This was the first project I've attempted that didn't involve some sort of pocket screw, so I kind of did it as a learning experience. I really learned a lot. It's a cradle built (partially) from some reclaimed furniture. I only took pictures to show my Grandfather what I was working on, but I figured it wouldn't hurt to post it in here.
So, the first picture is one of the chairs that this started as. We had two of those chairs and a couch that we didn't want. I'm pretty sure it's all mahogany, but it had been outside for a while I think, and parts of it weren't in the best shape. So I salvaged what I could. I was able to use it for everything but the big panels. So the first thing I did was make the frames on the ends. This was the first time I ever attempted mortise and tenon joinery. Having them at angles made it a little more difficult, but it came out ok by my standards. Then I made the rails. I used an old tongue and groove plane that I found in my other Grandfather's barn to cut the grooves. I used this when I could, and used a router to cut the grooves that it wouldn't work for. When I was test fitting it all together, I realized that I needed something more than dowels to hold the two ends together, so I made some support rails on the bottom and fit them with dovetails. I didn't realize it at the time, but this kind of screwed me in my assembly/glue up plan. But I got over that later. So then I glued the side panels up from some hardware store mahogany (which is way to expensive in Hawaii, but I was lazy), and cut the tongues with the tongue and groove plane.
For the panels, I wanted something that would let some air flow through. It can get pretty warm out here, but a nice breeze helps a ton. So I tried something that I saw in Fine Woodworking a while back. The 4th picture shows the jig I made for one of the end panels. My shop is super small, and it barely fit. I didn't have the right screws to mount the router right on the plywood arm, so I just used its rails instead. I just cut a bunch of arcs into the panel, then flip it over and do it on the other side. I tried to draw it out and figure out how it would look, but that's tough. I ended up just using scrap pieces until I found what I liked. I cut the side panels, and then the end panels. I was a little to aggressive with the router, so it took a lot of sanding to fix it.
I screwed up and cut the end panels backwards, which you can see in the last two pictures. The tongue and groove plane is made for 3/4" thick material, and my panels are a little less, so I couldn't just swap sides. And the end panels aren't exactly the same size because I was sloppy. I was planning to make it look like the 7th picture, but I ended up liking it better backwards so I kept it. I then spent the next few weeks sanding the panels. That took a long long time. I wanted it nice and smooth, with no sharp edges that he would cut himself on.
Then I cut the rockers on the bottom, and cut the tops of the end panels off. I learned that trying to carve curved shapes with a chisel is difficult. I'll add some basic carving tools on my Christmas list. The bottom of the cradle is more of the scrap wood held together with tongue and groove joints.
Right around there was when I realize my major error. That's when I realized that I made it about 2" to wide for the cradle mattress we bought. I was measuring from the wrong spots on the end panel. Then he decided that he wanted to be born about 10 days early. About two weeks after we got him home I finished. I had more sanding to do, I used shellac as a finish, with some wax on parts of it, and I made some bumpers out of thick foam and duct tape to make up for my extra 2 inches of width. I had to rush the finish and my make shift bumpers, but its ok because he can actually use it.
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