Brian,

Thy wife is amongst the saintly ones.

(Mine had to wait 12 years for me to restore a vitrine I bought for her
birthday - and hit me over the head with the wait every month or so for
the entire 12 years, thats a gross assault in my book!) Regards, Mark
Marsay, Restorer, Tool and Box dealer. Check
http://mysite.freeserve.com/mc_antiques/index.html for antique tool and
boxes. http://mysite.wanadoo-members.co.uk/restorer for the monthly
woodworking recipe archive
>
>Subject: [oldtools] I finished something! From: brian_welch@h... Date:
>Tue, 5 Oct 2004 12:41:19 -0400 To: "oldtools" <oldtools@c...>
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>Don't worry. This isn't one of those "my wife asked me for something
>and I quickly made this masterpiece last night" stories. This project
>started in Fall 2001 and was finished last night. This is why I wasn't
>allowed to make a crib for our now 10-month-old daughter!
>
>Back in 2001, I decided to build a stepstool for my wife as an
>anniversary gift. She had complained about not being able to reach the
>top cabinets in our new house, so I started secretly plotting in the
>cellar about 6 weeks before our anniversary. I found plans I liked of a
>Shaker stepstool in Popular Woodworking, but it was a three-step stool,
>so I modified the design for a two-step stool. Back then, before my
>wife left her job to stay at home with our new daughter, she was a high
>school teacher, and her evenings were spent grading and lesson
>planning, so I had hours every evening in the shop. I knew I could get
>it done in 6 weeks. I may be a ham-fisted galoot, but this was just a
>freakin' stepstool, right?
>
>Things actually progressed quite smoothly. The glue-up of the wide
>panels for the sides went well. I had read and reread everything I
>could find on laying out and cutting dovetails (my first attempt).
>And things went reasonably well for a first try at dovetails. I cut a
>few a night. After a few extra nights of paring and final fitting, it
>all went together. And just in time for our anniversary. That evening
>I brought it up out of the cellar and showed it to her and she loved
>it. It wasn't quite finished, but I promised her it would be ready to
>use soon.
>
>Problem was, I wasn't completely happy with it. There were pretty big
>gaps in some of the dovetails. And because of this it slightly wobbled
>and squeaked when you stepped on it. And it wasn't completely square in
>places. It was still pretty darn great, but I knew it needed some work.
>
>For a while I worked on getting it finished, but I got more frustrated
>with little details and finally I set it aside to work on something
>else. Then it migrated further and further from the bench and finally
>was hidden out of sight and forgotten. My wife never brought it up and
>it sat there for a couple of years.
>
>This summer I found it again as I was cleaning out the cellar. I
>haven't really had time to start any new projects lately, so my
>woodworking skills haven't gotten any better. But I decided I would
>just make it as good as I could in a reasonable amount of time and be
>done with it. My daughter is just starting to stand and soon enough she
>will need this stepstool, so I got off my butt and made a bunch of
>wedges of various sizes, got out the glue bottle, glued it up, pounded
>in thin wedges wherever there was a gap and lo and behold, it was solid
>as a rock, no longer squeaked or wobbled, and it looked pretty good. I
>sanded it, put on two coats of Salem Red milk paint followed with some
>Tried & True varnish (all non-toxic finishes, as I assume the little
>one will try to gnaw on
>it). And it was done.
>
>Here's a picture of the finished product:
>http://www.geocities.com/sawnutz/projects.htm
>
>Things I learned along the way: Dovetails really aren't that hard, but
>they are hard to do well. And I need a shooting board so that I can
>square the ends of my boards better before attempting layout and
>cutting of said dovetails. And your family probably won't even notice
>all the stupid little things that you will notice, so just do it and
>don't sweat the small stuff.
>
>Tools used: Frankly, I don't remember! But no electrons were burned.
>
>Now to finish that dining room table. Where did I leave that? Oh yes,
>in the dining room. Under the large table cloth. Thanks for reminding
>me, dear.
>
>Brian Welch Worcester, MA
>
>
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>
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