Bar Cabinet for my folks

[Mike Reinholtz]

I went back to Chicago in November and got to talking with my siblings about what to do for our folks for Christmas. We decided that instead of buying them a bar cabinet/wine rack, I would build one. I got into this hobby about a year ago and haven't built much, so not everyone was convinced this would come out very well. We spent some time drawing ideas and taking parts from ones they looked at online and came up with this. Any comments or ideas on how to improve would be appreciated. This was the first time I got to play with spraying sealer since I got an HVLP, gotta say the time savings alone was incredible!

There are also 2 raised panel doors for the cabinet, but they aren't ready yet. I wasn't happy with the way they came out, so I started them over last night. These were the first raised panel doors I have made. Cutting them out went really well, it was the staining that went bad. The Maple blotched horribly. The doors will cover the wine rack and the glasses, my folks were looking for something with doors to keep little fingers (grand kids) from getting to the glass.

[Baxter Smith]

Looks great. I'm sure your folks will really like it. Especially since they know where it came from!

[Michael Wintermute]

Mike, VERY nice, the siblings should never doubt your ability again.

[John Keeton]

Nice work and a good design! Looks like a cabinet project going on at the same time!!

[John Olson]

Oh boy you better start in January next year with all the projects this is going to start people wanting.

[Ben Martin]

Well, since I am close, if your siblings don't like it, I will be more than happy to take it off your hands!!

Nice looking bar!

[John Thompson]

Excellent job Mike. Don't feel bad about the original doors. You basically learned that Maple is a bear to stain and the reason I mainly use it with a clear finish. Dyes probably work better with the maple but if you have only been doing this a year you are most likely not familar with them yet.

Great job on the build...

[Jim Kountz]

Really nice job with this, love the overall design although I think its a shame to cover it up with doors even though I can understand the reason behind it.

[Mike Reinholtz]

Thanks everyone for the kind words and encouragement! The learning curve with Maple has been steep for me but really fun. I did play with dyes as well as gel stains, both for me had mixed results.

John- It's funny you say that about other projects, one of the neighbors that came by regularly during the build came over today asking me to make his grand daughter a miniature kitchen with an oven, cabinets, and a sink. Spent most of the afternoon on it. I'm sure once my sister-in-law hears about it she will want something for my niece. Of course it couldn't be basic, I made face frames and the shaker doors are glued and drying right now. My wife stopped me when she saw me playing with lights for the oven would flip on when the door opened. We just found out we are going to be parents next July so the next project is going to be a crib, I can't wait to start it! First project for 2010!

Jim- I didn't want to cover it up either, I really like how it looks being left open. So I am going to be a bit underhanded and ship the doors separate, allowing my folks to decide when we give it to them if they want the doors mounted or set to the side.

[Bill Leonard]

The best of both worlds with a little compromise would be glass doors!