My daughter's birthday is coming up, and she lives 2000 miles away with
her mother. I've just replaced a few of my tools - and have 3 weeks to
crank out a little something for my 9 yr old. I'm leaning heavily
towards a tea tray - fast, small enough to ship, and it could be pretty
elegant.

I'm more of a box and carcass guy - things with straight lines that
doesn't take too much thinking or skill. So this project, while small,
intimidates me for some reason.

In hopes to best illustrate... Think of a basic oval of wood - about 3/4
- 1" thick with a recessed bottom. I'm sure this is a no-brainer for
most folks here - but I'm not the most creative fella.

Question 1: I wouldn't glue up a panel and hog out the middle would I?
I'm thinking the more correct method is to jig saw and template cut some
type of oval - perhaps in 2 or 4 sections - like a hoop. Rabbet the
bottom and glue in some plywood. (And no, I've never done template
routing...)

Question 2: To add some interest, I was thinking about using 2 types of
wood. Think of a thick hoop of cherry on the inside, with a thinner hoop
of walnut glued to the perimeter. This may be well outside my skill -
it's sure beyond my understanding of how to start it... Any ideas?

Question 3: Even if the dual wood hoop idea isn't practical, perhaps I
can add some visual interest by assembling the hoops with splines that
show on the side, or perhaps some sort of dovetail key of a contrasting
wood. This is assuming that it makes sense to build the hoop out of 2 or
4 pieces... Thoughts?

Question 4: Lastly - on the bottom of the tray - I was thinking of some
type of presentation of her initials. My first thought was stenciling
the initials, fill in w/ a little glue or epoxy, and use a colored sand
or glass or something to make the initials. Then fill in with some clear
smooth plastic goo and make it flat. This is a bit down the road - and
if the dual wood with dovetail key assembly works out - I'd hate to make
it gaudy with some silly bottom to the tray.

Thanks for any help you can provide.

Respectfully,

JBD

Should I rephrase? Or am I completely out in left field??

Help me, help you!

- uh - help me.

"John Dykes" wrote...


- uh - help me.

Well, I think your project sounds nice, but might be a bit too advanced for
your skill level, given the limited amount of time you have.

It's probably not possible to describe step by step every little nuance of
what you're trying to do there.

I'd suggest picking another project - a trip to the hobby shop might give
you some ideas.

Your 9 year old will love whatever it is, knowing her dad made it. Maybe a
doll house kit? Or doll furniture? I'm just thinking that if you only have
three weeks, and you're not sure where to start with the tea tray project,
why not start with a kit, she's gonna love it just the same, and it'll save
you a lot of gray hairs.

Or a jewelry box - a fairly simple project, lots of nice hardware available
on-line.

If you have a lathe, I think Lee Valley has a ball-bearing equipped yo-yo
kit.

Good luck, let us know what you make!

--
Timothy Juvenal
www.rude-tone.com/work.htm

Got access to a mini lathe and some gouges? If so, thanks to
Harry Potter, magic wands are very popular with young
girls

http://home.comcast.net/~charliebcz/.../Turning2.html

and if she has long hair, turn some hair sticks

http://home.comcast.net/~charliebcz/...Turning12.html

Sliding top treasures box, too young for jewelry, with "freckle
wood" (birdseye maple) on top.

http://home.comcast.net/~charliebcz/...Projects3.html

Or, if you want to encourage saving money, a tree bank or the like

http://home.comcast.net/~charliebcz/...Projects4.html

And if you want to do a marionette (sp?) - how about the
Road Runner

http://home.comcast.net/~charliebcz/...Projects7.html

charlie b

On Tue, 25 Apr 2006 10:19:44 -0600, John Dykes
wrote:

If you decide to drop this project for now, (never give up, just give in), you
might think of making her a few barrettes...
Easy to make and little girls like them as much as the older ones do... *g*
And she'll have something to wear that dad made...


My daughter's birthday is coming up, and she lives 2000 miles away with
her mother. I've just replaced a few of my tools - and have 3 weeks to
crank out a little something for my 9 yr old. I'm leaning heavily
towards a tea tray - fast, small enough to ship, and it could be pretty
elegant.

I'm more of a box and carcass guy - things with straight lines that
doesn't take too much thinking or skill. So this project, while small,
intimidates me for some reason.

In hopes to best illustrate... Think of a basic oval of wood - about 3/4
- 1" thick with a recessed bottom. I'm sure this is a no-brainer for
most folks here - but I'm not the most creative fella.

Question 1: I wouldn't glue up a panel and hog out the middle would I?
I'm thinking the more correct method is to jig saw and template cut some
type of oval - perhaps in 2 or 4 sections - like a hoop. Rabbet the
bottom and glue in some plywood. (And no, I've never done template
routing...)

Question 2: To add some interest, I was thinking about using 2 types of
wood. Think of a thick hoop of cherry on the inside, with a thinner hoop
of walnut glued to the perimeter. This may be well outside my skill -
it's sure beyond my understanding of how to start it... Any ideas?

Question 3: Even if the dual wood hoop idea isn't practical, perhaps I
can add some visual interest by assembling the hoops with splines that
show on the side, or perhaps some sort of dovetail key of a contrasting
wood. This is assuming that it makes sense to build the hoop out of 2 or
4 pieces... Thoughts?

Question 4: Lastly - on the bottom of the tray - I was thinking of some
type of presentation of her initials. My first thought was stenciling
the initials, fill in w/ a little glue or epoxy, and use a colored sand
or glass or something to make the initials. Then fill in with some clear
smooth plastic goo and make it flat. This is a bit down the road - and
if the dual wood with dovetail key assembly works out - I'd hate to make
it gaudy with some silly bottom to the tray.

Thanks for any help you can provide.

Respectfully,

JBD

Mac

https://home.comcast.net/~mac.davis
https://home.comcast.net/~mac.davis/wood_stuff.htm