Vanity table in the works part 1 ( just added update August 2 2011 finished at last)

Rob Keeble

Member
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Location
GTA Ontario Canada
So when Allen made the vanity table for a young girl and posted his build here, I was quiet inspired by it.

My good buddy from Scouting days has a young daughter and her birthday was coming up so i thought i would build her one as a gift. I also feel given she is 1 girl in a 3 kid house that she deserves a little treat. The boys in that house are football crazy and she often has to spend hours at the field when she really aint interested ( she told me on the side:D).

So being Sketchup challenged i used Allens pictures to get a basic plan going. Not being totally comfortable with the hinged lid Allen chose i decided to turn this into quiet a project for myself. Its now a little over due already but its getting there and hey you cannot rush a good thing.

So here are a few pictures to feed the picture police.


First the top, is gonna be from nice maple boards and will fold up down the middle rather than the whole top. Just in case this has to double as a bed side table and needs a lamp to stand on it.

These are the boards ready for glue up

Maple boards for top.jpg Not the best picture but will have to do for now.:eek:

Then i could almost do a tutorial on the butler hinge. I think i am wishing i had never heard of this hinge before. But i like it.:p They work so well and for my half top lift it will be perfect.

Butler hinge.jpg Under side of butler hinge.jpg See the spring plate that holds it in position.

Here is my test mounting of it on scrap maple.

Butler hinge closed two boards close together.jpg You can see how it will stand open with no other assistance.Butler hing side view open.jpg

Then despite my love affair with my router since Toni sent me Carols book, I am still trying to get the template right. Here is proof of my attempts.:D
Butler hinge template mark 123.jpg This is Mk 1, 2 an 3 and here is Mk 4 and its still no darn good.Butler hinge template Mk 4.jpg Still need more pratice in this area but i think i need a sander too.

Then I picked up some African Mahogany for the legs and sides from Century Mill Lumber they got shorts 5/4 going for $4.50 CDN/ bdft.

For the legs i wanted a lighter design and made the legs 1.25 square from some other mahogany offcuts i had picked up there for a songe before.

I then tapered them down to 3/4 at the base from a bout 4 inches or so from the top. After looking at the legs i decided to bevel the legs on my router so the legs now became Octagonal tapered legs.:D( what a mouth ful).
Here are the sexy legs.

Sexy legs.jpg Looking down the legs.jpg Octagon taper from bottom.jpg

There is another picture and the sides to do so i will carry on in the next post.
 
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Vanity Part 2

Well the last leg picture shows the top of the leg in more detail with the routed bevel.
Did not have time to build a chamfer plane for this one....its coming though.;)

Leg top showing routerd bevel.jpg

Then you can see how i did the next job if you check out my post on making a scratch stock or Beading Tool here.

These are the sides also going to be African Mahogany and mortised into the legs at the corners.

The sides with beading.jpg

Right now they just out from the Scratching Department.

Check out those beads.....Looking down a bead.jpg looking down a bead no2.jpg

I just love the little detail these add to the sides. Worried about the finish cycle though. Throw me any bones on that side now please and take away the anxiety.:D

Then i thought i would show you the contrast with top and side but the picture aint great, i was hot and tired when i took them. :(:eek:

Side and top contrast.jpg

What came out nice is the impression of the legs and sides together

What the sides will look like when the mortise is done.jpg

So thats as far as i have got.

One thing i have done is try to get into the sketchup side because i need it now to get the design properly done. Any further the way i am going and i will ruin the lumber and never finish.

So guess what here is as far as i have come with sketchup and a plan for the table.

Vanity table design.jpg I still have to put the joints in, design a frame for the mirror which is going to mount in the more tradditional position at the rear on tilting brackets and supports and then deal with the bottom.

But this is as far as i have come and i need to get hold of Dave Richards to help me out. I got a few things i cannot fix and they are trying my patience to say the least.;):eek::rolleyes: But this is a huge leap for me. I have to thank Drew for pointing me to Sketchup for Dummies. :thumb: Once you get to grips with the inference concept it gets a little easier. Still needs patience though.

Thats it so far stay tuned there will be more. I need to get er done before the Hockey starts this year. :)

Oh btw i picked up a real cool but cheap :(:huh: cabinet lamp from LV. I dunno but some of their stuff in the brass section is suspect lately. I have settled on this one (nearly took it back) but the HD stuff was more expensive and i dont want to turn this into a $500 dollar table.:rofl::rofl:
This one is only $10 bucks so it will do to mount above the mirror.

Please any comments and help will be most appreciated. I am still above water but only just.

Have to build a jig this weekend, yeah the project justifies the jigs:rofl: its another item from Carols book. If you have the book check around page 55 if you want to know about it. :thumb:
 
Hi Rob,

I like the design of the table very much and the scale of the apron to the legs looks aesthetically pleasing!

How are you going to finish the African Mahogany? Are you going to give them a dark stain to offset the lighter maple top or try to complement the maple with a natural finish on the legs and apron?
 
Rob, I can't keep up with all your posts, let alone all the woodwork behind them. I see where you are building scratch stock, turning burls, modifying marking gauges and now making a vanity table, apparently all at the same time. What did you do, take "Allen" pills? Where can I get some?

By the way, the table looks great!
 
rob the table looks great but i do have one question on the top??? i am not sure i would have the hinges showing like you have it portrayed in sketchup.. i think i would use another style. one that would allow the top to open but not be showing .. maybe some one else has a better idea ,,just my take on this rob..i might be all wet its raining here:)
 
That is coming along great. I agree that leg/apron shot with the stopped flutes and the scratched bead really give you an idea of where this is going. Watching patiently . . . .

P.s. I am wondering about the exposed butler hinges vs. a piano hinge or a couple of butt hinges with just the barrel showing. The barrel could be recessed so as to be flush to the top and the appearance of the top would be less interrupted(?). Just a thought.
 
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Hi Rob,

I like the design of the table very much and the scale of the apron to the legs looks aesthetically pleasing!

How are you going to finish the African Mahogany? Are you going to give them a dark stain to offset the lighter maple top or try to complement the maple with a natural finish on the legs and apron?

Bill, at this stage i have absolutely no clue. I am hoping for simple to apply suggestions from folks here when i get near that stage. Its the one thing that scares me totally.:D I fortunately or unfortunately discovered wipe on poly. Now it goes on everything. Need to kick the habit. This is my first ever piece of half decent wood furniture.

Rob, I can't keep up with all your posts, let alone all the woodwork behind them. I see where you are building scratch stock, turning burls, modifying marking gauges and now making a vanity table, apparently all at the same time. What did you do, take "Allen" pills? Where can I get some?

By the way, the table looks great!


Bill it aint no pills i was just catching up on posting. All done over time just like you would. But i dunno the tipping point in my productivity in my shop came after Toni sent me Carols book. Something went click and the procrastination stopped. I have also reached a stage of the year where football is over for the season and hockey has not started. If i aint working at the computer or at a client then i am the go to taxi for my son. He aint gonna be around too much longer so i dont mind the driving and the sports. But when there is a gap i am in the shop. I have a lovely wife she lets me get away with everything in the house. We dont waste much time on yardwork. You aint seen our postage stamp lots in Canada and with winter here i found dumping money into the garden here is pretty much a seasonal thing and i rather spend it on other things. My Deck is done so no other distractions.:D

rob the table looks great but i do have one question on the top??? i am not sure i would have the hinges showing like you have it portrayed in sketchup.. i think i would use another style. one that would allow the top to open but not be showing .. maybe some one else has a better idea ,,just my take on this rob..i might be all wet its raining here:)

That is coming along great. I agree that leg/apron shot with the stopped flutes and the scratched bead really give you an idea of where this is going. Watching patiently . . . .

P.s. I am wondering about the exposed butler hinges vs. a piano hinge or a couple of butt hinges with just the barrel showing. The barrel could be recessed so as to be flush to the top and the appearance of the top would be less interrupted(?). Just a thought.


Ok Larry and Glenn you gave me a lot to think about. But i aint too sure you guys have seen the reason this is called a butlers hinge.

They are used in a butlers table. With you guys having had a tea party once upon a time and dumped the tea over board you guys seem to drink mostly coffee. :rofl::rofl:

Well coming from an British mother who fed us tea, morning noon and night and in between, tea was always served with a cup and saucer and on a tray. We did not have a butler or a butlers tray but during my travels in the UK did get to experience the whole shebang of the butler serving the tea on a butlers tray.

Here is a picture of what the butlers tray looks like and why the hinge is called that and what it looks like when its used. The tray has sides that are folded up to be able to carry it and then fold down to form the table. They sometimes fit into the table they rest on but the tradditional way from my understanding is one where the table legs are attached and the tray becomes the table.

So after having defended my bling. Yeah i choose the brass visible hinge to give this table top some bling and that spring is pretty stiff. I will test it to make sure it can hold the length of what works out to be 8" x 22" piece of maple up when the top is lifted.

Also there are a few things about this build i think i should clear up.

I am using this as a learning experience. I aint a designers backside, i have pretty kitsch taste however there is going to be a brass lamp mounted on top of the mirror not yet added to the drawing so i thought a visible hinge would pick up on that.

I had thought of putting a little draw in front side instead of lifting the top but that would be too ordinary. If i put a piano hinge in then it will have its pivot point visible right across the split line. If i hide butt hinges in the split then it wont be intuitive to the eye that the front of the top splits in the middle and lifts.

I looked at the available lid supports and my dimensions dont work for them. I am hoping the butler hinge does all the above.

You both have me concerned and this is what i was looking for i really welcome the input.

Please give me a rebuttle after you have seen the picture i linked to.

Thanks for all the comments everyone. Its a fun build and i really need to get er done.

BTW Dave has been in touch and is going to give me some pointers on Sketchup. This was my first drawing on sketchup.:thumb:
 
I suggest using this for a makeup vanity

http://www.rockler.com/product.cfm?page=424&filter=lid hinge

holds the top open securely at a nice 95 degree or so angle, perfect for a makeup vanity.


and before you install a light on top of the mirror, check to make sure it doesnt offer too much glare.
all the vanities I looked at had the light under the mirror. but I dont know if it means anything. My 2 cents, only my opinion

and Im sure you know already but Id like to mention, that whatever lighting your putting in there, make sure it has a bulb that is easy to replace, and the light fixture itself can take the banging of the top down to the cabinet. a delicate fixture will make it only a month. I find the 12.99 fluorescent with cord attached, 12-20 inch in the borg, are perfect for this style installation. even if they break, its cheap enough to replace, and Ive replaced my wifes vanity light 3-4 times over the past 15 years.just giving you my limited experience with this..(I replaced that hinge I posted only once, since it eventually didnt hold the top up strong enough.)
 
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...Thats all that Sam Maloof used. If it was good enough for him it should be good enough for you.

Don, I know you had a chance to meet him once, but based on pretty much all I've read about it, he used a blend of oil and poly. Wipe-on poly straight out of the can is a different beast (and look). ;)
 
Don, I know you had a chance to meet him once, but based on pretty much all I've read about it, he used a blend of oil and poly. Wipe-on poly straight out of the can is a different beast (and look). ;)

Well Vaughn if you want to get picky it was Actually 1/3 BLO, 1/3 Tung Oil AND 1/3 WIPE ON POLY. The point is and I will reiterate if Wipe on poly was good enough for Sam it's good enough for me. BTW thats pretty much the same finish I am using on the commission BTW. If you realy want to get nit pickey the wipe on poly is a mixture of 50% poly and 50% mineral spirits. So lets see, take a pint of poly, a pint of MS, a qt of BLO and a qt of Tung oil and you have the formula. But guess what it's still wipe on poly.
 
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well rob,, i suggest you use what your familiar with now... you can experiment on the next piece.. my finishing experience which isnt much but better than it was when i started, which was with ordinary varnish brushed and then came wipe on poly by min wax, thought i had the miracle cure,, then i found shellac , lacquers and others and now mix and match as i want.. but for a special piece that you want to be right the first time use what you know NOW, dont experiment ..
 
Well Vaughn if you want to get picky it was Actually 1/3 BLO, 1/3 Tung Oil AND 1/3 WIPE ON POLY. The point is and I will reiterate if Wipe on poly was good enough for Sam it's good enough for me. BTW thats pretty much the same finish I am using on the commission BTW. If you realy want to get nit pickey the wipe on poly is a mixture of 50% poly and 50% mineral spirits. So lets see, take a pint of poly, a pint of MS, a qt of BLO and a qt of Tung oil and you have the formula. But guess what it's still wipe on poly.

Don, wipe on poly isn't the same as wipe on poly mixed 1:2 with two kinds of oil. That's my point. Call it nit picking, but when some newbie reads "Sam used wipe on poly", they're gonna think they can get the same results with a can of Minwax wipe on from the Borg. They won't, because it's not the same. Yes, you are correct. Sam used wipe on poly...mixed with two other compounds. If you're offering expert information and advice, you might should mention the other important parts. :rolleyes:

And Rob, Larry's right. You should use what you're comfortable with. Save the experimenting for less special projects. Or if you really want to try something different on this project, experiment on another project first.
 
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