Projects of Don Barton

Don Barton of Melbourne, Australia dpb.canuck@gmail.com joins our group of exhibitors and describes his projects below.

"These are the last of the batch that I made as Christmas gifts. Each one is different, although naturally, there are similarities. All are finished in oil that is burnished into the timber. This produces a high gloss sheen that really shows the beauty of the wood. It's not at all plastic-looking like some polyurethanes.

In previous boxes I've made, I used MDF in the base arguing that since I lined the box with velvet a timber base couldn't be seen anyway. But I always felt like I was cheating, so now I use a 4mm birch ply for the base. I selected this because it is easy to dye-match the colour of the birch to the primary timber in the box. To my way of thinking, it's a much better result."

"These two boxes are the first of about eight I am making for Christmas gifts. There is no specific use behind my designs, I've decided they stand on their own right as artistic creations intended to feature the beauty of the timber from which they are created.

The deep red wood is Australian River Red-gum from old fence posts removed in place of a new fence. This timber used to be the wood-of-choice for this purpose as it is impervious to rot and insect decay. It's a very dense wood and a challenge unless one has very sharp tools.

"The yellow wood is Huon Pine, perhaps my favorite Australian timber species. It's also a wood resistant to rot and was logged in the early part of the twentieth century for boat building. It has a beautiful aroma and mills easily. This particular piece of timber is rare in that it features "bird's-eye" speckling throughout. The large black knot-hole has created some spectacular grain making this truly a one-of-a-kind box."

"Here's one more box made from a recycled River Red-gum fence post. This one is designed with simplicity in mind letting the timber do the talking. It features hand made wooden hinges."

"This Entertainment Unit was designed to fit into a restricted area. The width was determined by the space available.

All the timber is Tasmanian Blackwood. The panels are all Blackwood veneered MDF which I purchased from a local supplier. The door panels I made from Blackwood veneer applied to both sides of a 3mm MDF sheet. I book-matched these to give a nice balanced appearance. The finish is three coats of Danish Oil.

The design is rather simple. The wide-screen plasma is wall mounted. The height of the cabinet just slips under the screen. The top shelf extend 200mm beyond the cabinet to completely hide the cabling which runs behind. The open shelf under the top houses the digital boxes with their cables running down through grommets and out an opening in the rear panel. This keeps the ugly cables completely out of sight."

"This first small box with the wooden hinge is an experiment in design. It encorporates finger joints done in the Green & Greene style. The timber is Australian Rosewood which has an aroma very similar to aromatic cedar.

This second box is a small box with interlocking mitre joints. The timber is Douglas Fir."

"This Myrtle box is made with a Walnut burl veneer inset in the lid and Walnut accent pieces. This is my own design, with sides sloping 5 Degrees Toward the top, and the lid sides sloped 5 degrees the other way. The lid Frame has a raised panel effect by cutting a bevel in the frame."

"It makes The lid appear thin where the lid meets the box sides, but allows sufficient Thickness to accept the veneered panel and Beech retainer strip. The Compound angles were a challenge, but fun to work out."

"For this Homestead Railway Clock,The timber is River Redgum, including the burl veneer behind the pendulum. The joinery is mortise and tenon with through tenons wedged with contrasting Lighter timber. If you look closely at the bottom left of the clock frame You just get a glimpse of this. It is finished with an oil-based Poly, and buffed with wax. The clock was Done on the lathe and finished with Shellac."

"I started making wooden wristwatches in November '04 as Christmas presents. My best count is that I've now made over 30 of these. Whilst each one is a Challenge, and I try to make each one a little different, I have long Thought that it would be nice to have a presentation box for these watches. The box timber is Celery Top Pine, and the veneered inset panel is American Walnut. The wristwatch is Tassie Oak and River Redgum."

"This is a Federation Plant Stand. My wife has been after me to make this plant stand for some time. The design Is mine, but it's a rather uninspiring project. The timber is Tassie Oak, with the shelves being Tasmanian Blackwood iron-on Veneer, laminated to MDF substrate. The legs are set at a 5 degree angle.

The finish is a Maple stain (all I had on hand at the time) with two coats
Of an oil-based Poly."

"Here's my Box on Stilts. It's my interpretation of a box by Tony Lydgate published In one of his books. The four sides and lid are from Huon Pine, Legs and lid handle is Macassar Ebony. The sides are first mitred, glued up, then the tapers were cut on my table Saw. The curved top was shaped on a linisher. The finish is sanding sealer And wax. The body of the box is 180mm high, 75mm square at the base of the box and 65mm square at the top. The overall height including the lid handle and Stilts is 270mm."

"This jewellery box was inspired by one shown in Taunton's Complete Illustrated Guide to Box Making, by Doug Stowe, page 97. There are no drawings or dimensions given in this publication, so this is my interpretation.

I continue on my quest to make perfect dovetails by hand, but I'm not there there yet.

The ones in the top four corners are mitred dovetails, a first for me, and a little trickier than standard through-dovetails.

I cut the top away on the table saw after joining up the four sides. Each of the three drawers and the top shelf have slightly different divider configurations to accommodate a variety of jewellery items. The drawer dividers are removable so that the felt liners may be removed for cleaning or replacement. The Ebony handles are press fit into mortises (no glue). I hope they hold.

The dimensions of the box are: Width 325 x Depth 200 x Height 180mm (not including the base). The colour is reddish as shown in the photos, but I may retake them because the tone is not quite correct.

The primary timber is nicely figured Queensland Maple (Flindersia Breyleyana). The dividers and drawer sides are European Beech with Solomon Island Ebony drawer handles (Ebenaceae, Magnoliophyta, order Ebenales, class Magnoliopsida). The grain of the Maple runs continuously around the box, but this is not that noticeable when interrupted by the drawers and dovetails.

The 10mm Concealed Barrel Hinges and Brusso Lid Support are from Lee Valley. The finish is four coats of MinWax WipeOn Poly with a light buff with steel wool in between each coat. Great stuff!"

"Here's another box I made for a friend's birthday. The primary wood is River Red-Gum from a recycled counter-top.

The burl inset lid is Amboyna. The lid tab is Ebony inset with a curved dovetail into the mitred lid frame.

The tray is Australian Blackwood and the accent trim under the lid is Tassie Oak. The walls of the box are only 10mm thick which made inserting the 8mm Lid Stay into a mortise a real challenge.

The dovetail joints in the box are cut by hand without the use of any jigs. The tray fits snugly forming a vacuum making it difficult to remove - hence the knob for this purpose. The box is Intentionally masculine in design for a male friend."

"This is one of the first items I've turned on my new lathe. The wood is Huon pine, a beautiful golden timber with wonderful grain. The bowl's diameter is 155mm.

Huon pine only grows in southern and western Tasmanian rainforests. The wood has a rich golden texture, and an exquisite smell and touch. It is also one of the finest boat-building timbers known to man thanks to its durability and its strong oil, which makes it resistant to water penetration.

Several examples of Huon Pine in southern Tasmania are believed to be over 2,000 years old, making them one of the oldest living things in the world. The Huon pine once existed in large numbers, but their unique qualities resulted in many being felled. The felling of Huon pine is now restricted and reserves exist along the Denison River where the Huon pine may grow freely. Natural felling still provides an amount of timber to craftsmen so Huon pine products are still available."

"Each year I select a project for Christmas gifts. It has to be one where I can set up sort of an "assembly line". By this I mean, easily cut out multiples of each component of the project. I plan to make up to 15 copies.

This year I am making a serving tray.  It's based on one I saw in a studio in Prince Edward Island.
I used scrap pieces I had in my shop, but I am thinking of using Tasmainian Blackwood which looks somewhat like Black Walnut."

"I chose this project because I knew it would stretch my woodworking skills and it did. The plans for this chair were purchased from it's Australian designer, David Dundas. http://www.dldundas.com

I used plantation grown Fijian Mahogany."

"The rocker former is used to laminate up the 2 rockers. These are comprised of six 6mm strips and glued with the 2-part glue."

"This shows one of the rockers with the two rocker block glued to it. At this stage, all of the components are sized for fitting and gluing. After gluing, the rocker is faired to give the completed rocker smooth flowing lines."

"Here's the chair with all of the woodworking completed. Joints have been glued, all parts faired and sanded, chair has been stained and finished with Minwax."

"The project was always challenging, but is destined to become an family heir-loom.

"My wife and I are vertically challenged (I'm 5'10" and she is 5' 4"). I guess that doesn't make us the shortest people in the world, but there are many times that both of us wish we were taller. So when I saw Jim Hinkson's (Galley Room #9)  Folding Step Stool, made from http://www.meiselwoodhobby.com plans, I immediately ordered the plans for myself. It's probably one of the most practical pieces that I've made. I like it so much that my woodworking club has adopted this as our next group project.

I constructed mine from "Tasmanian Oak", which is really not Oak but a marketing name given to about five Eucalypts located in the states of Victoria and Tasmania in Australia. I used a dark Walnut stain and finished off with three coats of Minwax Wipe-On Poly, and buffed with wax for a matt gloss."

"Here's another simple project  - Salad Servers. These were cut (8 pair) from a single block of Australia Celery Top Pine, a beautiful strait grained timber grown in Tasmania. Other than sanding and oiling with a food-safe oil, there is no other finish. It only took two hours to complete this fun project." 

"I have always loved vintage cars, but alas, cannot afford to purchase or restore one. So here's my alternative, make one from wood.   I made this1930 Cadillac La-Salle Roadster from plans purchased from. The wood is leftover scrap from recent projects. I interpreted the plans with a little more detail after researching this model on the Net.

The plans came from Toys & Joys of Lynden Washington, and were purchased from Lee Valley."

"Here's my latest project. I saw this idea when I was in Dartmouth NS last summer. I'm now making ten of these for Christmas gifts. The light coloured wood is Vic Ash and the dark is American Walnut. The finish is a new experiment for me; clear acrylic lacquer automobile spray over a base coat of shellac. The lacquer is cut back with a Mirror Glaze also intended for automobiles. The coin beside the watch is an Aussie 50 cent piece."

"This is becoming a real habit for me. I love making small boxes for a variety of reasons. They don't require a lot of time, if you screw up, you only waste a little wood, and they make great gifts.

This one's a wedding present for my niece in Canada."

"I used Tasmanian Myrtle, Jarrah from Western Australia, Victoria Ash, and American Walnut. The finish is my usual; six coats of shellac (final three with hardener), a light sanding in between coats and a final polish with a beeswax containing tripoli powder."

"I tried this one with two features new to me; veneering and a wooden hinge. I used scrap to make the jewellery box left over from previous work - that's one of the reasons I like making small boxes."

"The lid of this box is Burl Myrtle on the top and Plain Huon Pine on the underside. Both wood comes from Tasmania. I laminated these to a 3mm MDF core. I'm not sure what the other timber is, but I think it is Jarrah, readily available here in Australia. The blond accent pieces are a mix of American Maple and Vic Ash. It's hard to distinguish between the two.

I cut the box-joint on an adjustable jig that I made."

"As well, I used this jig to make the wooden hinges. The box-joint was cut on a table-mounted router using a 1/2" router bit, and the hinge using a 1/4" router bit. The axle is a brass pin, and exposed pine dowels help secure the hinge to the body of the box. The finish is shellac with a hardner."

"This clock is from a design published in Woodsmith magazine Vol. 24 / No. 144. The top of the clock lifts off to reveal a secret compartment in which one can place valuables.

The wood is a mix of various Australian species. The body is Australian Blackwood, the dark trim is Jarrah, and the top is curly Blackbutt.

The finish is my favourite; four coats of hardened shellac, cut polish and traditional wax. It's quick and easy and always results in a sensuously silky-smooth finish."

"Three native Australian Eucalypts make up this small box. The sides are Lacy Sheoak. The "ears" and lid-trim are Silky Oak and the lid is Australian Blackbutt. This box is a convenient overnight storage container for rings and watches."

"Again I acknowledge the designer of this unusually shaped creation, Tony Lydgate, the award winning New England decorative box maker."  

"This Jewellery Chest is another found in Tony Lydgate's book, The Art of Making Elegant Wood Boxes. The primary wood is recycled Australian Blackbutt (Eucalyptus pilularis). The honey brown timber comes from the demolition of a Brisbane warehouse built in 1908. I chose it for its figured grain, pitch-lines, and bore holes. The handles are individually carved from Ebony."

"To complete the international connection, the drawer frames and dividers are Canadian Maple. The timber was sanded progressively through to 1500 grit paper. The finish is three coats of shellac with a light sanding between each, followed by two coats of shellac with hardener, and polished with Tripoli talc and wax."

"With Christmas fast approaching, I've been busy working on a few gifts for Christmas. The plans for these cooling racks were originally published in Volume 15, Issue 5 of The Woodworker's Journal. What appealed to me is that the construction technique requires multiple copies be produced. So I set up a mini production line and made five copies."

"The rails are joined to the feet by means of a dovetail slot as shown in the close-up. The five cooling racks required 3 hours in the shop and about $10.00 worth of pine."

"Australia has a well deserved reputation for producing some of the world's best wine. So here's my latest project, a very simple wine rack. I entered this in my woodworking club's 2003 2x4 Challenge. The restriction was that the project had to be made entirely from a standard 2x4 wall stud. The end panels were made by re-sawing the 2x4, book matching the sections (there are 4 per panel) and biscuit joining them. The rails are through mortise and tenon joints with wedges.

For me, the biggest challenge was the finish. I have seen projects made of pine and am usually disappointed with the standard of finish. I wanted to see if I could make something with a more "professional" finish. This was done by going through all the sandpaper grades up to 1200, then applying a shellac sanding sealer and more sanding with 1200 to remove the fuzz, polished with paste wax containing Tripoli talc, and coating with two light coats of a traditional paste wax. The result is a deep rich shine on timber that is smooth as a baby's bottom. By the way - this won the novice level prize. Yep - I still consider myself a novice."

"Here's two projects that I enjoyed making. The timber involved is all Australian native. The jewellery box I made as a gift for my granddaughter. I'll give it to her this Christmas when in Vancouver. The design is based on one by Tony Ledgate as shown in his book, THE ART OF MAKING ELEGANT WOOD BOXES, (page 26)."

"The light coloured timber is Australian Curly Blackbutt (honestly). The dark wood is Curly Jarrah. I deliberately chose the Jarrah because I liked the natural "flaws" in the timber. The box is 310mm wide, 190mm deep, and 90mm high. I used the same mix of wood in the sliding tray that sits in the box."

"This serving tray is my design and features alternating Jarrah and Messmate in the centre, and Mountain Ash as a boarder. The dimensions are 440mm x 530mm.

"The wood I chose for the horse is "damar minyak", which I believe is an Indonesian timber with very straight grain and easy to carve. The stand is of Australian Mountain Ash, a hardwood.

The horse is primarily natural in finish with some dark stain to antique the look of the timber. I sealed the timber with a sanding sealer, then applied the dark stain and immediately wiped it off and resanded to return to the natural honey colour of the wood except where the stain penetrated below the grain surface.

I followed this up with three coats of dewaxed shellac, with a light fine wet/dry emery paper between each coat. The final shellac coat had a hardening agent to give a harder surface than is normally available using shellac. Finally, I cut polished the hardened shellac with a waxed based polish available here in Australia.

The stand is finished with shellac as above with no stain. This project has given me confidence to do more woodworking involving carving. I plan to make a larger Rocking Horse in a few year, as this one is suitable for children up to 5 years old. Although my grandson is still an infant, I can see him quickly growing out of this one."

"This infant's changing table is constructed of pine, and all of the joints are mortise and tenon. It was a gift to my youngest daughter for her first child, my first Australian grandchild."

"This toy truck was made following plans available from an Adelaide, South Australia supplier. The dark timber is jarrah, and the light is Mountain Ash except for the engine cover which is pine. The finish is a spray varnish. This was a Christmas gift for my Canadian grandson who lives in Vancouver."

"This project is a Shaker hall table. I increased the depth of the table over traditional dimensions, because my wife wants to use this in our lounge room to display family photographs. The wood is Jarrah, one of Australia's many beautiful hardwoods.

The construction of the table base is mortise and tenon. The top consists of five lengths of timber biscuit jointed. The breadboard ends of the table top allow the top to expand and contract along a blind mortise with only the centre dowel being glued through the tenon. (The other two dowels are inserted through elongated slots in the tenon to allow the timber to move.)

The finish is shellac and wax. I applied six coats of shellac with a light sanding using fine wet/dry paper, finished off with a great locally made wax which really brings out the beauty of the grain and colour of the timber."

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