Last week we wrapped up our fall session with a final Elephant at Robert and Yvonne’s home. We shared a delicious potluck dinner and several special closing rituals, including a farewell address from JK in Robert’s shop and a bonfire, on a wonderfully clear night.
I completed the frame and panel joinery on my doors earlier in the week, enjoying a grand opportunity to mortise for the mid-rails of my doors on JK's table saw mortiser in Robert's shop. What fun!
Mortising my mortises
I got three slices out of my piece of spalted Beech, giving me several combinations for the door panels. Stoked to finally lay down the frames and preview my options.
A preview
I also finished up a little frame out of Arbutus that I had been working on, to house a print for one of my oldest and dearest friends Wei-Ling. I am coming to love the open mortise and tenon joint, strong and simple, and the more I see it the more I am struck by its straightforward good looks.
Open mortise and tenon
Rabbet run, frame assembled, ready for strips and pins
It is my first time using glass in a frame, and I find something so very elegant about this method of pinning it in a rebate with narrow strips of wood, nicely bevelled and edges softened.
Hanging wire
I spent a good part of a day exploring how the frame would be hung, finally settling on a simple wire, wrapped around brass screws set into the frame. Robert suggested I carve a little groove in the strip for the wire to sit in, a neat touch.
I am very much looking forward to getting to this stage with my doors next session, which will have glass above and beech below, pinned in rebates the same way.
To the fall session, it has been a pleasure working with and sharing a shop with this awesome dedicated group of craftsmen, most of whom are returning next session for Upward Spirals and a Vidar’s chair. Enjoy your break and see you guys soon!
