May, 2005
This was a project I was reluctant to start. After all, the top is a gorgeous slab of tiger maple, and the legs are some beautiful ribbon grain mahogany. How was I supposed to grind half of that away?
I built this bench with the assistance of the Wood Whisperer himself, Marc Spagnuolo. Once the wood was selected, the top was ripped into three pieces, the middle one trimmed down to form open slots on both ends and it was glued together. The tops of the legs were cut into beefy mortises and fitted into the slots.
That’s when the fun really began. Using an angle grinder and an Arbortech carving wheel, I wasted out the necessary material to sculpt the graceful forms. Once the curves were finally cut and finessed, I used epoxy and screws to attach the legs to the seat, and plugged the screw holes with pyramid-shaped ebony plugs.
The finish was a 1# cut of dewaxed shellac sanded down with 320 grit paper once it dried. After dusting the piece down, I finished it with three coats of natural Watco Danish Oil and a coat of paste furniture wax.
This piece won best in its class in an art contest conducted by the National Arts Program, and it has an honored place in our living room, right under one of our large sunny front windows.
Now, all the neighbors want one…
great work. what are the dimensions?
Hey Tom. I was always impressed with the final outcome of your project. You did an awesome job. But I think you posted the wrong pictures. I recall a few that including you holding a flower and sitting pretty. Where are those? lol
Tom – it’s about 9″ wide by 22″ tall by about 24″ long. I could throw a tape on it tonight and get you the specifics.
Marc – Yes, I was sitting pretty that day. Lemme dig up the CD and see if I can post a few of the sillier ones…
Hey Tom,
Sylvia’s been bugging me about a yoga stool she saw at one of her seminars. She hasn’t drawn it out for me, but I suspect the feel is similar. Looks like a power carving tool is in my future!
Nice stool. I’m looking forward to the photos Marc eluded to:D
You wanted more shots? You got ’em!
Nicole, Marc and Tom heading off to drink…
http://i61.photobucket.com/albums/h43/Tampa_Tom/Contemplation%20bench%20build/DSC04303.jpg
Sawdust Angels
http://i61.photobucket.com/albums/h43/Tampa_Tom/Contemplation%20bench%20build/DSC04347.jpg
Sculpt the bench seat to fit my butt
http://i61.photobucket.com/albums/h43/Tampa_Tom/Contemplation%20bench%20build/DSC04260.jpg
And, yes, I’m sitting pretty
http://i61.photobucket.com/albums/h43/Tampa_Tom/Contemplation%20bench%20build/DSC04508.jpg
Why the necessity for grinding? Would a band saw work?
That’s just one way to do it. A band saw could work just as well.
Tom,
I had a lot of fun building this bench, thank you. If your interested, I did a build thread on woodworkingtalk.com were you can see my bench.
Thank you for the inspiration and your article on woodcraft.com