# New jewelry box in progress



## Masterjer (Nov 6, 2012)

I Have 2 daughters that both have birthdays next week, they're not twins though, I guess my wife and I just follow a regular routine. One is turning 16 and the other 14. I wanted to make a nice keepsake for them, and I've decided they both need a jewelry box. Carcass is pretty much done. I used walnut runners for the drawer slides and cut dadoes on the TS before gluing the pieces together. 









I had to cut an awful lot of small drawer pieces, I feel like I'm in a production shop. All I can say is I'm so glad for stop blocks and my new drum sander. It took care of all the tiny drawer pieces with ease. 

The drawers are put together with rabbets in the front and back and a rabbet along the bottom edge for the drawer bottom. I then used my pin nailer to hold everything together while the glue dries. 









I used my dado stack to cut grooves along the drawer sides to ride on the runners in the carcass. 









Here is my progress so far. I haven't started with the pretty stuff yet. This part is all maple, but I'll be using bubinga and curly maple for the parts that show.


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## Burb (Nov 30, 2012)

That is exactly what I plan on building for my daughter in about 1-2 months. I am begging you to take lots of photos and do a detailed build thread :yes: I know I will appreciate it, as I'm sure others will too.

I think the only thing I plan on doing slightly different is I was going to use sliding dovetails for the main supports and the top/bottom.


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## Masterjer (Nov 6, 2012)

I'll do what I can Burb. The birthdays are next week so I'll be busy this weekend to get them built so I have enough time for a few coats of BLO to finish it.


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## Burb (Nov 30, 2012)

Masterjer said:


> I'll do what I can Burb. The birthdays are next week so I'll be busy this weekend to get them built so I have enough time for a few coats of BLO to finish it.


I will be appreciative of anything you can provide. I have some ideas on what I plan on doing, but you are right inline with my plans.

Mark


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## johnnie52 (Feb 16, 2009)

I don't know what you have planned, but with all the drawers made for both pieces, you've gone past the really hard parts and it all looks great.

Your Daughters will love them. :thumbsup:


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## ssgtjoenunez (Jan 14, 2014)

Masterjer said:


> I Have 2 daughters that both have birthdays next week, they're not twins though, I guess my wife and I just follow a regular routine. One is turning 16 and the other 14.


I've got three sons and two of them have a birthday a week apart from one another. They turn 7 and 5 at the end of this month...for the third I told my wife we needed to make a conscious effort to offset him because I couldn't afford another birthday in such a short time. I forgot to mention her birthday is right in the middle of the week of the two boys. March 29, April 1st and April 5. 

Nice work by the way!


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## Masterjer (Nov 6, 2012)

More progress lately. I got the drawer fronts attached. I used a nice piece of figured maple that I resawed to book match the top 3 drawers with the bottom 3. 








This was my first time resawing and I am really liking the book match look. I resawed some bubinga to make the doors. I wanted to try a box joint and made a jig for that. It was a near disaster. Some parts didn't fit, and the fit was quite sloppy. I now appreciate everyone who makes this joint look so good. 

Here's my simple box joint jig.








Here's the box joint. A little sloppy. But after much adjusting the jig, I got an acceptable fit.








Rather than sanding it all down, I decided to run it across the router with a 1/2" roundover bit and I am so glad that I did. It really came together and looks amazing. 









I just need to do some final assembly and start finishing.


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## Burb (Nov 30, 2012)

Thanks for sharing. I really like how you did the doors. I hadn't thought of that but I did wonder how'd i do mine. It could be a reason for me to buy a dovetail jig.

Mark


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## Masterjer (Nov 6, 2012)

After a long night in the shop, I am nearly done. The doors are attached and swing well, although they don't want to stay closed on their own. I was planning on installing magnets anyway for this purpose. 



















Here's the detail of the box joint doors. I really like how these turned out. 









After one coat of boiled linseed oil, the natural beauty of the wood just blows me away. This is my first time working with bubinga, and I'm a huge fan of the colors and grain patterns. My favorite is the book matched doors with the light streaks running down the middle. 









My phone camera with fluorescent lights doesn't show the true beauty of the wood. I'll get a better pic when I bring it inside. I need to add handles and finish with the velvet treatment in the drawers.


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## Burb (Nov 30, 2012)

You have done a beautiful job!! I hope mine turns out half as nice. I, too, really like the rounded box joints. I may go that route versus dovetail. Who knows. 

Thanks for sharing this project. I'm sure I'll refer to it often.

Mark


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## Smith Brother (Dec 9, 2012)

Maybe place one up on a stool draped with a white sheet/cloth, then photo them. See how that works. 

The background should be white too, maybe. 

You will figure it out, NICE BUILD.

Dale in Indy


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## Midlandbob (Sep 5, 2011)

t's interesting that your "box joints" seem to be done in the side of the boards rather than the usual ends. All the contact surfaces are end grain to side grain.?
Did you consider this.?
The result looks good. Was ther a reason you didn't do it the usual way.. Your box will get slightly bigger with any Chang of humidity, maybe 10th to 1/4 inch?
The moulding along the bottom is cross grain as well. Is it fastened with a sliding dovetail.?
Have you done this before with lasting results or seen it somewhere? There must be something I'm missing?..??


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## Broken Bat (Sep 4, 2012)

Great looking jewelry box!! Good call on book matching the drawer fronts, that makes for a really nice effect.


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## Masterjer (Nov 6, 2012)

Midlandbob said:


> t's interesting that your "box joints" seem to be done in the side of the boards rather than the usual ends. All the contact surfaces are end grain to side grain.? Did you consider this.? The result looks good. Was ther a reason you didn't do it the usual way.. Your box will get slightly bigger with any Chang of humidity, maybe 10th to 1/4 inch? The moulding along the bottom is cross grain as well. Is it fastened with a sliding dovetail.? Have you done this before with lasting results or seen it somewhere? There must be something I'm missing?..??


Hi MidlandBob. Your question about grain direction poses some interesting questions. After thinking about it, I think the direction of grain I used for the box joints will be at least as strong, if not stronger, than the traditional way of using grain direction. In a traditional box joint where the board is stood on end to cut the box joints, the finger to finger contact will be long grain; however, in the directions you apply clamping pressure, the joint is end grain to long grain. 

In the way I cut them, the clamping pressure will join long grain to long grain. Granted, the finger to finger connection is end grain to end grain, but that is not where the majority of the strength of this joint comes from. I don't apply any clamp pressure to secure the finger to finger interaction. I did it this way because I wanted the doors to display a vertical book matched grain pattern. I didn't give any thought about the box joint grain direction, and I appreciate you bringing it up as a regular concern I need to think about in future projects. 

I'm also not concerned about movement in the finger joint, since the fingers are only 1/2" wide and movement over that small distance will be tiny. 

As for the bottom trim piece, the grain was really wild in that piece of lumber. I actually did use that board with the long grain running along its length. However, as you pointed out, the grain got pretty wild along some sections of it that it turned and looks like I used the board cross grain. I glued and pin nailed that board in place. I'll have to provide an update if that piece starts to move too much over the years and opens up at the joints. 

Thanks for the compliments and questions.


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## Masterjer (Nov 6, 2012)

Burb said:


> You have done a beautiful job!! I hope mine turns out half as nice. I, too, really like the rounded box joints. I may go that route versus dovetail. Who knows. Thanks for sharing this project. I'm sure I'll refer to it often. Mark


Mark,

Glad you liked it. I hope there was enough detail to be helpful. As for what I would do differently next time, I will have the back of the box extend all the way to the sides and the doors would be an "L" shape when viewed from above rather than a "U" shape the way I did them. The reason is that where the doors are hinged, they open like gull wings, so the box cannot be up against a wall and have the doors open. 

I still have one more detail to build and then I'll document it. It's a hidden secret compartment.


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## Masterjer (Nov 6, 2012)

Smith Brother said:


> Maybe place one up on a stool draped with a white sheet/cloth, then photo them. See how that works. The background should be white too, maybe. You will figure it out, NICE BUILD. Dale in Indy


Thanks for the kind words and suggestions Dale. I still need a few more coats of BLO and then I'll probably wax it and shine it up a bit.


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## Masterjer (Nov 6, 2012)

I gave the jewelry box to my daughter yesterday and she was completely blown away. She had no idea I had been working on it for her. She loves the colors and the design. Her friends were blown away too when they saw it. They couldn't believe I could build something like that. A year ago, I couldn't. I have learned so much from the great people on this forum, and I am appreciative to all of you who provide helpful comments in all the various threads. 

I have one more box half way built and I have another daughter's birthday tomorrow that will be receiving that one. She already knows it won't be done in time, and she's ok with that. She's my woodworking buddy and helped me with the design in the first place, so no surprise for her there. This one will be walnut and curly maple. I hope it turns out as nice as the first one.


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## Burb (Nov 30, 2012)

Masterjer said:


> Mark, Glad you liked it. I hope there was enough detail to be helpful. As for what I would do differently next time, I will have the back of the box extend all the way to the sides and the doors would be an "L" shape when viewed from above rather than a "U" shape the way I did them. The reason is that where the doors are hinged, they open like gull wings, so the box cannot be up against a wall and have the doors open. I still have one more detail to build and then I'll document it. It's a hidden secret compartment.


I have no complaints about how you documented this and appreciate it immensely. As for your "u" vs " L" doors, that was actually my original plan but you had me rethinking it. 

I'm excited about your hidden compartment. I had thought of making one of the front drawers shorter and then having a compartment slide out from the back.


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## ssgtjoenunez (Jan 14, 2014)

Masterjer said:


> More progress lately. I got the drawer fronts attached. I used a nice piece of figured maple that I resawed to book match the top 3 drawers with the bottom 3.
> View attachment 90334
> 
> 
> ...



I would have never thought about using a roundover bit on a box joint - I guess I'd be worried about chip out or damaging the fingers.

You clearly didn't have that problem and the result is nothing short of breathtaking. I really like how it turned out.


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## Masterjer (Nov 6, 2012)

ssgtjoenunez said:


> I would have never thought about using a roundover bit on a box joint - I guess I'd be worried about chip out or damaging the fingers. You clearly didn't have that problem and the result is nothing short of breathtaking. I really like how it turned out.


I was also worried about chip out. However, since I made the box joints on the sides of the boards rather than the ends of the boards, the router was running along the grain rather than across the grain. I'm not sure it would work as well if the router was cutting across the grain. 

I did glue up one of my box joint samples and ran it across the router as a test and was very happy with the results.


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## rayking49 (Nov 6, 2011)

Wow I love the wood choices and the design. I like the gull wing design myself.


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## Midlandbob (Sep 5, 2011)

Thanks for your reply. You are getting lots of praise for the work in the box.
Not to belabour bur the box joint clamping holds it tight while the glue sets up in the fingers. But most well fitted box joints almost need not glue.
The movement I was curious about is not over the finger length but the width of the side. The 10 inch side will change width by 1/10 04 more over seasons. This can impact any areas where there in cross grain like the base moulding. These factors work if they are accounted for with joints that allow expansion like putting the moulding on with a sliding dovetail or just fixing at one end with the length floating and possibly a slotted connector at the other end. I'm sure you have accounted on that but just in case others did the build without the planning. Enjoy, looks good.


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## Masterjer (Nov 6, 2012)

*Finished projects*

I wanted to close out this thread and show the final photos, including the secret compartment. I finished two of these boxes. The build pics showed the bubinga and maple box, the other box I did was walnut and maple. The finish is several coats of boiled linseed oil. Here is the finished bubinga box:

















If you look closely, you can plainly see the hidden compartment from the back. However, I doubt most non-woodworkers will ever notice it.








I used a magnetic plunger catch, so when you push inward on the bottom trim, a drawer pops out.


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## Sorrowful Jones (Nov 28, 2010)

Very nice jewelry box....now, fill it up! :laughing:


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## Masterjer (Nov 6, 2012)

Here's the detail on the secret drawer.









Here's the finished walnut/maple box.










I wanted to try something new on this box, and this was my first attempt at using a veneer. I used a burl walnut veneer on the top and while not perfect, I think it came out ok.










My sheets of veneer weren't long enough to cover the top, so I decided to route a large profile into the edges of the top, and I was very glad my bit was sharp enough to cleanly cut through the veneer rather than chip it out.

I have a question for the veneer pros: how do you get the veneer to feel flat after gluing it on the substrate? My substrate is solid walnut and I sanded it to 320 and it felt very flat and smooth. However, after applying the veneer and lightly sanding with 320, the veneer feels very bumpy. It is smooth to the touch, but feels like there are a lot of hills and valleys in it. I used light pressure with my ROS and 320 grit paper. I'm wondering if the burl of the walnut caused the sanding be very uneven from face grain to end grain thereby creating hills and valleys. 

I also need to learn how to do a better seam. It is clearly visible, but not so much as to detract from the beauty of the wood.

These were great projects that allowed me to learn a lot of new skills and my daughters couldn't be happier with them.


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## mike1950 (Aug 29, 2010)

Sorry I missed this thread up to now. Very nice work Jeremy. I really like the design and the wood choices.:thumbsup::yes:


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## Burb (Nov 30, 2012)

Absolutely beautiful project!!

Mark


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## Travico (Dec 25, 2012)

I am going to have to save this thread as a GO BY BUILD. I am suppose to be building one for my youngest daughter, just have not got to that project yet!! That is a nice build you go going on there!!


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## d_slat (Apr 10, 2012)

Just found this thread, these turned out AWESOME! I love the design of the side doors, where did you get the idea?


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## jdpber (Mar 25, 2014)

you get an A+ and a gold star on this project


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## Masterjer (Nov 6, 2012)

d_slat said:


> Just found this thread, these turned out AWESOME! I love the design of the side doors, where did you get the idea?


I can't take credit for the overall design, I saw something similar on the web. However, the rounded box joints were kind of my way of covering up my sloppy box joints. I glued up my samples from my box joint jig and was not happy with how it looked. I tried passing it across the router just to see what would happen and I immediately loved the look of the rounded box joint.


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## Masterjer (Nov 6, 2012)

jdpber said:


> you get an A+ and a gold star on this project


I love gold stars. I need to find a way to incorporate them into my projects. Haha. 

As an aside, I wrote a secret note inside the boxes that my daughters will hopefully find some day. They'll have to take the drawers out the look inside the carcass.


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