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Barrister Bookcase Storage

Barrister Fabric case

I finished the Barrister bookcase I mentioned in my last post. It now sits in my wife’s sewing room so she can see the fabric she can choose from to make quilts. She makes wonderful quilts, and color selection and pattern are amazing. I will have to do a post on her work in the future.

The bookcase is 48″ wide with 5 sections all 16″ tall, with flip up doors with plexiglass front panels. The bookcase had a minor issue with the slides on the bottom drawer failing right after I did the final setup. The drawer slides were ones that I had as extras from another job, they were ok but not anywhere near the quality needed. The drawer with a 4 foot drawer length and only 12 inches deep the slides would rack and bind, the long length and small glide depth were the main issue. I ended up with a pair of the new Blum slides that work great. It did require remaking the whole box to get it right, but they work so well they are worth the price. I hate to have less than my best work leave my shop.

Foxy Lady

While working on house projects I carve out time to paint. I try to at least spend time every Sunday at my painting desk even when I have other projects waiting. I turn on the TV to Hockey, Football or Golf so it plays in the background, with a background noise I can tune out everything else and paint away.

Nuthatch Study

Painting a series of nuthatches on a single page is my way of pulling together images for a final painting in the future, fun to do and works on keeping a limited pallet so i work on color mixing.

Ron

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Winter Projects

The Golden Look

With the winter in full force, I have had the chance to tackle a few new projects. A little painting and a little time making a new barrister bookcase for my wife’s sewing room has kept me very busy.

Barrister Case 1
Barrister Case 1

I enjoy making furniture and while it ends up being a fair amount of time, I really like the results. This is a photo of the in process piece. I constructed each shelf is a separate section, giving me an easier time moving it around the shop. I used up a number of pieces of my lumber pile making the doors and I had the plexiglass from a “yard sale” at a local company a few years ago. Just awaiting door pulls and glass clips to finish the piece and get it out of my shop. My next furniture piece is a flat art file cabinet, like the ones used by architects for drawings and maps.

I did complete a few pieces and have made a number of new frames so I have inspiration. I am also working to finish up the floor tiling the in master bath in the month of February, so painting schedule will slow down some.

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Slim-Line Desk Lamp

I had some time in my shop and picked up a thin piece of cedar that was an offcut from making picture frames. I thought about how cool it would look as a super thin desk lamp. I had a piece of quartz crystal to use as a counter weight, a brass tube, a short strip of 12v LED lights, a small block of cherry from the scrap bin, a few pieces of connections materials, and voila the Slim-Line Lamp.

This is what happens when I get distracted and have a few pieces of scrap in hand.

The lamp looks cool, works very well over my desk, and its fragile making shiiing a big problem, so it won’t be making the gallery of items. It may make the trip to an in person show, if I ever get to addend one.