Paintbrush Holder
Starting off my (hopefully) brief update with a single session project, a paintbrush holder. I had some scrap stock, and the container I used to hold clean brushes was due for replacement. As Alec Steele says, “When you need a tool, make a tool.”, and so I did. It’s not my best work, but I made it in about an hour, not counting the top coat (had to let the paint dry.)
Gift Box
I’m making a gift box, and the inner dimensions are to spec, so there wasn’t a ton of creative control as to the interior of the container.
The outside, however, was/is entirely up to me, and so I’m testing a few different engraving/embossing ideas to stretch my skills out a little. I did two twisted-rope style engravings on basswood, one as a single wound piece of rope, and a second that was supposed to look like two+ ropes somewhat braided. It still looks cool, like stacked seashells, but not quite what I was hoping.
My next idea is to stick to the same shape as the single rope, but rather than engrave it, I’ll cut out each loop of the rope individually (or laser cut it out) but have each piece alternate the grain, from horizontal to vertical. It would trick the eye into seeing the rotation better than the first attempt did I hope. It’ll also be the foreground, fixed to an ochre or ebony finish (i might just paint it black depending on how good the rope idea looks.) so lots of contrast, while staying distinguished.
Chessboard Update
Slow but steady progress on this front, as is expected. I had my most recent opportunity to take what looks like a stock photo from a corporate slide deck, but off-the-cuff it was a wholesome, if not good idea. We find our self-expression where we can. The black walnut I ordered came in 1/16″ short, so I think I’ll use that for the chess pieces later on, and I ordered some wenge 2″ blocks that are darker, and contract really well with the basswood I’m pairing them with. I’m going to use dowels that run the full length of the board, but aren’t visible on the outermost border of the board, as the basswood is very soft, and the wenge is very dense.
