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Thread: Decorative Tea Box Project

  1. #1
    Join Date
    Dec 2006
    Location
    Brunswick, GA
    Posts
    8,123

    Default Decorative Tea Box Project

    Hello,

    I made a couple Tea Boxes from Select Pine. The design features a realistic over-under basket weave pattern on all four sides and a deep-relief "dished" teapot design with leaf accents for the lid. The finished Tea Box is approximately 12” wide x 8¼” deep x 5½” tall- the slightly lighter one was finished as follows:

    - Cabot Pre-Stain Wood Conditioner
    - Minwax Golden Pecan #245 stain
    - one coat Amber Shellac
    - three coats Minwax water-based Satin polycrylic

    ...the darker one as follows:

    - one very light coat of thinned Bullseye Sealcoat
    (2 parts sealer/3 parts Denatured alcohol)
    - sanded lightly again with very fine sandpaper & Dremel
    - Cabot Brown Mahogony #8134 stain
    - three coats Minwax water-based Satin polycrylic


    I tested/compared BEST and OPTIMUM settings when carving the box sides (BEST was 5 hrs. - Optimum was 8 hrs.). The Optimum is definitely the better way to go on any design that is as intricate as the over-under weave pattern. I did do both box lids on Optimum setting - 4½ hrs. each (would have been about 2 hrs. each on "Best").

    I was impressed with the noticable difference in overall carve quality on the raw wood. Much less "fuzzies" in the tight crevices on the Optimum one. Can't tell much difference now, as I used my Dremel to make them look pretty much the same. One just has to decide whether to spend the time "upfront" for the carve itself, or some time after-the-carve for cleanup. Also, this was Select Pine, which carves very well for me, but I imagine if it were Cherry or Walnut, neither "Best" nor "Optimum" would have had any after-the-carve cleanup.

    By the way, the clean-up on the "Best" setting version didn't take me 3 hrs (the difference in time between Best and Optimum). Cleanup was maybe 30 or 40 minutes with my trusty Dremel, 3M wheels and a fine-tipped diamond point. Still, when you look close, you can see the Optimum one is a little more precise in the weave detail, so for me, I think the extra carve time was worth it.

    Attached Thumbnails Attached Thumbnails DarkerTeabox_Finished_webresolution.jpg   FinishedlightTeabox_1_640x486.jpg   LighterTeabox_Opened_webresolution.jpg  
    Michael T
    Happy Carving!


    ═══ Links to Patterns & Resources for CompuCarve™ & CarveWright™ ═══

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Nov 2007
    Location
    Texas
    Posts
    1,096

    Default

    Mike,

    Is that project gonna be available for purchase???

    You gotta give us software guys time to familiarize ourselves with the rest of your projects! I myself am three projects behind!!!

    JK.

    It looks outstanding. More proof of your great work. Keep it up!
    Sonuva Nutcracker!


    Alex
    Carvewright

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Feb 2008
    Location
    Louisburg, KS
    Posts
    2,651

    Default

    Very nice, Michael.

    You've mastered one really difficult part for me.

    Can you give a simple run-down of your sanding between coats of finish in the detail areas like the weave? That's always a challenge, and as you know, the Devil's in the details.

    Thanks, another great project.
    Livin' Life
    Lovin' My Carvewright

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Jan 2007
    Location
    South East, Michigan
    Posts
    6,118

    Default Tea Box

    Michael T,

    Very Nice, Beautiful project, the Folks are going to love it !!
    Ken


    Ver 1.182 on XL Pro plus Ver 1.164 and 1.175 on Windows 7 Ultimate
    It Never Fails * Till * You Say It Never Fails

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Dec 2006
    Location
    Brunswick, GA
    Posts
    8,123

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by atauer View Post
    Mike,

    Is that project gonna be available for purchase???

    You gotta give us software guys time to familiarize ourselves with the rest of your projects! I myself am three projects behind!!!

    JK.

    It looks outstanding. More proof of your great work. Keep it up!
    Thank you very much - yes, this is the next project in the Project Subscription Series. Should be activated and available fairly soon!
    Michael T
    Happy Carving!


    ═══ Links to Patterns & Resources for CompuCarve™ & CarveWright™ ═══

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Sep 2007
    Location
    Northern Colorado
    Posts
    7,962

    Default

    Michael,

    Another great project! Really like the 4 post corner design as well as the whole project itself.

    Come on end of the month!
    RingNeckBlues
    My patterns on the Depot
    DC-INSERT It Just Sucks!

    Proven to out perform all others!
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    All patterns and projects that I share on the CarveWright forum are for your personal carving purpose. They are not to be shared, sold or posted on any other web site without permission from RingNeckBlues Designs.

  7. #7
    Join Date
    Oct 2008
    Location
    Mars
    Posts
    286

    Thumbs up Awesome POM

    Wow! Another Grand Slam Michael! I can't wait until everyone starts making these. I wanna see pics, and lots of 'em!

  8. #8
    Join Date
    Dec 2006
    Location
    Brunswick, GA
    Posts
    8,123

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by cnsranch View Post
    Very nice, Michael.

    You've mastered one really difficult part for me.

    Can you give a simple run-down of your sanding between coats of finish in the detail areas like the weave? That's always a challenge, and as you know, the Devil's in the details.

    Thanks, another great project.
    Thank you. Yep, the details - I wish I could just stop at the carving stage and call it done! You're right - the finishing is the bugaboo for many, and often, my least favorite part - that is, until it's completed. I'll bet my heart rate goes down by a couple dozen beats a minute when I'm all finished!

    For this project, I used the 3M 220 grit wheels (3 stacked on the mandrel) and just kind of swiped over all the areas of the weave, more or less along each "line" of the weave. The weave interiors are less than 1/2" square, and the 3M wheels are 3/4" diameter, so the wheels alone would not reach into the tight corners. I used the fine-point diamond tip for running along the edges and getting into the tight spots. (Only one side of the weave edges had slight fuzzies on the Optimum one - completely smooth on the other side of each edge.)

    At first when you look at all those "squares" you think, holy smokes, there must be a thousand of 'em! But, once you get started, it goes really quickly (thank goodness!). Heaven help the person who doesn't own a Dremel-type tool, though! It could certainly be done with files, but would take a whole lot more time, I'm sure.

    I tried the tip I saw here recently of using sawdust debris from the machine to "scrub-sand" the details with a toothbrush. Unfortunately, that didn't seem to be very effective - I had hoped that it was a new shortcut.

    Between clearcoats, I sand very lightly with 400 or 600 grit sandpaper - almost like I'm "buffing" the surface. It's just to remove any dust droppings - I don't need to sand in any of the details at that stage if I've done my prep-sanding properly to begin with (If I haven't, I just apply more clearcoats!).

    I really like the Minwax water-based polycrylic Satin. You can usually apply three or four coats in one day, let it dry overnight, and you're good to go. I also like the Minwax wipe-on poly and a standard laquer too, due to the ability to apply several coats fairly quickly.
    Attached Thumbnails Attached Thumbnails DremelSanding.jpg   DremelPointedTip.jpg  
    Last edited by mtylerfl; 02-20-2009 at 03:39 PM.
    Michael T
    Happy Carving!


    ═══ Links to Patterns & Resources for CompuCarve™ & CarveWright™ ═══

  9. #9
    Join Date
    Dec 2006
    Location
    Brunswick, GA
    Posts
    8,123

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by HelpBot3000 View Post
    Wow! Another Grand Slam Michael! I can't wait until everyone starts making these. I wanna see pics, and lots of 'em!
    I'm anxious to see how folks customize their own boxes and want to see pictures too! I think they'll have a great time with 'em. Lots of possibilities. Here's a quote from the instruction sheet:

    "Some options include flocking the interior of the box,
    lining the interior with fabric or wallpaper, applying
    gold leaf, or simply painting the interior with a color of
    your choice. You might also want to make dividers to
    organize individually wrapped tea varieties for a
    “fancy” presentation like you sometimes see in fine
    restaurants."
    Michael T
    Happy Carving!


    ═══ Links to Patterns & Resources for CompuCarve™ & CarveWright™ ═══

  10. #10
    Join Date
    Feb 2007
    Location
    Upstate NY USA
    Posts
    952

    Default

    Beautiful work!
    " The Hurdier I Go, The Behinder I Get"

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