showing a reverance for wood.

My editor at Fine Woodworking asked how I decide where to cut to remove the lid from the body of a finger jointed box. He noted that some craftsmen will remove two whole fingers width of stock to maintain an exact pattern at the corners of the box. Those makers plan the box to be two fingers taller than required to meet their design, so that the box is shortened, and the pattern of joints at the corners is precise.

That removes and thereby disrupts the grain pattern that was carefully arranged around all four sides of the box. The point of cutting the lid from the body of the box is so that respect for the grain as a design feature is expressed.

Instead of removing two fingers width, I simply plan my cut with a thin kerf blade to fall on the fine line between fingers. I think you can see in the photo that the pattern of fingers with a small amount of material removed is not seriously disrupted, and most importantly, the grain on all four sides is perfectly matched.

The point is that of showing some reverence for the wood, by making something beautiful from it that will last generations.

Today I will welcome guests from Crystal Bridges Museum on a tour of the ESSA campus, I'll prepare stock for students at the Clear Spring School, and I'll assemble boxes.

Make, fix, create, and increase the likelihood that others learn likewise.