LIGHTHOUSE II

After the disaster of gluing the marquetry on the box lid backwards, well not really a disaster, maybe BUGGER!!! would be a better description. In days gone by I probably would said bugger it and put the box on the shelf and not touched it again. Now days things like that seem a little trivial, compared to life in the real world, so now I decide what to do and move on with the project so that is what I have done.
I had a rough idea for the design, but I just play with things to see how it turns out.  

I have chosen the dark even grained and colour timber for the sky and the less even colour and wavy grain for the sea. The some idea as with the damaged marquetry panel.

I glued the two pieces together and allowed to dry. Then I applied tape to the front surface, before marking the work area. I then freehand drew the outline for the  rocky coast.

I chose the veneer for the rock along the coast and I am going the run the grain in different directions, this along with some shading should give enough contrast and effect. I then drilled a pilot hole for the scroll saw.

With the scroll saw table set at an angle of 7 degrees, I cut around the first inlay in a clockwise direction.

I removed the work from the scroll saw and separated the pieces. Discarding the top piece and keeping the inlay piece.

With an old paint brush I cleaned the work area.

Using the gas soldering iron I shade the area of rock that I think would naturally be in shadow.

I applied quick set PVA glue to the edge of the inlay area.

Inserted the inlay veneer from the back of the work.

And firmly pressed into position and allowed the glue to set.

I then leveled the reverse of the marquetry with a small scraper.

If the grain is uneven in the inlay veneer I use a small router to level the back, this way there is less likelihood of tear-outs.

I continued with this until the rocky coastline was complete.

Finishing by leveling the area with the small router.

I then removed the tape from the front of the marquetry so I could get a better idea of the effect, alough some of the shading looks dark, this will soften when sanded.

Next using the pattern for the pelican I used in an earlier project, I put tape over the surface and glued the pattern to the work.

Using the method described above I slowly did the Pelican.

I have wiped the work over with a damp cloth to get an idea of the finished effect.

I then added the Lighthouse in the same way, I also added a couple more rocks to make the Lighthouse blend with its surrounds.

LIGHTHOUSE I

I haven't had much time of recent. After the long trip we had before Christmas, its taken me longer to recover than I expected, I still don't feel right. 
My old mum is still not well and the family is trying to tear themselves apart, that's life. This year I hope to do a post at least once every two weeks.

To start the year I am going to finish the Lighthouse box I started before Christmas.

I made this panel as a trial to see if I could do a lighthouse, It came about as a request from a gentleman in the US and I wasn't shore how it would turn out.

Having completed the panel I constructed the box, using a Celtic pattern on the sides.

Next I made a pair of hinges from Australian Red Cedar.

Using my Dremel tool with the Stewart MacDonald router base to fit the hinges to the lid.

I position the hinges in the lid and temporally fix in position.

Apply a strip of tape to the back of the box where the hinges will sit.

Apply tape to the side of the hinge that contacts the box and trim the excess.

Apply super glue to the tape.

And press into position until the glue is set, ensuring the lid is straight.

Scribe around the edge with a sharp knife.

Remove the hinge and tape leaving a clearly defined area to be removed.

With a small chisel remove the edging.

Then rout out the wast.

Ensuring the hing fits correctly

Fit and glue the hinges.

Next I applying the marquetry veneer to the top of the box.

At this point I made a rookie mistake and glued the marquetry on backwards. I tried to remove the veneer without success, so I decided to re-design and make the marquetry panel for the lid.

In a later post I will try and repair the panel to use in another project.