Chuck_Griffith

Wow!

Hi Rudyo,
The mattress was made for the cradle. Just a piece of fairly firm foam rubber with a slip case made of mattress ticking. My wife did the sewing, a fairly simple job with a machine. "Disassemble" means that the rocker assembly comes off. That would be the two rockers and the trestle that fits between them. The rockers attach to the cradle with two screws running into each rocker from the inside bottom of the cradle.

Wow. Just amazing. Such a great eye and so many skills all in one place. Very, very impressed.

Thanks Jeffrey, Glad you like it, and congrats on getting your lovely tiger maple cupboard-over-chest into the paper version of FWW.

Hi Thomas,
Very, very cool. Would love to know how you did that.
Chuck Griffith, chuck@shakertofit.com

I'm afraid I've always found the Krenov thing to be a little precious for my taste - elegant cabinets for the discrete display of elegant possessions. However, your creation of a Krenov liquor cabinet (a step into a world I can understand) has given me hope. Nice work.

Very nice. Love the front.

Hi Twistjawa,

Thanks. Glad you like the chair. Am quite happy with it myself. Am in the process of insulating my workshop so no projects underway now. Next one will be a Shaker blanket chest with an arched top as an homage to the roof of the meetinghouse at New Lebanon. Am planning to make the top by coopering quarter-sawn cherry. Not sure exactly how I'll go about that, but have purchased an old compass plane for rounding the top. Should be fun, but probably not until August.

All the best,
Chuck

Hi Martino23,

That should have read "do you mean I should remove the letters
'nospam' from your email address?".

Hi Martino23,

Happy to send it, but do you me I should remove the letters "nospam" from your email address?

Hi Twistjawa,

Thanks, and glad you like it. If you're interested in making Shaker chairs, I proportion the seats using a PC program that I wrote. Based on your approximate dimensions, it figures an an exact spindle distance between legs that will fit the seat's tape rows exactly, without gaps at either end. It also calculates the angle of splay (from front to back), and converts that angle to a circumference dimension for positioning holes to create the splay. It's very flexible in terms of the tape width you use and how much splay you might want. If that sounds confusing, it has a pretty good help system that explains everything. If you'd like a free copy (for PCs, not Macs) just give me an email address and I'll send it to you.

All the best,
Chuck

Hi Twistjawa, Sorry to have taken so long to comment, but somehow it slipped through my occasional visits to the FWW gallery. Anyway, really nice work. Just lovely. Love the way you finished it. That such a large piece seems to feel so right on those smallish legs is a design lesson in itself. One self-serving question, where did you find so much great tiger maple? Best regards, Chuck

Hi Kenalley, I sure hope so because our son's wife is expecting a child in April, which means we'll be needing another stocking.

Hi William,

Amazing that you posted a comment yesterday and that I see it today. This stuff was posted last Spring, so I don't look through very regularly anymore.

Anyway, here are dimensions from my original plans. Hope they make sense to you.

Top: 49 x 14 3/8 with breadboard ends bread board ends
1 1/2 wide
top tenons: 7/8 deep
main top board length: 47 3/4

Base: 40 x 12 3/4 x 27 1/4

Legs: 27 1/4 x 1 1/2 x 1 1/2
taper to 7/8
taper starts 5 1/2 from top

Aprons: back, 37 x 5 visible, 39 x 5 with tenons
side, 9 3/4 visible, 11 3/4 x 5 with tenons

Front: crosses, 37 x 1 1/2 x 5/8 visible
verticals, 4 x 1 1/2 x 5/8 visible

Drawers: to fit

Hi sloughin,

The alignment thing was a challenge that I wanted to see if I could handle, so I made a test bench out of pine before making the four cherry ones. The pine bench came out fine, so after having it around my workshop for about a year, I milk painted it a funky blue, then sold it at a craft fair for about $200. Some tests work out better than others. This was one that I liked a lot.

Best regards,
Chuck

Hi Broker593,

A fairly detailed description of how I make the images is posted as a response on my "Splay leg table" post of May first. The background is made using the gradient tool of Photoshop Elements. The original background was the dining room where the table normally sits. That background was removed, and the table image was moved to a new blank background. Then the gradient and shadows were added.

If you're not a Photoshop user that probably doesn't mean much, but all I can say is to get Photoshop Elements (it's usually about $80) plus a decent instruction book, then dive in. Some people overdo the corrections it lets you make, so you have to be careful about that. But it's by far the cheapest and easiest way to make studio quality images without having a studio.

Best regards,
Chuck

Dear Twistjawa,

Thanks so much for your comments. The idea that my stuff might inspire someone else is pretty startling to me, but I do agree that Shaker design is a great north star to follow. It's partly a school of design, but it's also a philosophical ethos that says you should do the best you can, just for the sake of doing the best you can. Whatever quality my work has owes maybe a little to my limited skills (you should have seen the two lulu mistakes I made today), but a lot to the feeling that some Shaker ghost is watching and expecting me to meet their standard. I know that sounds corny, but it is pretty much the way I feel.

Best regards,
Chuck

Dear Yankeewoodworker,
I've bought wood from Lou Irion, too. Finding his place among the cornfields isn't easy. The cornice of the tiger maple dresser I posted 4/17 came from him. The cherry cradle is finished as follows: two coats of Minwax Antique Oil Finish, hand-rubbed, to start. I use this at first because it's a good penetrator that brings out the character of the wood. I follow that with three or four coats of Sam Maloof Oil/Poly finish (a mixture of tung oil, boiled linseed oil and varnish) rubbed on with 0000 steel wool followed by rubbing with a soft cloth (piece of old T-shirt.) This provides some build, a soft gloss and a sense of depth. You can buy this finish at lots of places. Just Google "Sam Maloof finish" and you'll get some choices. As for color, before applying any finish I let cherry pieces sit in direct sunlight for several hours, sometimes two or three days worth. Cherry darkens naturally in UV rays. This technique can make a big difference.

Dear reggieK, Thanks very much. Most kind of you.

Hi Mehitabel,
Glad you like it. The top was attached by screws recessed in holes through the cross pieces. The screws farthest out run in slots to allow for seasonal movement.

Yes, I would love a copy. Right up my alley.

Hi Pat,

Thanks very much. About the photos, some are taken with a digital camera (it doesn't matter what kind), and others were taken with a film camera. To put the latter online, I took the original print and scanned it. The whole process has basically two stages: 1) take the best photo you can and 2) use Photoshop Elements (about $60 at amazon.com) to replace the clutzy background (driveway, workshop, living room, etc.) with something that looks more like a photographer's studio. You can also use Photoshop to adjust the image's quality (light levels, color balance, color saturation, etc.), but you have to be careful not to go overboard with that. The goal isn't to improve on reality, but just to make sure the final image looks as good as the thing you're shooting. It's very common for your subject to look a lot better in real life than the image that comes straight from your camera.

In taking the picture, because I will use Photoshop Elements to create a soft shadow background, I try to take a soft shadow picture. I never use flash. Direct sunlight can be okay (it can make for a richer, livelier looking finish), but you should shoot from an angle that keeps the piece from casting hard shadows on itself. To me, bright overcast days or hazy clear days are good. One sunny day trick (see the candle sconce posted on April 15), is to place the object in the shade, but near the edge of a large shadow (perhaps cast by the roof line of a house). I then place a large piece of white mat board in the sunny area to reflect fill light on the piece in the shade. You can position the reflector in different ways to find the effect you like best. If you look at the candle sconce picture, you'll see that the wood has a nice warm, well-lighted character, but the shadow cast by the candlestick is very soft. If you have a hard-light picture of an object you can't re-shoot, don't give up. My oval divided tray (posted April 1) was shot in hard light. It still looks okay, and I'd be surprised if anyone thought, "Wait, what's that hard shadow doing there." The main photo of my sewing steps (posted April 6), was shot in hard light, but in a way that avoids shadows. The other sewing step photos were shot in soft light.

In shooting, you should also choose a good angle. Shooting something straight on can be dramatic, but it doesn’t create much sense of depth. So I always take a master shot at a three-quarter angle. Choosing the right focal length (zoom setting) can be important too. Wide angle can be dramatic, but it will create perspective distortion that you may or may not want. So I usually try various focal lengths to give myself options later on. A digital camera gives you that luxury. If your camera gives you zoom settings at equivalents of a 35mm film camera, a 50-55 mm zoom setting is about normal. Anything lower is wide angle, anything higher will be progressively telephoto. A lot of pros take portraits using a focal length in the 85-100 mm focal length. Whether or not this works for furniture is something you have to judge for yourself. It does tend to remove perspective that you might want.

As for Photoshop, it's too involved to explain all the details here, but here's the gist of it. I use the Polygonal Lasso tool and the Background Eraser to remove the background. I then adjust the image (again, within limits of reality) using Levels, Color Balance, Saturation adjustments. After that I open a new blank white background and then use the Move tool to put the original image on the blank background. I now have two layers that can be dealt with separately. On the background layer, I use the Gradient tool to create a rising, full-width shadow that reproduces the look of a studio's seamless background. I then use the brush tool (set for a soft edge and 1% opacity) to gradually build the appearance of soft shadows being cast by the object. This creates the sense that there's a surface beneath the object. I then go to the object’s layer and make additional corrections, if necessary. Then I flatten the image (making it one layer) and save it as a .jpg file.

There are several important tips and details left out of the above description. If you’ve never used Photoshop Elements, just get it, buy a book like “Photoshop Elements for Dummies” and start fooling around. You’ll pick it up pretty quickly. Just remember to make your image adjustments within reason. Some users overdo it, and it can make their pictures look tricked up.

Hope that helps.

Best regards,
Chuck

Dear FineWoodworking.com,

Thank you very much. I am truly flattered to have been chosen for this. There were so many deserving entries by other Shaker devotees. Seeing everyone's work together is a great thing. It does give a sense that there's at least a virtual Shaker community out there.

I sometimes feel a little apologetic about sticking so strictly to Shaker design. It obviates the need for so many woodworking skills - inlays, veneering, carving, complex-curve shaping, etc. - that I sometimes feel I'm playing it safe. But on the other hand, Shaker furniture is the only kind that truly thrills me. At the Whitney exhibition in 1986, the last object as you went out the door was a one-piece wooden grain shovel (now at the Shaker Museum in Chatham, NY). I was on my way back to work, and it just stopped me dead in my tracks. The handle was so beautifully shaped I couldn't stop staring at it. That the Shakers cared so intently about everything they did, even a shovel handle, is, to me, 300% admirable.

About the hutch the judges like best. I like it, too, but I posted it after the competition because I didn't think it was strictly Shaker enough to include in the event. It does share some Shaker design elements, but I can't think of any direct Shaker antecedents for it. Also, part of its purpose is to display things, and, near as I know, Shakers pretty much frowned on that.

My favorites among my entries are the cradle (posted 3/31), the 10-drawer cherry dresser (4/7), the candle sconce (4/15) and the trestle dining table (4/21).

It was great fun preparing all the photos. What I didn't expect were the generous comments from so many people and how nice it felt to make connections by responding.

Again, thanks very much for choosing me. This experience has been a real pleasure.

Best regards,
Chuck Griffith

Hi Africanchippy,
This is written after my reply to your comment about my barn red hutch. I was thinking about a contemporary furniture maker liking a Shaker style piece, and it reminded me that I've often thought that the American Shakers were in many ways the originators of modern furniture design. I don't know how much you know about the Shakers, but their furniture was simple and functional, but also has a timeless gracefulness than transcends utility. A wonderful book on the subject is "Shaker Design" by June Sprigg. It was the catalog for the famous Shaker exhibition at the Whitney Museum in New York in 1986. I was lucky enough to be there, but you can buy the book at amazon.com for about $27 USD. I recommend you give it a try. I can't imagine you won't find it rewarding.
Best regards,
Chuck Griffith

Hi Africanchippy,
Thanks, and what a coincidence. I'm normally not that into contemporary stuff, but I think the table you posted recently is inspired. I've never seen anything quite like it, but it has a certain grace to it, and, while it's very unusual, doesn't seem to be straining to be different. The various design elements work together in a nice, harmonious way. Would love to seem more of your work.
Best regards,
Chuck Griffith

Hi Twistjawa and Martino23,

Thanks for your comments. I think I have enough pictures left for four more Shaker posts, plus another if a current project gets done soon. The big birdseye maple came from Conway Hardwoods in Gaylordsville, CT. Unfortunately, the company's owner has decided to stop selling figured maple. When I bought it, I took it for granted that this stuff was easy to come by. I didn't know how lucky I had been. I don't have a web site, but if you click on my name at the top of a post you can see the whole deal all in one place. I think FWW.com's Gallery is a fine thing, a great way to see what other people are up to.

Hi twistjawa, God bless hard drives. I actually found my plans for this table. Here are the dimensions. Hope they make sense.

Top: 38.25 x 14.75 x .75
Legs: 27.25 x 1.25 x 1.25, taper to .75 starts 22.5 up
Sides: 10 x 4.625 (visible)
Back: 30 x 4.625 (visible)
Front cross: 30 x .625 x 1.25 plus 1/2" tails at each end
Front verts: 3 7/16 x .625 x 1.25 plus 1/4" tails at each end
Drawer fronts: 9.5 x 3.375

Hi Greg,

Thanks for your kind words. I was afraid that putting up so many posts might seem obnoxious. Glad to hear that somebody out there doesn't feel that way. Yes, Hancock Shaker Village is a great place. They let you walk around on your own, which you can't do at Canterbury. If you ever get a chance you should definitely visit Pleasant Hill in Kentucky. You can spend the night there in a Shaker building. The preservation was done by the same person who did Williamsburg. It's just perfect in every way. Sorry, but I've never made a washstand. I have done some compound angle dovetailing, and it's always fun. My first two posts (a cradle on 3/31 and a tray on 4/1) show them. The tray was especially interesting because the joints include a miter at the top. Good luck with your new house and workshop. Hope to see a post from you soon.

Best regards,
Chuck

Hi Twistjawa
The tables are 27 1/4" high. Top is 14 1/4" square. Legs are 1 1/16" thick at the top, tapered on the two inner sides to 5/8" at the bottom. Side aprons (not counting tenon) are 9 1/2" by 4 1/2". Back apron (not counting tenon) is 4 1/2" by 9 1/4". Drawer front is 9 3/16" by 3 3/8". The top is 3/4" thick, but tapered from the aprons out, for an edge thickness of 7/16". The aprons and legs are joined flush. Hope that helps.

Hi Martin,
Like the end tables you asked about, the top is dyed with Moser's water based Golden Amber Maple. I got it from Woodworker's Supply. To bring out the figure, I made an initial dye pass with a fairly thin solution. That way the figured areas (which are more open-pored, a little like end grain) pick up the color pretty well, while the unfigured areas aren't much affected. Then I lightly sand, knocking back what little color is on the unfinished areas, increasing the contrast even more. After that I probably did three coats of moderately intense dye. To me, there's more control with several coats of moderate dye than with one coat of deeper color. I then did a first coat of Minwax Antique Oil Finish which really brings out the figure, followed by several coats of tung oil, boiled linseed and urethane, rubbed on with 0000 steel wool. If you can find it, there's a good pre-mixed version of this finish marketed under Sam Maloof's name.

Hi Martin,
The tables were colored with water-based aniline dye, J.E. Moser's Golden Amber Maple. I have lots of vials of different color dye, but I use the Golden Amber Maple almost every time. These tables are fairly light so I couldn't have used more than two coats of dye (I don't remember exactly). But by using different numbers of coats, this one color can provide lots of variety. The gel varnish was rubbed on with 0000 steel wool. The brand was Bartley's Clear Satin. Each coat is super thin, so it takes about six to develop character and give depth the the birdseye's figure. Hope that helps.

Hi Dan,
Thanks for your note and, yes, I've darkened milk paint with black before. An example is the Shaker side table I posted April 9. For this dresser, though, I had previously achieved the exact look I wanted with straight color plus acrylic Clear Coat, so in making tests I was kind of thrown when that didn't happen. I then made tests with a couple kinds of oil which made the blue way darker than I wanted. While this was going on I started liking the lighter blue. The people I was making the dresser for liked it, so I went ahead. They're happy, so I'm happy. Another adventure with milk paint.

Hi Robert,
Really great. The figure on the drawer fronts is beautiful. I hope whoever owns it appreciates how special it is.

Thanks Woodn88s. Getting it done for Christmas was something of a challenge. I had to dovetail all the drawers (that's 36 corners) in four days. My back wasn't too happy. Timed the finishing to be done the day before my son's arrival. Then he called and said, "Good news, we're coming a day early." It all worked out.

Nice table. Your picture showed up almost full screen on my browser instead of the smaller picture I usually see. How did you cause that to happen?

Thanks Baldego, but, trust me, its quality isn't perfect. A couple little cracks developed in the top, I think because I made the dovetails too tight. They showed up a few months after it was finished. Also, I should have made the drawers a little less deep. In winter when the sides shrink in width, the drawers touch the back leaving a smidge of a space between the drawer lips and the dresser's body. It's not something anyone would notice, but it amazes me how many years it takes to learn how many things, big and small, can go wrong with a piece of furniture.

Hi Robert,
Thanks very much. I like your stuff too. Very impressed by what appears to be your use of hardwood for drawer sides, upping the ante for dovetail precision. I use poplar for sides which makes things a little easier. Nice work.

Absolutely fabulous. Especially with the two knobs for eyes on the top drawer. Hannah is truly gifted.

Very nice table. I visited your web site. Nicely designed and makes a positive professional impression. You have a lot of guts to start the business and keep it going. Best of luck to you. Especially these days.

Hi David,

I must have a clone out there because I haven't been to the J Appleseed event. Just Googled "j appleseed." Is it the J Appleseed Society in New Jersey? When and where is their event? The web site didn't have much information.

As for materials, the dramatic birdseye maple in the divided tray came from John Wilson in Charlotte, MI. He normally sells blanks for box tops and bottoms, but the quality of his materials is really superior, so I occasionally ask him for pieces dimensioned for other uses. He always obliges.

I haven't made many boxes lately. Maybe I'll get to it and see you at J Appleseed this year. Thanks for your note.

Best regards,
Chuck

Dear missingWA, Thanks very much, but I'm not sure how comfortable I am with that much praise. I do try to be polite, but I must confess that this table was made and given with a certain amount of self-interest. I definitely wanted to keep myself included in this golf group. The best part, though, is that after several trips together (including bonefishing in the Yucatan last October, fully paid for by him) this man and I have become very good friends. And that would be true whether he took me on trips on not.

Sorry I forgot to mention that. It was colored with water-based aniline dye, followed by many coats of gel varnish rubbed on with 0000 steel wool. To color it, I started with a light coat of dye which the striping picks up easily but that has less effect on the rest of the surface. Then I sanded lightly to reduce whatever color there was on the non-striped areas. This sort of jump-starts the accenting of the stripes. Then I think I did two applications of dye before varnishing. Thanks for your question.

How wonderful!

Thanks, Tom. It's amazing how quickly a baby can grow too big for one of these. In my granddaughter's case it took about seven months. Now it's full of dolls, which is fine. On the other hand, I made a cradle for a friend whose daughter was still crawling into it for naps when she was four. Warmed my heart.