far there's not much to show yet but I will hopefully have some progress to show next week. I'm really excited to try making a chair (again), since I've tried three times already and given up. I think now I have a better plan and understanding of how it all comes together and hopefully it won't fall apart as soon as I glue everything together.

And also now that it's colder outside I moved to my father's workshop. It's not as warm as in the house but it's way better than outside. I'll show you some pictures next time..... although I must say it's not exactly clean. But I don't really need clean since I'm going to make a lot of dust anyway :D

Until next time!

*Poof*