Last year, at the start of the pandemic, I had some time on my hands, and decided I’d try making boxes with something other than right-angled miters at the corner. I’m not entirely sure what I was going for, other than it seemed like a challenge. I decided on trapezoids, and these were mostly successful, but I never really feel like I nailed it. At least, I never really feel like I nailed the top and bottom panels, and the ones I managed to get right I almost feel like it happened by accident. Still, I managed to get a couple of them right, like the one above, and you can get one here, if you care to.
Well, eventually I decided to give the who thing another go, but this time made parallelograms. I had no real plan in mind for how these would look, other than I was limited by what sort of scrap I had on hand — since this was literally going to be just a jape, this was only going to be made from scrap. In the end, I decided not to make boxes, per se, but turned out a cabinet. Or a stand. A very small cabinet. Or a very small stand. You can see my first go below, and I have to say, I think I really dialed in the miters — the key is to cut them all at once, without moving the angle of the saw blade. My first go with it is below and this one, I think I nailed. The soda bottle is there for scale.
As for the paint job, I figured that as long as I was making something as an experiment, or a practice run, if you will, I might as well practice my painting and see what it took to get a completely smooth paint job. On this one I did not nail the effect, largely because the paint highlights too many of the imperfections present in wood, specifically in the areas of tear-out where I put splines in to strengthen the joints — yes, these all have splines at the joints. Anyway, the next time I try that kind of paint job I’ll probably use some body filler or wood filler or some other medium to clean up the imperfections.
Of course, while I made one stand with the feet you see above that matched the angle of the cabinet, I also wondered what it would look like with some smaller, more traditional feet. I’m not sure how I’m feeling the one below, but since it was literally made as a prototype to see how it would look, it serves it’s purpose.
Naturally, once you start going down this road of experimentation you start branching out into other areas. Specifically, what would this look like as an end table. So, with some scrap plywood leftover from a built-in dresser I made earlier in the year, I turned out the thing below. Because it’s made out of 1/2 inch birch, the table has got a little bit of flex to it that would probably disappear with 3/4 inch material. It’s also a touch on the tippy side with the way the top and bottom are arranged. But, as an experiment, it’s a success, even if it is a little tall for an end table — though it’s a perfect stand for something relatively light, like a fan. Or, as a stand to take pictures of the other boxes on.
I think the next go at this will be to make an end table out of 3/4 plywood, built to look as if two triangles are sitting atop one other, connected at the points. But, that may be a little while, because I have a job, and the next month of weekends is spoken for. So, we’ll see.
Either way, I’m not sure any of these are going to wind up in the etsy store, but you could always look and see.
Joe Made A Thing 