Project mistakes

[Greg Book]

Does anyone else obsess about the mistakes they've made in their projects? I find myself finding flaws in all my projects after they're complete. Some mistakes are only noticeable to me, and some are quite obvious.

I started thinking about this when I built a toybox for my daughter recently. She's only 3 years old, about 3 feet tall... and the box I built is approximately 30" high. The box opens at the top and she can barely reach in, let alone reach anything at the bottom! I only realized this incredibly stupid design flaw when I first gave it to her and she said "Daddy, I can't reach the bottom".

Doh!

[Brian Tymchak]

I started thinking about this when I built a toybox for my daughter recently. She's only 3 years old, about 3 feet tall... and the box I built is approximately 30" high. The box opens at the top and she can barely reach in, let alone reach anything at the bottom! I only realized this incredibly stupid design flaw when I first gave it to her and she said "Daddy, I can't reach the bottom".

Doh!

...It's not a design flaw... You just haven't completed the project yet...

Phase 2 is to add in the step stool and whatever else is necessary to make access easier. And that can be subtracted or used for other things in a few years when no longer needed.

[Steve Jenkins]

That's one way we improve our techniques. as we gain more experience the flaws we find are smaller. as for your toybox how about taking the top off tossing the box on the table saw and cut it down then remount the top. Depending on the design it may be easy to do and not effect the looks at all.

[Troy Turner]

If I told you I didn't, I'd be lying Every project has something wrong with it, but only I know what and where and yes, I do learn from it for the next time (if I remember).

How's about just putting a floating shelf in there on some runners. When she gets taller, just remove it and it's full size again.

[Craig Michael]

On your project, my thought is along the lines of Troy's suggestion. That type of "mistake" is an easy thing to deal with and not really a mistake but just an oversight.

On mistakes or things such as that. I am a perfectionist so yes I do notice every thing that isn't perfect and if I don't take a deep breath and move on mentally then it would drive me crazy. But when I look at something that has an error, the first thing I look at each time is the part that isn't perfect. Some are so small or maybe even just things like I should have made something 1 inch wider, etc.

[bill schmoott]

Greg, I have never completed a project and said Ahhhhhh! Now thats just perfect. Every time you build something new it is a learning experience. Unless you turn right around and build that same project again and again to correct these oversights they will always be there. Now what fun would that be. And what you refer to as "mistakes" are part of the learning process. I am finishing up a new table for my girlfriend for Valentines. She just loves it. I look at it and kind of cringe at the way certain aspects of it turned out. My dad always told me the sign of a good carpenter was the ability to hide his mistakes. Relax, most things that you see as mistakes go completely unnoticed to everyone else.

[Ernie Miller]

In the old days (400 years ago), harpsichord builders would purposefully make a mistake, usually on the keyboard, because only God is perfect. I don't have to do this on my instruments because I show my reverence without the need for on-purpose errors.

[Kevin Godshall]

I don't view your design as a mistake. It is merely planning for future use. If you had made it the "correct" size for her, in a few years, it would be too small to be useful to her. Now she has something she can grow with and maybe graduate it from a toy box to a blanket chest. You didn't make a mistake, but you may have created an heirloom.

[Prashun Patel]

I've done the same thing. Don't feel bad. I feel worst about finishing mistakes, because they're always a function of my laziness to do things right - not honest mistakes.

I think yr daughter's chest is not a problem though. You can add a false bottom to the inside that lifts up and out for hidden storage. Make a complimentary step stool/foot rest that'll also allow the chest to double as a bench as well as provide better access to the inside. Although, by the time you finish these additions, she'll probably be big enough to live with it as is!!!

I've made many an errant cut on the wrong side of a project - or made a dado too wide. I realized I loved this craft when I realized I liked figuring out how to solve those problems.

[Jeremy Brant]

Remember, as a parent, that not being able to reach into the bottom of the toy chest means those toys will not be left on the floor to be picked up by mom or dad. This is a blessing in disguise! (This coming from a dad with a 2 1/2 year old boy at home, and a similar toy box built by dad).

[Mark ten Haaf]

I know exactly what you're talking about - especially with cosmetic blemishes. Every single decorative concrete project I've done has spots that I just couldn't get right, but like Troy said, I'm the only one who knew about them. Still, I was always uncomfortable showing them because I knew they could've been a bit better.

[Tim Mahoney]

Not to worry, your children will get bigger and then will be able to reach. Reminds me of a rocker I made for my son when he was about 3 or 4. I made the rockers to steep. The first and only time he sat in it he fell over backwards and wouldn't sit it in again. We still laugh about it whenever he sees a rocker and rockers is what I do most these days. Add some temp shelves as suggested. Looking forward to some pics.

[Michael MacDonald]

my mind often goes back to the stupid things I did in high school and college... I even have one thing from gradeschool that still bothers me--makes me wince when I think of it. I do not get too upset about the woodworking mistakes... I wonder why. e.g. I cut six parallel flutes in a bed rail last winter, and I didn't notice until the end that on some of the flutes, the guides on the router were sliding...so one or two flutes stray off track by a 1/4 inch... not too noticable, and I actually had to think hard to remember it. I actually thought of it as a hallmark of handmade (or at least, a hallmark of handmade by me)... still think that.

execution mistakes and design mistakes are a bit different. since it bothers you, why not fix or re-purpose the box, and build another? The main thing to remember is that when she is older she is going to remember that her daddy built her a toy box... and that is a great thought.

[Prashun Patel]

Ok Michael. What's the thing from gradeschool? You can't drop that hint and then leave us hangin'.

[Lee Schierer]

I can show you mistakes on nearly every project I make. Mostly I know they are there others don't. It's called learning.

As my Dad used to say "in a hundred years it won't matter any way." Besides, she is going to grow and if she is anything like my kids it won't take long for her to figure out how to reach the bottom. As a temporary fix make an insert with short legs to raise up the inside bottom until she grows.

The hardest part of this project will be getting her to actually keep the toys in the box. DAMHIKT.