CRAFTSMAN-STYLE

BRIDE’S CHEST

© 2014 August Home Publishing Co.

Heirloom
Project

Craftsman-Style
Bride’s Chest
Functionality and beauty combine in this classic piece of American fine
furniture. Best of all, it’s every bit as practical as it is attractive.
You don’t have to be a new bride to The chest consists of six frame and the hardware. I was struck by the hand-
appreciate the beauty and utility of this panel assemblies: the front, back, sides, wrought steel corner braces on the
traditional chest. The Craftsman-style bottom, and lid. While there are a few original chest. But when I looked at the
design is loosely based on a Gustav subtle differences between the panels, options for similar hardware, I wasn’t
Stickley original from the early 1900s. the techniques used to make them all able to find anything comparable.
The design is both timeless and straight- are the same throughout the project. I Instead, I used some steel from the
forward to build. used straight-grained white oak, the hardware store and a few pyramid-
The chest not only looks attractive, traditional choice for Craftsman-style head nails. I found the steel was easy to
but it also offers lots of storage. In addi- furniture, for the frames and panels. work using common shop tools, and a
tion to the large interior space, I added Although the woodworking tech- few simple metalworking techniques.
a lift-out tray for keeping smaller items niques are not unusual, I did try my With the addition of a patina solution,
out of the main compartment. hand at a bit of metalworking to make it makes a convincing instant antique.

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Construction Overview / OVERALL DIMENSIONS: 421⁄2"W x 22”H x 175⁄8"D

Lift-out tray is
perfect for
storing smaller
items
Torsion hinges
prevent fingers from Aromatic cedar
being pinched by tray bottom is
holding the lid open a traditional
in any position design element

Shop-made
metal corner
braces add an
authentic
look to the Each component of
chest the chest is a frame
and panel assembly
using stub tenon and
groove joinery

Aromatic cedar
panels in the bottom
Straight-grained, solid are glued up from
white oak used for all narrower tongue and
frame parts and the groove blanks
panels in the front,
back, sides, and lid Decorative
corbels are glued
to the stiles
Mitered corners are
reinforced by hardwood Filler strips fit into the
splines to ensure a grooves at the bottom of
sturdy, long-lasting joint the stiles

{ The lift-out tray features an aromatic { The process for chemically antiquing the { In addition to the quartersawn white oak,
cedar bottom. The tray is also divided into steel braces is pretty straightforward, and the decorative corbels give the chest a
three sections for convenient storage. the pyramid-head nails add authenticity. classic, Craftsman design element.

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 NOTE: For detailed
a. TOP instructions on cutting
!/2 VIEW hinge mortises, refer FRONT TOP RAIL
to page 11
#/8 A
C

Making the
!/4
!/4 (/16 #/8
38 2!/2

FRAMES 4!/4
1
BACK TOP
RAIL
A

E
The chest is made up of a group of frame SPLINE C
21
and panel assemblies: The front, back, b. (!/4"x &/16") STILE
lid, bottom, and two sides. Each one D 14!/2
#/4 A
is made up of a hardwood frame and
solid-wood panels. This frame and panel
B
design relies on stub tenon and groove
!/2 1#/4
joinery, which is both strong and easy to D

cut at the table saw. c. !/2 NOTE: All frame

D
38
You’ll note that the stiles on each of pieces are made DIVIDER 2!/2
C from 1"-thick
these frames are mitered and splines are hardwood 3
added to help with alignment during the B
glueup. I started by making the front and d.
back frames, then the two sides. C !/2

FRONT & BACK FRAMES

The front and back frames are identical
except for the hinge mortises in the back
top rail (left drawing below) For more
on the hinge mortises, refer to page 11.
THICKNESS. I started by planing several
5/4 boards down to a final thickness of
1". The thickness is not only true to the
original Stickley design, but it’s perfect
for a sturdy chest that will potentially
see several generations of use.
You can now cut all the rails, stiles,
and dividers to final width and length.
Note that the stiles for the side assem-
blies are the same as those used on the
front and back. Cut all eight of them
plus a couple extra to use as cauls
NOTE: Shelf D
pin holes are
B
E FRONT BOTTOM RAIL
!/4" diameter
e. TOP SECTION VIEW
C D B D C
9 1#/4 9
42
when you assemble the frames. I’ll get wide, centered groove for the panels in
to the details on that later. all the frame pieces.
JOINERY CUTS. The box below walks you After that, install an auxiliary rip
through the process for cutting the fence and an auxiliary fence on the
grooves and stub tenons needed for the miter gauge, as well. The auxiliary rip
joinery. The center drawing shows how fence allows you to bury the dado blade
I used a standard rip blade to cut the for cutting accurate tenons. Test the fit

How-To: MAKE THE FRAME PARTS

Aux. miter
A B C D gauge fence
A
F G Aux. rip A B D F
fence G

#/4" dado NOTE: Flip a. END a.

blade workpiece VIEW
END
end-for-end VIEW
a. END VIEW
between
passes !/2
!/4 #/4" dado
A
8#/4 blade
!/8 Rip blade
3!/4 !/2 #/8

Hinge Mortises. With an auxiliary fence Centered Groove. Two passes, each Tenons. With the dado blade buried in
on the miter gauge, use the rip fence as one slightly off-center, allow you to cut a an auxiliary fence, use a miter gauge to
a stop to nibble away the waste. centered groove that will fit the panel. cut the tenons on the frame parts.

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of the tenons in the grooves as you go.
SIDE TOP
You’re looking for a snug, slip fit. If it’s RAIL
F a.
too tight, you run the risk of splitting F

out the sides of the grooved pieces. Too

loose, and the joint may fail. 2!/2 F
2!/2
MITER THE STILES. As shown in the draw-
ings, the stiles are mitered and splines 13
are added to reinforce the joints. I STILE
C E
started work on them by first miter- C
ing each one, including the extras (left #/8
drawing in the box below). SIDE !/4
BOTTOM G
Now is a good time to lay out the loca- RAIL
tions of the dividers (detail ‘e,’ opposite G
#/8
page). After that, mark the positions for
the shelf pin holes on the stiles and drill
them. The main drawing on the oppo-
site page shows the locations. 21
3
GROOVE THE MITERS. In the center draw- 13
ing below, you can see how I installed 2!/2 3
21 G
a 1⁄4" dado blade and set the angle to
45°. Use this setup to cut the angled Bottom of
NOTE: Rails and stiles groove
grooves in the mitered edges of the are made from 1"-thick will be
stiles. Use test pieces to check the hardwood. Splines are E filled
!/4"-thick hardwood during
setup of both the blade and fence to SPLINE final
assembly C
match those in detail ‘a.’ 2
SPLINES. At this point, you’re ready to b. SECTION VIEW &/16 !/4
cut the splines that will go in the miters.
C C
After resawing some thicker stock and E
planing it to a thickness of 1⁄4", rip it to SIDE SECTION VIEW
17
final width (right drawing, below).
Sneak up on a good fit for the splines.
They should slip into the grooves easily. top and bottom rails to final size (note DRY FIT. Dry fitting reveals any problem
the difference in widths). Then cut the areas with the fit of the components.
SIDE FRAMES grooves and tenons on each, as you did I checked all the frame assemblies to
The side frames connect to the front and before. You’ll use the mitered stiles and make sure that each piece fit and that
back with the mitered stiles. They differ the splines you made earlier to com- they were square. Afterwards, you can
only in size. You can start by cutting the plete the side frames. move on to making the panels.

How-To: CUT THE MITERS & SPLINES

Rip
Blade set
to 45° NOTE: Use a push stick
when cutting narrow
splines
!/4"dado blade
set to °45

a. END VIEW a. END VIEW a.

END
2!/2 VIEW
!/4 !/4
Rip blade &/16
(/16
!/4

Miter Cut. Tilt the rip blade to 45° and Groove. Install a 1⁄4" dado blade tilted to Splines. You’ll need to start by planing
set the fence as shown in detail ‘a.’ 45° and to cut the groove for the spline some stock down to 1⁄4" thick, then rip
Then miter the edge of each stile. in the mitered edge of each stile. the four splines to width.

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 1!/2

NOTE: All panels

are !/2"-thick
hardwood.
Corbels are 16!/4
%/16"-thick 12#/4
hardwood H
9#/4
14!/2 13!/2
K J
SIDE H I
CORBEL
PANEL END CENTER
14!/2 PANEL PANEL

Add the K
14!/2
K

PANELS &
CORBELS L
FILLER STRIP
(!/4 " x ! /2" - 2")
1!/2

At this point, you’ve created the bones L

of the chest. Now it’s time to add the

hardwood panels to complete the body. a.
TOP SECTION VIEW Panel
Each panel also receives a pair of decora-
tive corbels. You’ll finish up by making
a frame and panel bottom for the chest
NOTE: Corbels are glued to stiles
and assembling the components. #/16"radius and dividers only, not to panels Corbels
HARDWOOD PANELS. You’ll need to resaw
and plane some stock for the panels CORBEL
down to the necessary thickness (1⁄2"). plane some stock to final thickness coat of wax on PATTERN 13!/2
CORBELS
Then glue up the panels and cut them (5⁄16"). I made a hardboard template to the spacer helps
to final size. With a dado blade buried in lay out the shape of the corbels. Later, p re v e n t g l u e
an auxiliary fence, rabbet the edges and you’ll use the template to trim them from sticking to
ends of the panels (left drawing, below). flush after band sawing. Use the pat- the corbels dur-
After dry fitting, stain and finish the tern at right to lay out the shape. ing assembly.
panels. This ensures that no unfinished I also made a 1⁄4" hardboard spacer ASSEMBLY. The One
square = !/2"
edges will peek out when humidity to fit into the grooves in the frame for nice thing about
causes the panels to contract. installing the corbels. Make the spacer frame and panel
CORBELS. Corbels glued to the stiles a little wider to use during assembly construction is
and dividers add to the Craftsman- to glue the corbels in place as shown that it’s easy to !/2
style look. Once again, you’ll have to in the center drawing below. A good assemble and

How-To: FRAME PARTS

Apply clamping pressure
Aux. rip across both directions
fence H I J
Corbel

a. END Spacer supports

VIEW corbel
Dado blade
!/2
a. a. SIDE VIEW
Extra Stile
!/4 Stile

Cutting Tongues. With the table saw set Install the Corbels. A hardboard spacer Assembly. The extra stiles you made
up for cutting rabbets, cut the tongues for in the groove in the frame supports the earlier now make the perfect cauls as
a snug fit in the grooves. corbel as you glue it in place. you glue up the frame and panels.

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 N

P M
N BOTTOM BOTTOM RAIL
CENTER PANEL
16!/4
13
NOTE: Bottom rails and stiles N
are made from #/4" -thick 40
hardwood. Panels are !/4" -thick O
aromatic cedar M BOTTOM END
PANEL 13
9%/8 13
a. SIDE SECTION VIEW
M O
!/2 P M !/4
#/4 N N N N 1#/4 N
1#/4
BOTTOM STILE
1#/4 1#/4 !/2
8#/4 15!/2 M O

is virtually self-squaring. Just apply a

little glue to the tenons on the rails and How-To: BUILD THE BOTTOM
dividers and add the clamps. Let the
panels float freely without glue in the
frames. Use the extra stiles you made
1 2 a.
END
earlier as cauls (right drawing at the bot- Front/Back M N VIEW
frame M N
tom of the previous page).
FILLER STRIPS. At this point, the grooves in a. END VIEW !/4
!/4
the stiles are visible at the bottom, below 18!/2
!/2
!/4
the bottom rails. To fill the voids, I cut Rip blade
some filler strips, sized for a snug fit. A
little glue is all you need to install them. Groove for Bottom. Install a 1⁄4" Centered Groove. Cut the centered
GROOVE. After the glue dries on the dado blade and cut a groove in the groove for the cedar panels in the
assemblies, take the front and back to bottom rails and stiles for the bottom. rails and stiles in two passes.
the table saw. You’ll need to install a
dado blade and then cut a groove on
3 Aux. a. 4 Aux.
a.
the lower edge of both assemblies to fence fence END
VIEW
hold the bottom (Figure 1). M
END !/4
BOTTOM. The process of making the N VIEW
bottom is captured in the drawings at !/2
right. In Figures 2 and 3 you can see that N !/4 M
Dado Dado
blade !/4 blade
cutting the centered groove and tenon
are just the same as you’ve been doing
for the other assemblies. The first differ- Tenon. You can cut another set of Tongue. The outside edge of the rails
ence is shown in Figure 4, where I cut a stub tenons using the dado blade needs a tongue to fit into a groove in
tongue on the outside edge of the rails. buried in an auxiliary fence. the front and back of the chest.
The only other change is that I chose
1⁄ "-thick tongue and groove aromatic
4 Band clamps
cedar paneling for the bottom. Aromatic
cedar is a traditional wood for this type
FIRST: Glue the
of chest as it repels insects. mitered sides in
place using the
splines to keep THIRD: Now fit
ASSEMBLE THE CASE them aligned the front in
Now is the time to dry fit the assembly to place over the
tongue on the
make sure the bottom fits and the corner bottom. Use
the splines in
joints are tight. I glued the bottom into the corners and
the groove on the front first, and then tighten the
band clamp
added the sides and back. SECOND: Fit the tongue
With glue in the grooves on the stiles, on the bottom into the
groove on the back and
add the splines and use a band clamp to glue the ends of the
bring it all together. Double check for bottom to the sides
square and let it dry overnight.

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 Q
R

A sturdy NOTE: Rails and stiles are made

from 1"-thick hardwood. Panels
are made from !/2"-thick
1#/4
LID BACK RAIL

13%/8
LID STILE

LID
hardwood
U 13%/8
LID CENTER
PANEL 16!/4 S
T S LID DIVIDER
At this point, the 2#/4 13%/8
LID END
Q
chest just needs a lid R
PANEL 9#/4
#6 x #/4" Fh LID FRONT RAIL
and some hardware woodscrew
to complete the main 13%/8 42!/2
Torsion
case. There’s nothing unusual hinge
about the lid. It’s just another frame
2!/2
and panel assembly. But you might be a.
SIDE VIEW
surprised by how easy it is to create your Hinge
own custom metal hardware. One last
Q R Q
note, I used torsion hinges on the chest
to make the lid safer. They won’t let it %/8
drop on your fingers.
LID. It’s true that the lid also features
frame and panel construction, but there b.
FRONT VIEW !/8
is one significant difference from the
9 15!/2
previous pieces — the grooves hold- 1
R R
ing the panels are not centered. Because S S

there are no corbels on the lid, I offset T U

the grooves to keep the panels recessed !/4

1⁄ " evenly on both sides.
4
RAILS & STILES. After cutting the rails,
stiles, and dividers to final size, you’re
ready to cut the joinery. The box below
shows how to cut an offset stub tenon
and groove joint that fits perfectly. It
starts with the groove for the panels.
The left drawing illustrates cutting the
offset groove with a dado blade.
In the center drawing, you can see
an easy technique for cutting matching
offset tenons. The key is to set the dado
!/4
blade just a hair below the groove you
cut earlier. Then flip the workpiece over
and change the blade height to match
the groove on this side. This way, you’re
within one or two strokes with a hand
plane of a perfect fit.
PANELS. Once again, you’ll need to
plane some of your stock to 1⁄2". Glue
up the panels from narrower stock,
and then cut the panels to final size.
After that, rabbet the edges to fit into
the grooves in the rails and stiles, as
shown in the right drawing below. To
prevent problems down the road, I
stained and finished these panels just
as I did the others before.
ASSEMBLY. Now you’re ready to assem-
ble and install the lid. But first, stain and
finish the entire chest. Then attach the
lid to the chest with the torsion hinges.

How-To: TOP JOINERY

a.
END
VIEW
This is callout
text !/2
Aux. T U
fence
Q R S R S !/2
!/4

a. END a.
VIEW b.
END
VIEW END
!/2 #/4"dado VIEW
!/2
blade
!/4 !/2
!/2 Size thickness of
!/4"dado blade tongues to fit
grooves in rails !/4
and stiles

Offset Groove. Set the rip fence to the Offset Tenon. Use the groove in the Panel Rabbet. After cutting the panels
dimensions shown and cut the offset stiles to set the blade height for cutting to final size, bury the dado blade in an
groove in all the frame pieces. both sides of the tenon. auxiliary fence and rabbet all four edges.

7 WoodsmithPlans.com WS21422 ©2014 August Home Publishing Co. All Rights Reserved.
 Pyramid 6

Shop-made
nail
#/4
V
2 2!/4 1!/2

METAL
NOTE: Pyramid TOP
nails are 1" CORNER #/4
long with !/2" BRACE 3 #/8"-dia. hole
square heads

BRACES NOTE: Corner braces

are made from
!/8"-thick steel
BRACE PATTERNS

W #/16
I chose to make my own corner braces
BOTTOM
from 1⁄8" sheet steel. There’s no need to CORNER
BRACE
be intimidated by a little metal work.
1!/2
The “How-To” box on the right and the
finishing technique in Shop Notebook on
page 11 give you a pretty good overview One square = !/2"
of the process. For both the upper and
lower braces, start by cutting the steel to
final length (12").
TOP BRACES. The step-by-step photos at How-To: MAKE THE BRACES
right guide your journey. It starts by
marking the shape of the brace and the 1 2
nail hole locations (see the patterns at
right). I like to use layout fluid for work
on metal pieces. It helps avoid any con-
fusion between a layout mark and a
scratch on the surface of the metal.
DRILL. With everything marked, start
by drilling out the nail holes at the drill
press, as shown in Step 1. Use a low-
speed setting and a few drops of oil on Drilling. After marking the shape and Arc Cut. With a metal-cutting blade in
the workpiece to lubricate the bit. hole locations, drill the holes. I used a the jig saw, use a plywood backer to help
CUT TO SHAPE. You can cut this mild steel backer board to support the metal. cut through the mild steel.
to shape using a steel-cutting blade in
a jig saw. By mounting the steel to a
3 4
piece of wood, you support the edges
and help the blade cut cleanly (Step 2).
SCORE. There’s one challenge with
making steel corners — bending them
to 90°. Step 3 shows how I scored the
centerline on the inside face using an
abrasive disk in a circular saw. This
guarantees a good corner bend.
BEND. After scoring the line, all you Score Centerline. I used an inexpensive Bending. The scored line makes it easy
need to do is clamp the brace down abrasive blade in the circular saw to just to bend the steel. Use a square to guide
and bend it to 90° (Step 4). over halfway through the brace. you for a perfect fit on the corner.
CLEANUP. I used my random-orbit
sander, followed by some hand sand- 5 6
ing to clean up the metal surfaces (Step
5). This also prepares the metal for the
patina solution you’ll use later.
PATINA. Step 6 gives you an idea of
how the spray-on patina works. You’ll
find more information about using it in
Shop Notebook on page 11.
Test fit each brace and mark the loca-
tion to drill pilot holes for the nails. Since Sand. Sanding removes all the marking Patina. A spray-on patina is all it takes to
the nails are a bit irregular, you’ll need to fluid and fingerprints from the surface of for an aged look. For more on the two-
take care to locate the heads properly so the metal in preparation for the patina. step process, refer to page 11,
they’re centered over the holes.

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 Z
TRAY Y
HANDLE TRAY END

Making the
3%/8
X X
TRAY BACK 14!/4 TRAY FRONT

TRAY
Z
3
AA
TRAY
3 14!/4 BOTTOM
The original Stickley
bride’s chest had a handy Y 14!/4 39#/4
NOTE: Tray
pull-out tray that sat atop four front, back,
and ends are
wood stops. I replaced the wood are made from
stops with shelf pins to make it !/2"-thick white
oak. Tray
adjustable but left everything else BB bottom is
!/4"-thick cedar
largely the same. Here again, I used END PLUG
!/4 x !/4 - !/4
aromatic cedar as the tray bottom.
FRONT & BACK. The tray requires sturdy
a. !/4
joinery to accommodate frequent lift- 11!/8 SECTION VIEW 11!/8
ing and replacing. So I decided to go !/2
with a joint that’s both easy to make 1!/2 X
and very strong — tongue and dado.
It’s my favorite joint for drawers, hav-
ing stood the test of time on several Y
!/4"-deep mortise AA
Y

other projects. And since this tray is

similar to a drawer, I think this joint is
perfect for it. In addition, you’ll notice
that the tray front, back, and ends hold
a groove for the bottom. The front and
back also have mortises for the handles.
The drawings below serve as a guide
as you set about making the individual
pieces for the tray. Figure 1 shows how
I used an auxiliary fence on the miter
gauge to back up the dado cut and
prevent tearout and splintering as the
blade exited the workpiece. After that,
you can cut the groove at the bottom
of the front, back, and ends to hold the
cedar bottom panel (Figure 2).
ENDS. Use the miter gauge to cut the
tongues on the ends as in Figure 3.
Check for a snug fit in the dadoes.
MORTISES. Now you’ll need to lay out
the mortises in the front and back for the
handles. After that, get out your plunge
router and clamp on a straightedge to

How-To: MAKE THE TRAY COMPONENTS

1 a. END 2 a. END 3 Aux. a. END
X VIEW VIEW fence VIEW
X Y Y

!/2 !/2 !/4

!/4 !/4
!/4 !/4 !/2" dado !/4
!/4" dado blade !/4" dado blade blade

Dadoes. I installed an auxiliary fence Groove for Bottom. Cut the groove for Rabbet. With the dado blade buried in an
on the miter gauge to cut the dadoes in the bottom in the front, back, and ends auxiliary rip fence, you can cut the rabbets
the tray front and back. using a dado blade. on the ends to form the tongues.

4 5 a. END
6 Cut outside of
layout line
VIEW

!/4
!/4" !/8
straight
bit !/2" dado
Straightedge blade

Rout Handle Mortise. I clamped a Handle Tenon. Cut the tenons on the Band Saw Arc. After laying out the curve,
straightedge to the workpiece and ends of the handles using the dado blade cut the shape at the band saw, making
routed out the dadoes for the handles. buried in the auxiliary fence. sure to stay on the waste side of the cut.

9 WoodsmithPlans.com WS21432 ©2014 August Home Publishing Co. All Rights Reserved.
rout the mortises. (Figure 4 previous How-To: FORM THE HAND HOLD
page). I just marked the top and bottom
edges of the mortises. Then I routed to the 1 2 After
line and squared the ends with a chisel.
removing the
HANDLES. I cut the two handles to final #/4" Forstner bit waste, sand
the cutout
size and formed the tenons on the smooth, then
ends before cutting them to shape. rout an
!/8"roundover
This makes it easier to cut the tenons
(see Figure 5).
After completing the tenons, lay
out the curve on the handle using the Drill. Drill the two starter holes at Jig Saw. Now you can remove the
dimensions shown in the lower draw- the ends of the hand hold. A piece of rest of the waste by cutting the arcs
ing at right. At the band saw, cut the scrap underneath prevents tearout. between the holes with a jig saw.
gentle curve, staying on the waste side !/2 !/8" roundover
of the line (Figure 6, previous page). !/2
Now drill the two holes shown in 1!/8
#/8" -rad. #/4
Figure 1. The drawing below it shows !/4
!/4
the location. I used a jig saw to remove 4&/8
the waste in between the two holes to 1!/2 2
form the hand hold (Figure 2). A little 3%/8 2!/2
hand sanding is all it takes to smooth !/2
the cutout. At the router table, rout the SIDE VIEW FRONT VIEW
1⁄ " roundover on the top edges and
8
hand hold of the handle to make for a
much more comfortable grip. tray parts before installing the cedar. final stain and finish, the chest is ready
BOTTOM. Glue up the 1⁄4"-thick cedar After that, move on to final assembly. to go (leave the cedar unfinished).
panel and cut it to final size. Dry fit the PLUGS. Finally, I installed four small This is one of those projects that is
tray bottom by installing the two ends plugs to fill the holes left by the grooves likely to be made as a gift. The lucky
and the front and back. Then finish the in the front and back. After applying the recipient is sure to treasure it for life.

Materials, Supplies & Cutting Diagram

A Front/Back Top Rails (2) 1 x 21⁄2 - 38
B Front/Back Bottom Rails (2) 1 x 3 - 38
C Stiles (8) 1 x 21⁄2 - 21
D Dividers (4) 1 x 13⁄4 - 141⁄2
1
E Splines (4) ⁄4 x 7⁄16 - 21
F Side Top Rails (2) 1 x 21⁄2 - 13
G Side Bottom Rails (2) 1 x 3 - 13
H End Panels (4) 1⁄ x 93⁄ - 141⁄
2 4 2
I Center Panels (2) 1⁄ x 161 ⁄ - 141⁄
2 4 2
J Side Panels (2) 1⁄ x 12 3⁄ - 141⁄
2 4 2
K Corbels (16) 5 ⁄ x 11⁄ - 131⁄
16 2 2
L Filler Strips (8) 1
⁄4 x 1⁄2 - 2 W Bot. Corner Braces (4) 1⁄8 steel - 11⁄2 x 12
3
M Bottom Rails (2) ⁄4 x 13⁄4 - 40 X Tray Front/Back (2) 1
⁄2 x 3 - 393⁄4
N Bottom Stiles (4) 3
⁄4 x 13⁄4 - 13 Y Tray Ends (2) 1
⁄2 x 3 - 141⁄4
O Bottom End Panels (2) 1
⁄4 x 95 ⁄8 - 13 Z Tray Handles (2) 1
⁄2 x 35 ⁄8 - 141⁄4
P Bottom Center Panel (1) ⁄4 x 161⁄4 - 13
1
AA Tray Bottom (1) 1
⁄4 x 141⁄4 - 391⁄8
Q Lid Front/Back Rails (2) 1 x 21⁄2 - 421⁄2 BB End Plugs (4) 1⁄ x 1⁄ - 1⁄
4 4 4
R Lid Stiles (2) 1 x 23⁄4 - 135 ⁄8 1
• (48) ⁄2" x 1" Pyramid Head Nails
S Lid Dividers (2) 1 x 13⁄4 - 135 ⁄8 • (2) 60 Inch/Pound Torsion Hinges
T Lid End Panels (2) 1⁄2 x 93⁄4 - 135 ⁄8 • (4) 1⁄4" Shelf Supports
U Lid Center Panel (1) 1⁄2 x 161⁄4 - 135 ⁄8 • (8 oz.) Japan Brown Patina
V Top Corner Braces (4) 1⁄8 steel 3 x 12 • (8 oz.) Metal Oil Finish

1"x 6"- 84" White Oak (4.4 Bd. Ft.) !/2"x 5!/2"- 96" White Oak (3.7 Sq. Ft.)
A A I I I I I I
B B
1"x 7!/4"- 96" White Oak (6.0 Bd. Ft.) !/2"x 5!/2"- 96" White Oak (3.7 Sq. Ft.)
C C C C S J J J J J J
C C C C
!/2"x 6!/2"- 84" White Oak (3.8 Sq. Ft.) E
D
1"x 6"- 96" White Oak (5.0 Bd. Ft.) U U U X
F F G G R R X
Q Q !/2"x 5!/2"- 96" White Oak (3.7 Sq. Ft.) L BB
Y Y Z Z
!/2"x 5!/2"- 96" White Oak (3.7 Sq. Ft.)
H H H H H H !/2"x 5"- 96" White Oak (3.3 Sq. Ft.) *
K K K K K K K

!/2"x 5!/2"- 96" White Oak (3.7 Sq. Ft.) #/4"x 5"- 84" White Oak (3.3 Bd. Ft.) M
H H T T T T
N
ALSO NEEDED: One (1) 15 sq. ft. box, Cedar Plank Paneling (O, P & AA)
* Part K is planed to a final thickness of %/16"

10 WoodsmithPlans.com WS21432 ©2014 August Home Publishing Co. All Rights Reserved.
Shop Notebook
Adding a Patina
Adding a patina to the metal parts is a
great way to give the bride’s chest on an
antique look. Best of all, it’s very easy
to do. You can find out where to get the
materials on the next page.
CLEAN & SAND. Before you start with the
chemicals, you’ll need to give the metal
1 2
{ I used 60-grit paper first, then 100-
grit to sand the fresh metal and
rough it up a bit for the patina.
Hinge Mortise
The torsion hinges I used on the bride’s
chest are great for keeping the lid from
slamming shut. They will hold the
lid open at any angle. On top of that,
they’re a breeze to install. You only
need to mortise the top rail on the back.
1 Rip
fence
8#/4
NOTE: Use rip 3!/4
fence as stop to
establish ends of
mortise
#/4" dado blade
Corbel Installation
The decorative corbels on the bride’s
chest complete the Craftsman-style look
of the piece. But installing them was
kind of tricky. The problem is, you don’t
want to glue them to the hardwood pan-
els or they could separate from the stiles
when the panels expand and contract
with seasonal changes in humidity. The
solution is to glue them to the stiles only.
1 Stile
Rail
Hardboard
filler
Insert filler in
grooves while dry
fitting the frames
11 WoodsmithPlans.com WS21432 ©2014 August Home Publishing Co. All Rights Reserved.
a good cleaning and sanding. I started of scrap to hold the brace up off the
with mineral spirits to remove any film bench. You’ll need to let the fluid pool
on the steel (there’s often an anti-rust and sit overnight to develop the color.
coating). A random-orbit sander is per- OIL. The last step, shown in Photo 3,
fect for a good scrubbing (Photo 1). is to brush on a couple coats of oil to
SPRAY-ON PATINA. In Photo 2 you can see protect the patina from chipping. No
how to spray the solution. I used a block further finishing is needed.
3
{ The solution starts working as { A foam brush is perfect for apply-
soon as you spray it on. Flood the ing the oil topcoat. Give it two
surface, then let it sit overnight. coats to protect the patina.
TABLE SAW. Start by laying out the hinge ROUTER & CHISEL. Figure 2 shows how
position. Then you can remove most of you can rout away most of the waste
the waste in between the marks using for the barrel of the hinge. After that,
a dado blade in the table saw and the pare down to the layout line with a
miter gauge (Figure 1). I used the rip chisel (Figure 3). Then all you need to
fence as a stop for the inside edge. do is install the hinges with screws.
2 3 a.
%/8
!/2"straight
bit !/4
Bench chisel !/8
NOTE: Nibble away SECTION
the bulk of the VIEW
waste, then square Pare away the
up with a chisel waste in the corners
FILLER. For this assembly, I made a
hardboard filler that acts as a temporary NOTE: Filler is
slightly larger
shelf to hold the corbel in place (Figure than corbel to
provide
1). I made the filler by cutting an extra- support
wide hardboard blank. Trace the curve
of the corbel onto the hardboard and
cut it at the band saw. Then fit the filler
in the groove in the stile and glue the
When in
corbel in position (Figure 2). place, the
edge of the
filler will not
2 Stile
interfere with
clamps (detail
Apply glue to 'a' below)
this edge Rail
Filler a. END VIEW
Rail
Corbel Stile Filler
Corbel
 MAIL Project Sources
ORDER
SOURCES • Sculpt Nouveau
Woodsmith Store Copper Rust Brown Patina. . TBR08ZBR
800-444-7527 Brown Metal Oil Finish. . . . OIL08ZBRN
• Rockler
Lowe’s
60 lb. Torsion Hinges. . . . . . . . . . . . 36275
877-465-6937
lowes.com • Lowe’s
Cedar Plank Paneling. . . . . . . . . . . 409403
Van Dyke’s Restorers • Van Dyke’s Restorers
800-558-1234 1
⁄2”-dia. x 1” Clavos Nails. . . . . 02018072
vandykes.com

Sculpt Nouveau I used Varathane’s Gunstock stain to give

800-728-5787 the chest a Craftsman look. Then I sprayed
sculptnouveau.com on two coats of clear lacquer. You can find
Varathane stains at most home improve-
General Finishes
generalfinishes.com ment stores. I finished by glazing the chest
with General Finishes Java gel stain, then
another coat of lacquer to seal the glaze.
Manufacturers and retailers will
periodically redesign or discontinue
some of their items. So you’ll want to
gather all the hardware, supplies, and
tools you need before you get started.
It’s easy to adjust dimensions or drill
different-sized holes to suit your hard-
ware.

12 WoodsmithPlans.com WS21432 ©2014 August Home Publishing Co. All Rights Reserved.