Brown Oak and Cherry Cabinet

[marcus]

This is a cabinet I've finished recently - it's for a local gallery so I was able to do exactly what I wanted for a change - bliss! The basic idea came from thinking about taking a usually cheap and cheerful method of construction (tongue and groove), but using it in a more refined way.....

The drawer handles are simply short lengths of 8mm brass rod, with indents filed into them for the fingers.....

Here it is with the door closed. To be honest if I started over I would make some changes to the structure of the carcasse - it's looks a little bit more austere than I wanted.

The unusual latch came about because I had wanted to carry on the "refined rustic" theme with a thumb latch, but found that the simple one I had planned got lost against the strong verticals of the door. So I came up with something to allow me to still have a latch, while at the same time complementing the verticals. I'm not really a metalworker so it was a bit of a learning curve. At least I now know how to silver solder!

Cheers

Marcus

 

[wizer]

Oh I really quite like this Marcus. Understated beauty.

 

[windows20]

got to say that looks great.

i want 1


andy

 

[Philly]

Love it! Kinda Country/Krenov?
Philly

 

[Tony Spear]

I don't normally comment on other peoples work (restrict myself to the more practical aspects), but I really like this.

Sort of Shaker with a modern twist?

 

[Ironballs]

Very nice piece, did you have any problems with those long pieces of English cherry or did they behave themselves? Lovely ripple/shimmer on them by the way

What did the library think?

Cheers

Damian

 

[The Shark]

Hi Marcus,
A lovely practical piece. Congrats!

Malc

 

[chris_d]

Hi Marcus,

I don't usually comment on stylistic posts but since this is for a gallery exhibit which is clearly inciting critique then I'll break my silence.

Whilst the piece is indeed a wonderful example of fine craftsmanship in a rustic style, its provenance doesn't quite stand up to my eye - surely the solid/veneered side panels should have been constructed using a rail and stile form with T&G infill, thus being more in keeping with the design cues of the whole piece?

Either way, it is beautifully made and looks stunning.

Just my two pence worth,
Chris

 

[xy mosian]

Now I do like that latch.
That wood work in wood as well of course.

As for the rest? GREAT.

xy

 

[Mr Ed]

A very clean looking piece - I like it a lot. Has some shades of Krenovian influence in there, which I like.

I also think you have photographed it very well, which makes a massive difference to how a piece comes across when not seeing it in the flesh.

Nice one,

Cheers, Ed

 

[ByronBlack]

Krenovian - check
Me like a lot - check

One of the nicest pieces I've seen on this forum this year, well done, it's a lovely piece of workmanship.

 

[Russ]

Very nice work... Love the draw handles.

Beautiful

Thanks for posting!

Russ

 

[OPJ]

Very nice and also good to see some brown oak and English cherry being used. :wink:

 

[woodbloke]

Marcus - as you say, the front is a little austere, but it's a great piece and I like the unusual latch arrangement for the door. Possibly a plinth of some sort would give a little extra weight to the overall proportion?...
Country Krenov...I like - Rob

 

[houtslager]

yep ! like it esp. the latch . Care to talk us non metal workers the how to

:wink:


hs

 

[outcycling]

I really like the first picture of the inside, the brass draw knobs and the finish/workmanship is great. But ... must say I am not a fan of the unit when the door is closed. But then I am no expert on furniture design and don't know what it was built to blend in with so most likely is spot on.
Thanks for posting.

 

[wizer]

You know, I'm an *****. You see. I showed this to my missus last night. Why'o'why do I do that!

:roll: :wink:

 

[laird]

I like that Marcus. Minimal but not, nice and light.

 

[marcus]

Thanks for all the feedback!

Ironballs, of the two boards of cherry I used, one was fine and the other tore out all over the place - in a couple of places even a scraper was struggling :shock:

Chris, my thinking is that the T&G door and back panel need the simplicity of the sides to work against. IMO to have the sides T&G as well would be overkill and would risk killing the effect....

Rob, I agree about some sort of plinth. If i made another cabinet like this I would probably make the top and bottom thicker and have them overlapping the sides, then run a simple moulding round them.

HS, I made up the methods for the latch as I went along so I've no idea if they are technically "correct" or not! It was made entirely from standard brass bar stock. I cut the components out using a hacksaw and piercing saw. I refined the shapes using a combination of files, a coarse diamond stone, a benchtop belt sander, and sandpaper. I made the joint between the latch and the vertical handle using silver solder. Where things needed to be square I used a piece of wood shaped like an n with the two legs of the n running on a benchtop and a diamond stone in the middle. I simply held the brass piece against this (there was a little 90 degree fence on it) and rubbed it over the stone.

There was a bit of machining on the small vertical component that holds the latch flush with the door (also shaped like an n). I removed the central bit of brass with a milling cutter and one of these http://www.axminster.co.uk/product-Axminster-SCV4-Cross-Vice-206618.htm in my drill press. This worked OK with very slow feed rate, but I would not recommend for more than occasional jobs!

Finally I polished to 500grit with wet and dry paper.

Cheers,

Marcus

 

[Paul Chapman]

Very nice work, Marcus - I like that a lot.

Cheers :wink:

Paul