This is the snasty joint issue that gave us so many headaches; turns out, he ended up using a dovetail after-all, just one that is 3 times larger in every way.
This is the set-up for the bearings, you can see he even made two wooden jackets, so that a bare minimum of metal was visible. These rocker bearings, along with the screws and giant washers on the base of the uprights (helps to stabalize the uprights) are the only metal used in the entire piece.
Here you can see ( sorta ) the dovetail work on the ribs.
Here you can see the spreader bar, finials, and upright.
And here is a dinky shot of the unfinished finished cradle!
TaDahhhhh!!! Now, notice the legs off to the left, how they dangle from the workbench, almost as if ~ yes ~
as if somebody just couldn't stay up any longer!
Well, afterall, 200+ hours IS a long time to be working away on something, he earned it! ( check out how even in the absolute deepest throes of sleep, he manages to maintain a death-like state, so very still, that his glasses are still perched atop his non-moving chest ~ and he wonders why I tried to rescusitate him ever so forcefully once, early on in the marriage, ~ actually ~ I really thought he was dead, so I balled my two fists together and slammed them down on his chest to re-start that unmoving heart ~ actually scared the livin' daylights out of him, woke him up with a start, he said "What, what'd I do to you?" ~ We can laugh about it now :-D )
Sorta looks like he's on a coroner's table to me ~
Hubby and I worked for hours, rubbing this hard paste wax in, buffing, rebuffing, another coat, another coat, another coat ~ argh~
Here's that joint again, looks better, eh? can you see where he actually *grew* another dovetail?
Here you can see how nicely many many coats of paste wax shine up, looks almost high-gloss, only without the ugliness of highgloss. Well, to me high gloss usually looks a little gauche. There are situations where it's the right application, but not many.
Check out those dovetailed ribs, spoke-shaved rim, and hand-rubbed finish!
And finally ~ VOILA ~
here it is ~
Still debating whether to hang the curtains from little loops, with the fabric hanging beneath the spreader bar ( thus the spreader bar is visible, for the most part) or somewhat like it's pinned, with the fabric hanging over the top of the spreader bar ( hangs better, but can't see the bar, and the bar IS gorgeous.)
~ UPDATE ~
Well, the loopy's won out, and I think it turned out all right ~ what do you think?
13 comments:
Very cool! How much for one? My wife is due July 30th....
Too bad my idea about electromagnets didn't turn out so well for you...
Mr T ~ yah, unfortunately, the government frowns upon electromagnetic child retainers ~ something about future effects/defects, something along those lines ~ ;-D
As to the price, my husband can submit a bid for you, if you are truly interested. Also, we can have it made & shipped prior to July 30th.
Your husband is good with his hands, Ms Red. I hope he'll be able to compete with the mass-produced stuff.
Give me a ball-park figured and I'll tell you how interested I really am. That peice is truly beautiful.
Gorilla:I've never seen one lookin' like that coming out of the labor camps of SE Asia, have you?
Very impressed! There's not many still have a skill like that these days...
GB ~ no competition, it's a niche market, as Mr T says ~ the labor camps can't produce quite that level of workmanship. :-D Sorta like comparing apples and oranges ~ :-D
Mr T ~ Hubby ballparked it high end of $2500 ~ that only equals out to about $17/hr labor, plus shop, plus materials. You can specify any kind of wood you want it made of, any stain, also, if you want it distressed ( made to look a little dinged up on purpose, makes it look like a real antique), plus that includes handmade curtains, ( any color scheme) 2 prs custom made sheets, cushion, and removable/washable waterproof cushion protector, and, although not shown, custom-made bumpers and small pillow.
binty ~ why thank you ~ wait till you see the chest with secret compartments ~ it's pretty darn awesome. :-D
Mr T ~ incidently, the sheets are 250 thread count, and the curtains are a linen/silk/polyester mix, which means they can be machine-washed and hung dry, and still look & hang very nicely. And I forgot to mention that a co-ordinating baby quilt comes with it as well, also handmade. ( by me )
Angelina and Brad would buy it then everybody would want one. It's not dear at $2500, you can hardly get a couch for that which you will throw out after a coupkle of years anyway. A lovely bit of work, not a pattern maker is he?
Its beyond my budget, but I can edmire it nonetheless. Sam way I feel about exotic sports cars, really.
Still, a really beautiful piece.
Have you dropped the price to $250 yet? I might still be interested...
errr ~ no :-D antiques that are too small to fit today's larger-sized children, and that do not adhere to current safety standards, or include the bedding generally go for a little less. Hubby said we could knock down to $2,000.00, but really, that's as low as he can go. On the other hand, he CAN do a very nice Shaker-style cradle for about $400.
That cradle is absolutely gorgeous.. I'm impressed!
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