Pagoda Light & Shadow Box

[Walney Col]

The roof joint ready to be assembled and glued;

How it'll fit together;

A quick try on top of the light box before I lay it on the bench with a weight on each corner to keep it flat till the glue cures.
Note that the very top of the roof joint still needs to be sanded to blend in with the curve on the top of the side pieces;

The roof is cut from oak while all the rest is pine (I scrapped what little bit of beech I had to start with trying to route slots in it) so I think I'll oil the roof after final cleanup to deliberately accentuate the difference.

Next job is tarting it up a bit/adding splashes of colour for which I'm using the following photos and the japanese equivalent of relevant words for inspiration. (From the recipients point of view this is probably the point at which I either look really clever or fall flat on my face. )

Oh yes, and most of the LEDs arrived in the post this morning but not the ones that I thought most likely to succeed to that's going to have to be put off til monday now.

Col.

 

[Walney Col]

After sanding;

After Oiling;

It's only a short time till a wee while from now...

 

[Scrollerman]

Good result on the roof Col. =D>
Looking forward to maybe the most important part of this project, the lighting.

 

[Walney Col]

I'm pretty confident I can sort the lighting out scrollerman but I'm now toying with the idea of using acrylic paints to enhance the cutouts on the panels and it's that bit that I'm most worried about. Nothing ventured nothing gained, or so they say.. but on the other hand it isn't half looking pretty just the way it is eeek!

 

[Walney Col]

I got a bit more done today.
First up was adding the Japanese words that describe the scenes which all illustrate one aspect of traditional Japanese culture;

I then used acrylic paint to highlight some of the edges in the panels;

Using a prit stick I then tacked some tissue paper crudely to the back of the two sides featuring Geisha just to see how they'd look with an ordinary tea light candle in full daylight with the curtains drawn and I was quite pleased;

I've got a pack of about 20 different shades of tissue paper so next up will be trying to use it to colour the illuminated cutouts. If it works it works and if it doesn't then I'm still pleased with how it looks now with just white tissue.

The bad news with tea lights is that in order to cast a half decent shadow the back of the box has to be well within a foot of a wall (which might be ok) so I'm still planning on modding a couple of LEDs when they arrive tomorrow which I know will give a much brighter (not to mention safer) light. It'd be nice is I could give it away capable of working straight out of the box with tea light candles OR an LED setup to make it more versatile so that'll be in the back of my mind also when the LEDs arrive.

Col.

 

[Walney Col]

Added a touch of colour to the front panel and still running on one candle power

The shadow casting panel (the crane) has no tissue paper in it and looked a bit sharper in real life than it does in this next photo in which it was probably around 2" from the wall which is painted light green matt emulsion.

Col.

 

[Scrollerman]

That added colour makes the world of difference and gives a really nice contrast !

 

[Walney Col]

One final update on how I attached the roof.
There's a peg on all four corners but only the front two do anything, the back two are just for show.

There's still no sign of the LED bulbs I ordered last wednesday and my sister's coming to on friday so I may have to give her it just running of a night light.

Thanks for all your interest and don't forget if you want to download the free plans just follow the link in my sig.

Col.

 

[lanemaux]

My earlier post was wrong , the additional accent of the colours is just right. I doff my cap mi amigo, bravo!

 

[Claymore]

Excellent Colin and i'm sure your sister will love it! what's next project?
Brian

 

[Walney Col]

My earlier post was wrong , the additional accent of the colours is just right. I doff my cap mi amigo, bravo!

That means a lot to me. Thank you, and have fun!

Col.

 

[Walney Col]

Excellent Colin and i'm sure your sister will love it! what's next project?
Brian

Next up is a bit of turning. I began a small mahogany bowl a few weeks ago when I bought a charnwood mini lathe but it couldn't pull the skin off a rice pudding so I sent it back and bought an axminster instead which I've barely had time to look at yet. Not sure if I'll be posting about it though, I'm not even sure which end of the chisels I'm supposed to hold yet.

Col.

 

[Walney Col]

That added colour makes the world of difference and gives a really nice contrast !

Thanks scrollerman, personally I think it could do with just a wee bit more colour but the lacquer's on now and I'm still waiting for those damn LEDs and my sister's due here friday so it'll have to do as it is.

Col.

 

[Walney Col]

30 minutes long and wall to wall Japanese music so if that's not to your taste I apologise in advance

[youtube]a48QPViryS4[/youtube]

 

[tony]

Hi Col , greetings from across the bridge in sunny Barrow . I have been reading your posts for a while now & really enjoyed them , I assumed you were also a turner as well as a scroller , anyway I don't know whether you are aware but there is a woodcraft club in St Matthews church hall on Hartington St . They do scrolling , turning , pyrography & carving , I mention it firstly just to make you aware if you don't already know & secondly to let you know that there is a woodturning demo on at 18.30 tonight with Nick Arnull , professional turner . The rooms are on the 1st floor though & there is a steep staircase to climb , I was not sure how you were health & mobility wise . You would be very welcome to attend, but clubs are not everyones cup of tea , cheers for now , Tony

 

[Walney Col]

You would be very welcome to attend, but clubs are not everyones cup of tea , cheers for now , Tony

Hi Tony.

That's amazing. I was just talking to the wife the other day about how far it was to the Kendal club. I'd no idea there was one just over the bridge but if you're going tonight hopefully I'll see you there and thanks for the heads up!

Col.

 

[tony]

Hi Colin , im not sure whether I will make tonight , but im sure you will enjoy it if you get there & hopefully we will meet up in the future. There is normally a small door charge for these demos , it could be £3 to £5 & you will get a brew + biscuits , cheers Tony . ( The church I am talking about by the way is on the same block as the kings hall & just up the st a bit )

 

[Scrollerman]

Hi Col.
Just watched the video, really enjoyed it and I'd like to thank you for taking the time and effort in making it for the benefit of us all. =D>

 

[scrimper]

30 minutes long and wall to wall Japanese music so if that's not to your taste I apologise in advance

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a48QPViryS4

Absolutely brilliant video, and a lovely item at the end of it. Very well done indeed.

FWIW The music on the video is excellent too, (I know the first track it's the hit song Sukiaki by Kyu Sakamoto)

How do you manage to make the video as well as making the project? I would find doing either one difficult without trying to do the two together!

The light is really effective 10/10 IMHO.