A custom handmade cedar chest made from American Cherry. The chest's dimensions are: 31" wide, by 14" deep, by 18.5" high.
The cedar lined is 3/8" thick aromatic cedar. The interior volume is 4.7 cubic foot.
A custom handmade cedar chest made from American Cherry. The chest's dimensions are: 31" wide, by 14" deep, by 18.5" high.
The cedar lined is 3/8" thick aromatic cedar. The interior volume is 4.7 cubic foot.
The chest, in cherry, is about 50 lbs. Assuming the interior cedar is sanded once every 10 years to release the cedar wood oils, the interior should last for hundreds of years. With handmade dovetail construction the exterior case will match those years in construction that will not warp or shift. Thus this is a piece that should last many generations in a family and should become a true family heirloom.
The chest shown was made for my wife in 2007. Later I'll show two photos of the original to illustrate how American Cherry gets more beautiful with age. After 5 years this chest is becoming a mature cherry piece but in another 10 or 20 years it will be even better. My wife has already decided which granddaughter will inherit this piece.
These two images show the interior of the chest on the left and some details of the handmade dovetails on the right. The cedar used is 3/8" aromatic cedar. The top does not have a lock. The central hinge will hold the top stable a 4" from the close point. Lower then that the top will slowly close with minimal force. This design allows the unit to be used as a chest for many things with safety.
These last two photos show the chest shortly after it was constructed in 2007. The lighting is similar and the images
were taken in the same room. As you can see some of the dark flecks in American Cherry were visible originally. However the contrast
between the lighter area of the cherry wood and the darker ones has grown. This, in my opinion, shows off the beautiful wood better.
With the coming years this furniture piece will continue to "cherry up". My estimate is that about 1/2 of the
ultimate beauty in the wood has been relieved to date. But only many years will tell if I'm right.
As you might have noticed I've not mentioned cost. If you need to ask what the cost might be before you contact me perhaps you shouldn't bother. These handmade chest pieces take me about 70 to 80 hours to complete. Now that I'm over 70, this is about what I do in 3 fulltime weeks' efforts. I can make the chest a little larger, if desired. However, it is close to the limit I can ship via FedEx Ground.
I order my wood from Wall Lumber Co., about 80 miles from my home in Durham, NC. If you are interested in the exotic woods available you can go to their site using the link shown, click the Products item on the left of their Home Page and then take the Exotic Hardwood item - Wall Lumber Co. Since the major component of the chest's cost is my labor, to make one from an exotic wood adds some to the cost but only for the additional raw wood.
To see some exotic wood pieces you could look at my Wine Rack page.
Website created by George A. McGinn © 2002-2011.
Page last modified February 25, 2011
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