The Constitution

 I purchased this constitution replica while on my mission in Washington D.C.  I honor and respect our fore fathers and the constitution, and so I wanted to display that in my house.  This frame is made from Black Walnut with the curved edges to give it an antique look.  The document is between two pieces of glass, with a black mat behind it.  If you like this, I can order Constitution or Declarations on line.

Night stand

Ok so I made this nightstand as a project for my Advanced woods class at BYU-Idaho.  It is made out of African Mahogany.  The grain of this wood is very beautiful and is not consistent.  Over time, it will get darker and darker.  In the picture below you can see the wood pattern is very pretty, and it finishes well.

This is the side panel before it is glued together.  Glueing is the trickiest part of wood working because you have a very small time frame to get everything in place and square.  I used tong and groove joints for the two side panels.

This is the front panel, you can see a difference in wood color from drawer faces and frame.  They came from a different tree.  I used dowel joints on the front.

The top panel I made from veneer glued together in a circle.  I used hide glue that has to be applied at a certain temperature which makes application very tricky, but the end product is strong and beautiful. (don't do it inside, it stinks!)

This is the making of the all wood drawers made from poplar.  This is the very strong dove tail joint.

This is the drawer and tracks made from ash (a hard and fairly inexpensive wood.)

And finally the finished product.  This is the natural color with a varnish.  As I said, the wood will get darker over time, just as most wood will.

Idaho Plaques

These plaques were made by request for the Holy Rosary Church.  They were for a golf fundraiser tournament.  They are made from pine and walnut, the tallest stood 30 inches. 

Clocks

This was the most fun piece I've made.  It is a natural walnut pendulum clock with a cove top and carved bottom (also for my wife).  

This was for my parents 50th birthdays.  The clock face is made from alternating cherry and walnut.  The ring and base are lightly stained cherry wood.

The back is a mahogany veneer.

Mirrors

This is made from Cherry, I made them for my wife, in a set of three.  I finished them with a light stain.

Frames

Frames are one of the most essential pieces of fine wood working to have in your home.  If nothing else, start with a nice wood frame to add to your furniture collection.  Frames, for the most part, are the least expensive piece of furniture you can buy.  And at the same time it most likely gets noticed the most.  They come in all shapes and sizes, colors, styles, and woods.

This frame is natural finished Walnut, and has shaped edges to give it an older look.  The main display is a replica of the United Stated Constitution, with black matting behind it.  I used anti-glare glass on this frame, which cuts down on glare from lights and also gives it a matte-like finish.  Other glasses available are regular glass, which glares light but is good for items such as clock pendulums, where the item is not right up against the glass.  Anti-glare glass works well for things placed against the glass.  If you want to spend a lot of money, there is museum glass; it looks as though there's nothing there, but it costs a pretty penny.

                 The key to making a beautiful frame is how well the joints are made. I make my frames with "biscuit joints", which have slots cut into each joint, where a "biscuit" is inserted.  The biscuits are made to expand when glue is added.  This lines each joint up perfectly, making each side look like the same piece of wood.  It also makes the joint itself stronger than the solid wood.

Book Shelf

I made this back in High School, so naturally its a little outdated.  Now-a-days, the fad in wood is either walnut, cherry, or hickory. This book shelf is made out of White Oak with a natural gloss varnish.  On large items like this, you use plywood as the main body, than solid wood for the trim.  This cuts down on cost and weight, but still looks just as good as solid wood.  It will last just as long as solid wood.  If you are interested in solid, I can do that as well, for a bigger penny. I can make them match existing shelves, simple or complex.  Wood that worked good for shelves like this would be Hickory, Ash, Oak, maple...

Maple

Ash

Hickory

White Oak