Of the small number of pieces of furniture that I've made, all have been painted projects so this was a first on many levels. This project was particularly meaningful as it was for our son and it meant the graduation from a toddler bed/crib to a big-boy double bed. In the months of building the bed, most of the time he was excited when I showed it to him but there were days where he said, "no, I don't want it!" So, not knowing what to expect exactly, tonight is his first night in the bed and since the lights went out, he's been sound asleep without a fuss. I think I have my answer, which is rewarding!
The bed is mission style and made of solid cherry with walnut accent plugs, along with poplar for the cleats and mattress slats. The construction was simple and straight forward but alot of attention to detail, which I enjoy--that must be the engineer in me talking! A majority of the joinery is mortise and tenon with the exception of biscuits for attaching the corbels and the cap rails. The bed hardware, which came from Rockler, was an adventure with mortising the hardware in for the bed rails. With a little ingenuity, alot of thinking, a ladder, a router, and a jig made the process about as straight forward as possible--just time consuming!
The finish is BLO, two washcoats of garnet shellac, followed by six wiping coats of Behlen's Rock Hard varnish. I learned very quickly that I know nothing about finishing and I have to thank my neighbor, Scott Holmes, for all of his help in opening my eyes to finishing and just scratching the surface to what's out there. Thanks, Scott!
It sounds like an acceptance speech but I'd like to thank John "Sarge" Thompson for being my unofficial mentor for several years now. He always shares his opinion, which I appreciate, extensive experience, and is always available and willing to answer my questions, regardless of how entry-level they may be. No other way to say it but thank you for your willingness to teach! Thanks, Sarge!
Any comments and criticisms are welcome!
Brett
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