A Shadow Box for Carole's Work

My wife and inspiration is a "small projects" person. A scroll sawyer, she makes lovely boxes, puzzles, bowls and other small items. (In fact, she's written a book about making bowls on the scroll saw -- published by Fox Chapel.) Displaying her work is a challenge. This shadow box represents one solution. I used some white oak I had sitting around, and added an inlay of walnut for interest. The shelf spacing was customized to accommodate the objects to be displayed. Because each shelf is only about an eighth of an inch thick, there are hidden reinforcements in the rear to prevent bowing. The shadow box was a success. But her work keeps on coming, and gets better all the time. She's creating her own patterns now, and the objects she's making cry out to be displayed. So more pieces like this one are soon to come.

A recent project

Here's a recent project. It measures 8" side-to-side and about 4" high. Made for a couple's newly-born youngster, it sits on her "baby dresser". The font was downloaded from MS-WORD, then enlarged. After attaching the pattern to the wood with temporary spray adhesive, I cut it out on a scroll saw. Quite a lot of fine-tuning (read "hand work") was required to make what you see here. Like all power tools, the scroll saw provides a great head start. But there's no substitute for good, old fashioned hand work.

Zen and the Art of . . .

Just got back from a brief and helpful visit with a friend who was struggling with a project. This one wasn't a woodworking project, however. He was working on his motorcycle. His attempts to change the brake pads on the rear wheel of the bike were unsuccessful. After an hour -- the job usually takes 15 minutes -- he was thoroughly disgusted. The parts should have fit but didn't, no matter how he tried to coax them into it. After watching him for a couple of minutes I asked a basic question: "Do the profiles of the new pads match the profiles of the old ones?" He thought a moment, then stopped and looked carefully, comparing old and new pads. Sure enough, they did not match up. "Damn!" he said. "I should have thought of that". Turns out the dealer had sold him the wrong parts.

I'm no mechanic, but the story illustrates an important lesson: many problems can be understood by simply observing. In all your work, not just your woodwork, take the time to look carefully. Observing, thinking, and observing again can make the difference between success and frustration.