Up-Cycling - Tree of Life Drawer Unit

Video HERE

As I have said before, I do love a joblot, and sometime ago I won a load of wooden drawer units from Ebay. However, they have so far just been collecting spiders in a corner of the shed and after stubbing my toe one too many times I decided that something needed to be done...

This is a fairly simple design, made unnecessarily difficult because that's pretty much how I roll (!).

If you're looking to upcycle a similar drawer unit please think ahead - when designing new drawer fronts take into account how much room you actually have to work with and how much thickness your materials will add. Or do as I did and perform some rather dodgy surgery part-way through.

Obviously, your box/drawer unit or whatever will be different in size and shape, but this is the general process that I went through to build mine.

You Will Need:
Wooden Drawer Unit
Sandpaper
Thin Plywood
Leather Scraps*
Strong Glue
Brown Paper**
Tree of Life Pattern
Small Brass Pins + Hammer
Gold Silk Thread
Punch
Dark Brown, Ochre and Gold Acrylic Paint + Brushes
Masking Tape
Leather Feed or Moisturizer***
Paste Wax
Fabric or felt for lining

*You will need larger pieces to fit the drawer fronts, smaller scraps for the box. I had a number of 15x25cm pieces which were ideal.
**You can cover or paint the drawers as you like. I chose brown paper, which was a mistake as there was a void in the bottom of each drawer which left the paper unsupported and prone to riping.
***I use E45 cream, which is thinner than normal leather feed, but I prefer the shine it gives as well as conditioning.

Method:

1. First, evict the spiders and brush off the cobwebs, then sand off any finish*, dust off or hoover out the drawers.
2. Cut the ply to just larger than the drawer fronts** and glue a piece of leather onto the front of each with about 15mm (1/2") overlap.
3. Wrap the drawers with brown paper, or re-paint if you like. (You can line them now, or wait until everything else is done).
4. Scale your pattern up to fit, then mark into pieces to fit the drawers - I don't cut them until I'm ready to use them.
5. Glue the ply fronts to the drawers, wrap around the overlap and glue into place, pinching the corners together to create a neat edge. Fix the leather down with a few pins if you like, but it shouldn't be necessary if your glue is strong, I did it more for the look.
6. One drawer at a time, place the pattern onto the leather and hammer in pins along the lines at around 7-8mm intervals, closer around curves.
7. Remove the pins and pattern, then working one line at a time, put the pins back in and hammer about 1/3 into the drawer (or until stable enough to work around) then weave the thread around and back a few times.*** Hammer the pins down, then move on to the next section.
8. Once the pattern is completed go back around with a punch and hammer the pins tight to the leather. Rub a little glue into the threads to stabilize them and stop them fraying over time.
9. Plan where your leather will go on the outside then paint the visible parts of the box with dark brown or black**** acrylic - best to start with a watery coat, then a thicker one, particularly on the inside.
10. Mask off the inside of the box then paint the edges and the gaps between the leather with ochre then a couple of coats of gold.
11. Give the inside of the box and the gold lines a generous layer of wax and buff it well.
12. Glue the leather to the outside and add pins for decoration*****.
13. Rub the leather down with feed or moisturizer, then leave to soak for a few hours before buffing off any excess.

*My drawers had many layers of paint, which I could have sanded back to bare wood, but in the end I settled for taking off the surface paint and varnish to give a better surface for glue.
**As I've already said, BE CAREFUL how much thickness you add to the drawers - I forgot to take into account how much the leather would add and how tight the frame already was.
***I weaved each line 4 times, then went round with a needle to pull the cord into a neater line, particularly around the curves.
****When painting gold I like to base coat with dark brown and ochre, which helps to add some depth to the metallic shades (particularly as I'm using a cheaper brand).
*****You may have difficulty on sections of the box that are unsupported, I found that putting the boxes in helped to some degree, but there will still be some vibration (And after my surgery the frame couldn't stand too much of that before cracking the joints,)

I very much like this design, I have used the Tree of Life image on many boxes and I think this one is the best so far, but as usual, I have made it unnecessarily complicated!

Healthy Apple Chips

Video HERE

I have been trying to get this recipe right for months now... many pippins have gone to a floppy or fiery grave in the process. This is all rather dependant on the power of your oven so I expect that you might have to tweak things until you find the right settings.

1. First, take an apple* remove the stalk, wash and dry well.
2. Line a baking tray with baking paper - or a silicone mat and PREHEAT your oven to 90C Gas Mark 1/4**
3. Using a mandolin or sharp (serrated) knife cut the apple into 2-3mm slices (1/8")*** and arrange on the baking tray in a single layer.
4. Bake in the (not quite) top shelf of the oven**** for as long as it takes (usually 1h 15-30m)*****
5. After 30 minutes turn the slices over so that they cook evenly and don't stick.
6. After 1 hour remove any slices that are crisp - bear in mind that these will continue to harden as they cool - and arrange on a rack to cool. Continue to cook for 10-15 minutes before removing any that are crisp and returning the rest as necessary.
7. Cool to room temperature and, if they don't all disappear, these will keep for at least a week****** in an airtight container.

*Any variety will work, you can even use bramleys or other cooking apples if you sprinkle on a little sugar (or keep them sharp if you like). Depending on size you can make a small bowl's worth from 2 apples... best to cook in batches as required (A good way to use up apples that have gone a bit squidgy)
**My oven doesn't go down that far, so I went for Gas Mark 1 and kept an eye on things.
***If they are uneven cut off the very thin parts so they don't burn. You can core the apple first if you like, I prefer to knock out the pips as I get to them.
****I found that things burn too quickly at the very top, or not dry well in the middle, so I go for the second slot (of 5) in my oven.
*****This is where you need to let your oven work, but also keep an eye on things. These can go from OK to burnt very quickly, particularly where the slices are uneven.
******Probably longer, but I haven't yet been able to keep them for more than a few days.

Pallet Wood Super-Jointed Box

Video HERE

Yes, this looks simple from the outside, but I can assure you it was the most frustrating piece of woodworking I've attempted thus far.

The first frustration came when trying to work out how to fit joints together in 3 dimensions. I will scan in my plan when I have a chance. My intention was for the simplest possible pattern with the minimum of different pieces... and I ended up with just a 2-pattern plan, which suited me just fine.

[Image here]

As I cut each of the 8 pieces I fit them together to make sure the cuts were near enough - and I only needed to trim once before the sanding began... lots and lots of sanding.

Initially I marked and shaped the inner joints of the moving parts with a blade, then turned to a scroll saw sanding strip for the rest, which certainly made the job easier. I did not intend to really work the pallet wood, I wanted the rougher feel - within reason - so I only worked the faces enough to take off the worst splinters and dirt.

I debated whether to use leather to make hinges, but ended up drilling in dowels instead - I also added more dummy dowels so that it is difficult to see where hinges and openings are. This technique should be useful next time I try a puzzle box like this and attempt a puzzle lock as well.

With that rough finish I decided on a burned texture and set about things with a candle. Yes, it was tedious and long winded, but I do not have a torch or burner - and I prefer this method as it's easier to control the overall burn.

Points to remember:

• ALWAYS have some water handy.
• NEVER do this indoors (somewhere well-ventilated, preferably away from expensive furnishings)
• Keep the wood in the dark spot of the candle flame, too low will smother the wick, too high just collects smuts.
• If the wood catches fire, watch it carefully - it will burn itself out, just angle the wood to slow its progress.
• You SHOULD wear lung protection - particularly if the wood is dark, resinous or has been treated.

Once satisfied I gave the whole thing a firm brush over to get rid of any charcoal, then a last sanding to 120 grit and a layer of wax before spray varnish.

I am in the process of making up the puzzle to go inside this box, it will be a word-based puzzle. I was tempted to draw it inside with pyrography, but I think it would be better to have one that can be changed. Once I have the first set made I will add it down here...

Ivy Writing Box (Part 3/3)

Video HERE


Actually, after the palaver I made of the CD box last month, this actually went quite well!

I didn't really draw up any plans for this one... but I hope you can follow along. These are my notes from the various stages of the process...

Cutting

• I started with some 75mm stripwood that was 6mm thick and, with the books I was making in mind planned for a 300x250mm box.
• Like the CD box I pre-cut the lid from the side, leaving about 3-4mm still attached, this turned out to not be strong enough (and the cuts weren't quite aligned so more trimming was required later) and both long sides needed to be taped together for the gluing. Not sure how to resolve that issue in the future, I suspect that the tabs would never be strong enough to support such long cuts. I do not intend to use this method again for long sides anyway.

Building

• When it came to gluing I had a problem, unlike with the CD box I don't have elastic bands long enough for this, and no bar clamps either so I had to resort to sticking one corner at a time using G-clamps and a square block of wood. Not ideal, but it worked out OK in the end with only a 2mm variation between diagonal measurements.
• I was not yet decided on how I was going to decorate so protected the wood surface from the clamps with pieces of card. Turned out I needn't have been so particular, but it was good practice.
• I was tempted to try jointing the top and bottom, but in the end glue and pins won out. My pieces of ply were not wide enough, which kinda led to the decoration...
• The cutting technique made splitting top and bottom rather easy - seeing that half the tabs had already been broken - but needed more trimming to get them flat than I expected.
• When cutting back the overhang I did have some minor problems with the thickness of the material getting stuck under the scroll saw arm... must be aware of clearances in future.

Covering

• The naff-looking ply led me to decide on a paper mache/decoupage covering, initially to strengthen the join, and then to cover the dinged-up surfaces.
• I fell back onto my favourite material, book pages, for the box as it was going to be a writing box that felt appropriate.
• WARNING when selecting a book for this kind of thing make sure it's not got any dodgy words. I have previously come a cropper when using colonial texts such as Heart of Darkness which contain language which is no longer appropriate. If your pieces are small enough you may be able to get away with it, but although mine has been painted you can still make out the text in large areas.
• When preparing paper for this it is better to tear rather than cut, frayed edges blend together better - unless you're looking for a more precise effect.
• I kept my paper pieces to about 2" square and alternated the text direction as I went.
• It is best to use a cheap PVA mixed 50:50 with water - the classic mache mix which soaks easily through layers of paper and wood.
• I covered both the top and bottom then left them to dry completely before folding and gluing the overhang, trying to glue and fold both sides at once can be rather frustrating.
• After cutting the lid in half I used short strips of paper without text to cover the raw edge - not necessary, but I prefer it.
• Once everything was absolutely dry (do not rush mache, it will start to peel if you move on too soon) I started with a coat of bright red acrylic (I prefer to start bright, then bring it down this way otherwise it can get muddy) then dry-sponged on a thin coat of black and dark brown. I particularly worked the paint into the edges between paper, then made sure the covering was relatively even all over.
• A light sponging of bronze acrylic over the top added a little glitter and flare.

Resin

• I unpacked my dried ivy - see this month's 3-Minute skill - and took some time to arrange them over the top of the box.
• I should have used gloves, but completly forgot... as it was the leaves were encapsulated before any added moisture could have caused them to degrade.
• I used a very scant amount of glue to stick them down, but probably should have used more weight to keep them flat.
• After the first layer of resin I made a wall around the lid with tape before adding the next to try and keep the flaps from deforming, but there was a fair amount of over-spill in the last layer so that didn't help much.
• I sanded gently between each layer, but still caused some damage to the high-spots of the leaves that doesn't show unless you're looking for it.
• I used my non-Dremmel to grind back the excess resin before painting the raw edge.

Lining

• I decided on a simple brown paper lining - and will add some ivy detail with stamps later.
• I could have gone for fabric, but couldn't find something I liked in my stock and thought a simple finish would be better.

This project was both simple and complex at once, the bookbinding is a skill I intend to continue, although resin-covers will probably not be repeated. It was nice to work through a project that covered all the subjects of the month... I'm hoping to do it again in the future, although finding something that will include Dragon Food next time might be interesting...

3-Minute Skills - Pressing Leaves - Writing Box Part 2/3

Video HERE


Yes, this is a very old-fashioned craft... but it works, so who's gonna try and improve it?

OK, there are some people out there who go really technical with this and bathe their leaves in glycerine or other chemicals in order to make the finished leaves more flexible, but really, why complicate things?

You will need:
Leaves (Duh!)*
Scissors
Gloves
Paintbrush/Cotton buds
Cup of cold water with a drop of bleach**
Blotting paper or kitchen towel
A thick, heavy book or two OR a flower press***
Patience
Sealable Tupperware

*Any leaves will do, ideally ones you've taken with permission from the grower (Or in a sneaky manner when no one noticed). I prefer to go for evergreens which do not lose as much of their colour as deciduous. Avoid completely shaving a tree or bush, a few stems are OK, half the foliage not so much. For green leaves you need to cut them and start pressing within a few hours, if you're going for autumnal you can collect from the ground as well, but you may well need to clean them before pressing.
**Too much bleach will actually discolour the leaves, something like 1/2% in a solution of water is usually enough.
***I only have a small press so the book option works better for large batches.

Method:

1. Always wear gloves, the oils on your skin can cause discolouring and, if you've picked something nasty without realizing they will protect you from a skin reaction as well. Trim your stems to about 5mm.*
2. If necessary** brush the back of the leaves with a dry brush to remove dirt and/or pollution. A gentle wipe with bleach water over the top of the leaf can clean off light soiling. You should discard any with considerable dirt, bird poo or insect damage (unless you're looking for a chewed-up effect). Dry in the air, do not press when still damp.
3. Spread some blotting paper or kitchen towel into a layer of your press, or between a couple of pages***. Arrange your leaves bottom-up on the press or page, then carefully cover with more paper and press firmly.****
4. Transfer to a warm, dry place for 2-3 months.
5. Once pressed and dry remove from the press - wearing gloves - and layer between paper in a sealable box until needed.*****

*The amount of stem you keep is entirely up to you. I prefer them short unless I'm planning on using full sprays for an arrangement - be aware that you cannot guarantee the direction your stem will end up in after drying. It is easy to replace stems with embroidery thread after drying if necessary.
**I would only consider cleaning leaves if I had collected them from near roads where pollution can dull the colour. Depending on your weather conditions and if you collected them from the ground or not you may need to gently clean them first, or wait until after they're dried and brush them off instead. DO NOT use bleach water on the underside of a leaf, it will be absorbed and cause discolouring.
***I picked some heavy hardback books. I find it best to leave about 8-10mm of pages between each layer so that everything is kept smooth and flat.
****If you're using a flower press don't screw it too tightly to begin with. Tighten until just pressed, then turn the screws a little every 3-4 days for the first month.
*****If you have some floating around drop a couple of silica sachets into the box to help keep them dry.

This method can be used for flowers, but I really don't like the look of steam-rollered blooms. I am still looking for a way to preserve flowers that at least look partially alive.

Look out for next week's project when I finally put these leaves to some use.

Chocolate Recipes Part 2

Video HERE

Two of these recipes were demonstrated for the Sugarcraft Guild in March, although I didn't get to show the whole process in that video... The third I 'borrowed' from Ann Reardon, her recipe has certainly overcome - some of - my sugar-phobe tendencies.

 Cappuccino

This recipe is one of my most popular chocolates, light and whippy with a rich slug of coffee and a boozy edge. This technique is also a quick and easy way to make a rich chocolate mousse. You'll find it easiest with a handheld mixer - with removable blades or make space in your fridge for the whole thing. This batch will make about 60 moulded or rolled chocolates.

150g Milk Chocolate
50g Plain Chocolate
50g Butter
120ml Double Cream
Pinch of Salt
2tsp Instant Coffee*
2-3tbsp Coffee Liqueur
Gold or Bronze Lustre Dust
200g White Chocolate

1. Break the chocolate into a large jug with the butter, cream, salt and coffee and melt in the microwave for 30 seconds at a time.
2. Stir well to combine - make sure the butter is completely melted - then stir in the liqueur and set aside to cool to room temperature.
3. Blend - or whisk - for a couple of minutes until frothy. Leave the blades in the jug and transfer to the fridge for 5 minutes.
4. Blend once more until lighter in colour, then chill again for 5 minutes.
5. Repeat twice more** until very light, then transfer to piping bags and keep at room temperature until ready to pipe. Or, return to the fridge for 45 minutes -1hr until firm enough to roll.
6. If moulding, brush the moulds with lustre dust, tapping out the excess, before filling with white chocolate.

*I started making this recipe with fine ground coffee, but found the grittiness unpleasant, so I tried a good quality instant instead and had no real difference in flavour. If hand-rolled you should dip these in white chocolate and top with ground coffee for garnish instead of lustre. IMHO
**Be careful in the later stages of this process, this can separate and become unpleasant. Only beat until lighter in colour, don't attempt to make a light mousse - you can fold in some whipped cream if you want that texture instead.

Water Ganache

This one breaks the rules of chocolate work - but if you choose a really posh, strong chocolate they'll be dairy-free and ideal for your vegan friends. This makes about 30-40 balls, depending on how generously you roll them.

170ml Water
50g Dark Muscovado Sugar
225g Plain Chocolate (70% Cocoa +)
Cocoa Powder
Coco Nibs (Optional, but delicious)

1. Put the water and sugar into a small pan and bring to a simmer.
2. Roughly chop the chocolate and tip into a small-ish bowl,* then pour over the water and whisk until smooth.
3. Cool to room temperature, then chill for 1-2 hours.
4. Scatter some cocoa  and a few nibs onto a plate. Roll spoonfulls of the ganache into balls and drop onto the plate, shake to coat.
5. Chill until needed, but best served at room temperature.

*I find that this works best in a bowl 1/2 filled with chocolate, that way all the heat from the water melts the chocolate rather than heating the bowl.

Raspberry Caramel

I have historically been useless when it comes to hot sugar recipes (other than salted caramel). Whether fudge or toffee I have yet to find a recipe that works first time - or any time when it comes to fudge - but I had a specific order for a raspberry filled chocolate so I had to bite the bullet, as it were. I saw this recipe on Ann Reardon's You Tube channel and, as the other recipes I'd borrowed from her blog had all been successful I thought I'd give this one a go. The video here is my first attempt - and was a complete success! Has the sugar-phobia been overcome... only time will tell. This recipe filled 90 moulded shapes!

200g Raspberries (defrosted if frozen)*
60ml Double Cream
25g Butter
300g Sugar
30ml Glucose Syrup
75ml Water

1. Blend the berries with the cream and sieve out the seeds (I left some in, by accident really, the sieve wasn't very fine, but it added to the flavour). Chop the butter into cubes and add to the fruit then set aside.
2. Heat the sugar, glucose and water until melted, then cook until golden.
3. Remove from the heat then add the berry cream and butter. Stir until combined.
4. Return to the heat and bring to 230F(110C)** then pour into a bowl to cool.

*I expect this would work with any fruit, but I have yet to try different variations.
**This temperature gave me a thick jam-like consistency, the second batch I heated closer to 115C and it was much more caramel-like, although it was a bear to pipe into moulds once cold.

Writing Box Part 1 - Bookbinding

Video HERE

If you've watched this month's Report you'll have seen my first attempt at bookbinding... these are much further along, although unfinished...

This whole project started with ivy - I have pressed a load of leaves, see this month's 3-Minute Skill for details - and I drew out a pattern for the covers removing negative space to create a variegated look.

You Will Need:
Very thin plywood*
Light and Dark Veneer*
Acrylic Paint or Stain
Thin Ply Scrap
Packing Tape
Scroll Saw with Spiral Blade
Leather Scraps
Masking Tape
Epoxy Resin
Sandpaper
Paper**

* I cut my board blanks oversized by about 1cm on each side and allowed for that in the cutting pattern.
**Whatever paper you decide on for your pages, I used mostly copier paper, but also bundled together various art papers for a multi-media journal as well.

Method (This is what I did, if you can think of a better way then let me know.)

1. First I sponged on a layer of very thin paint to stain the outer covers - use wood stain if you like.
2. Once dry bundle together between a couple of layers of scrap ply, stick on the pattern and wrap with tape.
3. Drill access holes then carefully cut out the pieces.*
4. Stack the layers of ply and veneer together, then cut a strip of leather to fit at least 5cm wide.
5. Mask off the middle of the leather then layer between the ply and veneer with resin, adding extra thickness of veneer if necessary to fill up the gap beside the leather. Transfer to a lined press to set.**
6. Make your books***. Measure the width of the bound spine and add about 5mm for the width of the covers. Use this measurement to mark the width of the spine on the leather, then laminate the back cover in the same way.
7. Trim the covers to 5mm larger than the pages on 3 sides. Trim the leather to a point, then fold over and glue to create a neat top. Sand the edges and round over slightly.
8. Mask off the inside covers and the leather. Paint on a coat of resin to finish.****
9. Depending on your resin you may need to sand back and add a second coat.
10. Glue the pages to the spine, adding a bookmark ribbon if you like, then glue the outer pages to the covers for extra support. Press closed to dry.

*I usually lay the pieces on top of a copy of the pattern as I cut to keep everything together.
**I made a few folders with paper and sticky-backed plastic then pressed the covers between pages of heavy books to get everything laminated together. Basic, but it worked!
***I will do a bookbinding tutorial in the future, in the meantime you can look for Sea Lemon's bookbinding tutorials, she has lots and very well explained.
****This is where I had to stop because I ran out of resin for a second coat...