Custom Intarsia Keepsake box tutorial

[Woodworking Plus]

Hi Everyone
I've gotten several PM's from some of you expressing interest in seeing how I do the small Intarsia that I do on the tops of my boxes.This project will not be too extreme but will give you a good idea of how I work with cutting, shaping and fitting some of the tiny pieces that I work with.
This is an anniversary gift box and will allow me to use a couple of new techniques that I have been wanting to try out.
I will begin by showing the subject photo supplied by my client to use as the Intarsia on the top of the box.
Boo and striped cat.jpg
Stay Tuned-- the fun has just begun

[SteveK]

Looking forward to seeing this Mike!

[Wood Dog]

Looking forward to your WIP Mike....thanks in advance for taking time to help, teach and share.

[ruger]

I to am looking forward to seeing what you do.Thanks for taking the time to show us.

Steve

[jim_mex]

Hi Mike - I'm really looking forward to following this WIP.
Thanks for taking the time out to do it and for the effort that I know goes into these step by step posts.

Btw - cute theme!

[dedijerry]

Mike thanks for doing this ... you do such great work can't wait to see it in action!

[Woodworking Plus]

The Box

Before I do any Intarsia for this project I first have to make the box. I chose a beautiful piece of 4/4 cherry, jointed one edge and ripped it down to the approximate width.(3 1/8")
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Back to the jointer to flatten one side and resaw to approximate thickness (9/16")
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Next step is at the planer where I take the stock down to final dimensions.( 3" wide x 1/2 " thick
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Over to the miter saw where all of the box side components are mitered to the proper length.
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Dry fit Box sides 6" x 7" x 3" outside measurements
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Next steps will be some glue-ups
Stay tuned

[Woodworking Plus]

The Glue-Up

The next step in the box construction is routing all of the grooves for the upper and lower backer boards and the accent strips. I use a 1/4" straight router bit set at 1/4" deep. The upper backer is down 1/4" from the top and the bottom backer is set 1/8" from the bottom. The accent strip groove is routed 1/8" deep and 1" from the bottom.The walnut inlays are now glued into to each section of the box sides with ca glue then trimmed flush with the miters using a small back saw. Accents are sanded flush with the box sides. At this point I do the final sanding on the insides of the box sections with 220 grit paper. Because I will be sawing the lid after the glue-up is done, I make some reference marks on the miters 3/4" down from the top. This is so I won't drill any holes in this area that will show up after the lid cut is made. Using a 5/64" high speed cutter on my rotary tool, I drill a series of shallow holes into the miters that will allow glue to strengthen the miters.Time for the glue-up. Clamping a straight edge to the workbench, I lay the sequentially cut box sides groove down and pull the pieces together with 2" packing tape keeping the edges against the straight edge.
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I flip the whole assembly over and apply glue to all of the miters and backer grooves, insert the backers and pull the sections together securing the last corner tightly with packing tape. Square up the box if needed. More packing tape is used on each corner stretched tight diagonally to pull the corners tight.

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Glue up is done. Next step is cutting the lid.
Stay tuned

[jim_mex]

Keep going Mike! - I'm picking up lots of neat tips here.
I especially like the idea of strengthening those mitre joints with the shallow bore holes for the glue to hold in to.

[Woodworking Plus]

Separating the lid

This step is pretty straightforward but having the bandsaw set at exactly 90 degrees is very important .
I went ahead and did the round overs on the top and bottom edges of the box using a 1/4" round-over bit set up on the router table. I also did all of the sanding to the box sides up to 220 grit.The band saw is set 3/4" from the fence and just high enough to clear the box.
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Now it's just a matter of slowly feeding the box through the blade to make the cut.To get rid of the saw marks, I start off with 60 grip sandpaper on a flat surface and using a circular motion, sand until the saw marks are gone , then proceed with 100 grit , then 220 grit. This assures that both surfaces are nice and flat.
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Separated Lid
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Next step-- Morticing the hinges

[Sandy Oaks]

Looking good so far. I too like the extra tips. Thanks. Looking forward to the next step.

[Woodworking Plus]

Morticing the hinges

The final step in the construction of the box is installing the hinges. For this job I have put together a little jig which makes it much easier to accurately do the small mortices required for this type on hinge.These hinges are 1" x 1" brass and require a mortice which is 1/16" deep on both sections of the box.I had an old dremel tool that no longer worked with the variable speed, combined with the cheap dremel router base that I didn't use for anything . With the addition of an 1/8" high speed cutter I now have a dedicated hinge morticer. I begin by measuring 1" from the corners of the back of the box and mark with an exacto knife. Place the hinge on the mark and mark the opposite edge of each hinge. The jig now clamps on the reference mark and routed . Move the jig over for the other hinge and route. A sharp chisel removes the little bit of waste in the corners to square up the mortice. Repeat this procedure for the lid of the box.
Accuracy is the key to getting this right so everything lines up. I will actually install the screws when the box is just about finished.
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Let's do some Intarsia

[Pinelog]

Great work! Nice walk-thru!

[Wood Dog]

You make it look so easy.......appreciate all the tips & tricks.
Love your wheeled feather board.

[jim_mex]

Ok Mike - I've got the hinge jig made. Now I guess I need to look for the magnifying lens ready for the intarsia part