Thursday, April 29, 2010

Mid Willamette Woodworkers Annual Guild Show

Wet glue. Tender finishes. Double stick tape. "Don't pull on this part" signs. Rebellious plywood.

What a show. I blame it on this:


the "one week" dining table, here a 5" tall model. I like the role that dining tables can play in our lives and have wanted to design one to reach more people; i.e. have a relatively modest price. A fine table--without compromise on quality or materials--in a week's work sounded tidy, especially if enjoyable enough in process and result to repeat from time to time. One evening some weeks back this model popped out.  

Now the deadline for submittals to the Guild show had arrived w/only two pieces on track to be ready: the desk (various earlier posts, a long and involved project), and a reproduction Shaker side table, revived from a traumatic misstep that had sidelined it a couple years before. Still a bit weak, I felt. There were nine days until the show, why not make the one week table? The little model sitting on my desk was still appealing after seeing it every day for over a month, so I emailed the submission, pulled some beautiful 5/4 boards for the top, and got to it. 

That evening Ann gave me a "what were you thinking?" look. Whatever--I didn't see her (or anything else) much for the next nine evenings. The table required about 60 hours; what with dimensions to firm up, curves to sweeten, templates to make, knock-down hardware to fabricate, a new tool to sort out, and unusual stress and micro-checking in the planks, all on top of the actually making the thing. 

Oh yeah, and finishing the other two projects. Turns out there was a fair bit still to do on the desk, and the Shaker piece wasn't even half made. Thank God for double stick tape. 

But the results weren't too bad: 





A lovely three-board top on a trim yet strong base that knocks down in a minute for transport. I'd be happy eating at this table. Next time it'll take a week.  

The desk looked good under the bright lights too, as did the Shaker table just to the left by the love seat: 



All of the keyboard tray internals were held together by tape or unglued loose tenons. The Shaker table actually showed up the second day of the show, having been glued in the morning, finished after lunch, and delivered around four. Some cute person had already voted it best in show; what faith!