this is gonna hurt

[Eric John]

Morning everyone,

ok so I tried to make this blanket chest.
it does have its issues that I have to touchup,
have a buggered dovetail which needs to be colored.
I tried to polish finish and learned a lot during the process.
any constructive criticisms and help would be appreciated.
im still learning.

regards Eric411801411841

[Robert Engel]

Don't be so hard on yourself. Everyone learns from every project, even the masters.

[Adam Herman]

great job getting in the shop and getting it done. It's a good looking piece.

Many people go a lifetime thinking about completing a project like this, and never do it. YOU have done it.

[Jamie Buxton]

Looks pretty to me!

I'd add a chain, or some other means to prevent the top from opening too far, falling over the back, and ripping out the hinges. Make the chain long enough that the top can stand open without anybody holding it. Then you can use both hands to put stuff inside the chest.

[Mark Rainey]

Eric, that is a very nice blanket chest. We all have some defects in our pieces. It is a learning process to disguise the larger ones.

[Mel Fulks]

A thing of great beauty. We moderns probably spend a lot more time on our stuff than the cabinet makers of old. The
small imperfection makes you the guy who produces...not dabbles.

[Brian W Evans]

I see the dovetail issues, but those are fixable. The rest of it looks great. I think you did a great job matching the grain and I like the overall design. Well done.

[Phil Mueller]

It’s a nice piece Eric. Nothing wrong with being critical of our own work, cause that’s how we get better, but you should be proud of it. It’s hand made with some hand made character. Ever look at the dovetails on the side of an antique drawer? Nothing to write home about, but that’s what makes it special.

[John TenEyck]

What's not to like? Beautiful wood, nice design, well finished. I only see a couple of DT's that aren't perfect and I think you can fix them w/o huge effort. Where the pins are little narrow you could run a handsaw in the joint on that edge and glue in a piece of veneer. Where the tails are chipped out in the back you might be able to cut a ramped recess with a chisel and glue in a wedge of matching wood. Flush everything with a hand plane and touch up the finish. Alternatively, carefully color matched putty would be an easier fix.

John

[andrew whicker]

What's wrong with it?

[Matthew Hills]

I like the piece overall.
What are your plans for it?

My attempts to shim gaps did not end up invisible; but the work ended up solid and I’m happy to see it in use, even with the flaws. I would probably avoid using putty (not confident it would look better under inspection, but please post if you try it out and like the result)

Matt

[Matthew Hills]

I like the piece overall.
What are your plans for it?

My attempts to shim gaps did not end up invisible; but the work ended up solid and I’m happy to see it in use, even with the flaws. I would probably avoid using putty (not confident it would look better under inspection, but please post if you try it out and like the result)

Matt

[Frederick Skelly]

I like it!
Don't beat yourself. You'll get better with every project.
Fred

[Lee Schierer]

Those are not defects, they are character and signs that it was hand made.

[Andrew Seemann]

Nice piece. The "perfect dovetail" obsession is a modern thing; plenty of historical originals have chips around them. Sometimes I think that is why they often just veneered over them. To the craftsman of yore it was just a joint, and a quick and easy one not requiring a lot of accuracy. Historical texts mention dovetails along with other standard joints, but they don't have any of the quasi-religious reverence you see today, if anything, they note that finger joints are probably superior to dovetails due to having more glue surface.

I think the whole "height of craftsmanship" nonsense comes from certain magazines (and craftsman) in the 1970s to today looking for ways to market themselves to the hobbyist market. Nothing against those magazines (or craftsman), I like many of them, but in the process, this particular method of joinery has been elevated far above its actual historical importance and functional utility. It is really just a way of attaching two boards together; nothing more, nothing less.

Myself, I just fill the chips with wood that looks the closest. I also tend to start on the side that is most hidden, so I am in the most practice when I get to the seen side:)

[Ron Citerone]

Don't beat yourself up over "mistakes." Try to learn from them. Nothing I ever built didn't have something I wished was a little better.

It looks like a really classy piece that anybody would be proud to own! :)

[Eric John]

Good Morning,
Thank you all for your kindness.
i guess i do that to myself all the time.
there is always the next piece.
what a great journey.
I will try to keep your advices, and get back in the shop.
regards
Eric

[David Utterback]

Kudos on the chest. Just keep at it and you will satisfy your desires. The comments above are spot on, especially Andrew's.

Having built many pieces over the last 3 decades, I am considering going back to some of them to correct the functional errors. After that, I may move on to correct the cosmetic errors in several others. All of these may keep me busy for the next 3 decades. Or I may just finish the several projects that I have started - not having a clear notion of when I started them.

Life is a journey. The future is more important than the past.

[Carl Beckett]

Nice piece. The "perfect dovetail" obsession is a modern thing; plenty of historical originals have chips around them. Sometimes I think that is why they often just veneered over them. To the craftsman of yore it was just a joint, and a quick and easy one not requiring a lot of accuracy. Historical texts mention dovetails along with other standard joints, but they don't have any of the quasi-religious reverence you see today, if anything, they note that finger joints are probably superior to dovetails due to having more glue surface.

I think the whole "height of craftsmanship" nonsense comes from certain magazines (and craftsman) in the 1970s to today looking for ways to market themselves to the hobbyist market. Nothing against those magazines (or craftsman), I like many of them, but in the process, this particular method of joinery has been elevated far above its actual historical importance and functional utility. It is really just a way of attaching two boards together; nothing more, nothing less.

Myself, I just fill the chips with wood that looks the closest. I also tend to start on the side that is most hidden, so I am in the most practice when I get to the seen side:)

+1 on all this.

As an engineer, I appreciate when something comes out technically 'perfect' (never really does!). But some of the pieces that get the most compliments from others, are ones that are far from perfect. One of the favorite pieces, a couple of the drawers do not close in the Winter. I offered to fix/adjust and was turned down, stating that just this fact added to the charm of the piece.

Wabi Sabi - appreciate the beauty in the defects.

This tends to be especially true over time... 100 years from now those dovetail defects will be appreciated as a key human element of the piece. (otherwise just crank out mass produced pieces with automated machinery.. nothing special there)

A nice chest, enjoy!

[Neil Gaskin]

I think it’s pretty damn sexy. I like the lid hinges a lot. My only suggestion would be to run the front rail of the lid all the way across rather then between the sides but I don’t think that detail takes away from the Craftsmanship.

[Hugh Turner]

I will pm you my address if you are throwing it away:). looks great we all know where our mistakes are. A friend calls his stuff primitive rustic to account for mistakes