Sewing Cabinets - Dec 2018

Josh and Dierdra visited over Christmas and we got busy and made some tops for the Sewing Cabinets.  We used existing Formica counter tops from our stash in the garage.  They have been there for almost ten years, just waiting for this opportunity. . . We removed the oak trim, cut the formica (on dense particle board) pieces to size, and added walnut trim to all sides.  Then we manhandled the pieces and took them to the sewing room upstairs.  Then we made walnut backsplashes trimmed to go around the plugs on the wall.  The next step in the process is fabrication of 22 door faces to attach to the door fronts, and then add handles.  See Sewing Cabinets - February 2019 for that story.

Sewing Room Cabinets - February 2019

January - February 2019

The next step in the process is fabrication of 22 door faces to attach to the door fronts.  Handles are then attached through the door faces/fronts.   We used birds eye maple plywood trimmed with walnut for the drawer fronts.  The plywood came from a donor in Garden Grove, CA, in about 2004.  It was moved to SD in 2007.  Some of it had been used to build book cases prior to the move.

Josh shared the video link below, by the Wood Whisperer, to teach me how to build and install the door faces.

Wood Whisperer Video - shop cabinets

In the video, the Wood Whisperer demonstrates a technique for using plywood trimmed with a hardwood to make his drawer faces for his shop cabinets.  Ed Straub from Huntington Beach, CA, also showed me the method for attaching the trim several years ago.  Ed and I attended a Saturday class with William Ng in CA as well, where he showed us how to make a jig for the table saw to cut off the excess trim so that it is flush with the plywood.  I used this jig for this task on the sewing cabinet drawer faces.  Very little sanding was required to make the walnut trim flush with the plywood.  Ed used this technique to make a large cabinet with several drawers to house the Orange County Woodworkers Association's lathe that was used for club demonstrations every month.  I have used it on several bookcases and other furniture that I have made over the past 15 years.  It is extra work, but well worth the effort.   

Here's Josh's notes for calculating the drawer sizes:

Here are my notes on the drawer front dimensions.  I've attached a drawing to make more sense of it, but here's the basic formula.

H = inside height distance of the cabinet, from rail to rail

W = inside distance of the cabinet, from stile to stile

With a 3/4" overlay on each side, the drawer front width = W + 1.5"

Where n = # of drawers,

drawer front height = (H+.75)/n - .25

The drawing will probably make more sense.  This calculation has a 3/4" overlay at the top and bottom.

Here's the cutting diagram for the drawer faces, utilizing the birds eye maple plywood:

Left cabinets Before

Right Cabinets Before

Left Cabinets - After with drawer fronts/drawer handles

Right Cabinets - After with drawer fronts/drawer handles

Have to put the fronts on six more drawers - one was finished on the inside and not the outside, so its in the warm shop with a coat of tung oil that is drying - will need two more coats.  We'll do the others tomorrow, all in time for Valentine's Day!!!

  

all done