Projects of René Bertrand

These projects come from René Bertrand, rbertrand@smurfit.com of Aylmer, Quebec, Canada. René comments on his projects below.

DÉJÀ

"I have been at woodworking for 1 year now and loving it! This past March, my wife told me I was going to be a father so I decided to build a rocking cradle.  It is made of solid white oak and finished with natural oil for a rich natural look.  The support/stand can be dismounted because of the fasteners - no glue."

"The second project is a glass top coffee table also made of solid white oak. It took a lot of patience and precision to achieve proper alignment for the 26 hand shaped spindles. All and all, it was worth the effort and it looks great in my living room! The finish is a semi-gloss varathane."

.

"Things sure have changed since the baby was born, in fact, the dust had time to settle in my basement workshop (not a good sign). Anyway, here is my latest project.

It's a breadbox for those who love the taste of fresh home made bread. This project features a reeded glass door (oak frame) that is supported by 2 steel pins that slide in dado slots all the way to the back,,, no hinges. The cutting board underneath is made of maple with oak strips glued to the front and back.  It pulls out completely and is not attached to the box. I think this project adds to any kitchen with wood cabinetry and the brass knobs give that elegant, yet good home feeling."

"I always wanted to make my own plans and work on a large project. Well after months of work, here is the result. This Gun Cabinet will hold 8 shotguns/rifles and the two doors lock for safety. Thanks to the folks at Lee Valley Tools, I was able to find the lock this project required. Every part of this cabinet is made of solid pine, some of which was harvested on my father's property. You can imagine his surprise when I showed up at his door with this unit!  My only regret is the depth of the lower cabinet. It should be smaller to pull everything together, but he appreciated the extra storage space for shells and gear."

"I always wanted to build a large piece of furniture, well it doesn't get much bigger! This is an oak buffet cabinet, made mostly out of 7/8" solid red oak. The back is 3/4" oak core ply. The raised panel doors were made on the table saw and so were the rails and stiles. The joinery for this project, inspired by an article in a woodworking magazine, will make sure this large piece of furniture will sit in my living room for a long time (I hope). It stands 6'8" and is over 60" wide. The top piece has been fitted with lighting on the inside and is hidden. The entire piece was finished with an oil based product. The tricky part was figuring out the compound mitre cut for the top crown moulding. I enjoyed making this project and most importantly, I learned a great deal ... oh yeah, oak is like steel!"

To E-Mail the project maker, please click this button above!

To return to the Thumbnail Directory page of our Visitor's Projects, please click on BACK. To return to the Main Directory page for Grampa's Workshop, please click on HOME. Or to send us an E-mail, please click on EMAIL.

Email Webmaster
In an attempt to decrease the spam I get, my email address is no longer clickable
but instead is shown as an image in the box below.

If you wish to email me, please record the address below and email me there.