Breakfront Base Complete!

Yesterday afternoon I finished the chinese chippendale breakfront base I've been working on. If you've not been following these posts, please note that I'm not responsible for the upper section of this piece; I only made the base to match.



Finishing took the better part of last week. After prep was complete, I used a water-based aniline dye to match the background color of the existing piece. A thin wash coat of shellac followed, and then grain filler tinted with japan color. After the next coat of shellac, I applied walnut crystals and a different aniline dye to approximate the color variations in the upper piece. Once this was done to my satisfaction, a few more coats of shellac were brushed on. Finally, I rubbed-out with steel wool, then waxed and buffed.

Thanks to Alan and Harold for their extensive help with this finish!



The client hasn't chosen hardware yet, if you're wondering how one opens the doors and drawers.

Fret Moldings Installed

I spent the day installing the fret moldings on the breakfront base I've been working on. This was incredibly tedious work, but I'm not complaining; as any of my friends will tell you, tedium is my middle name! These were some tricky miters because no 45 degree angles were involved. The larger doors required 52/38 degree cuts, while the smaller doors were some other combination summing to 90. I used a brad pusher and tiny brads to hold each piece in place until the glue set. Altogether, making and installing these little moldings took about 12 hours. Sheesh.

Tomorrow I'll fit the drawers, hang the doors, and do finish prep.

Breakfront Progress!

Today I made the doors and drawer faces for the breakfront base I've been working on. Tomorrow I'll make and install the fretwork moldings you see in the drawing below.

Chinese Chippendale Breakfront

I've recently been working on the base for a Chinese Chippendale breakfront. The client has the upper case and needs a base to match. Below are some photos of the work in progress as well as examples of the kinds of measured drawings I use in the shop.