Nesting Table Reinforcements

The nesting tables with their metal tops!

This post has been a long time in the making. As many of you probably remember, I made a set of three nesting tables at school last term. They turned out very well but I was told that since the joints at the top are so thin, it would be a good idea to strengthen them with brackets to keep them from breaking over time.

Corner brackets in three sizes

A box of short little screws

Over winter break, Momma Cat and I made a trip to the hardware store to get the brackets. The people at the True Value store in Sellwood are always super friendly and helpful. They helped me find the kind of brackets that I wanted, and short screws that would hold them to the tables without going all the way through and ruining the look of the table.

Corners without reinforcement

Little hand drill from a garage sale

My trusty screwdriver

After using a pencil to mark where I wanted the brackets to go on the table, I drilled pilot holes with a little hand drill I found at a garage sale over the summer. I don't have an electric drill yet but this one worked fine for my purposes.

Voila!

Then I attached the brackets using the really nice screwdriver that was part of the awesome tool set my equally awesome aunt and uncle gave me for my most recent birthday. Now all of the tables feel extra sturdy. I hope they stand the test of time once I start setting things on them!

-Baby Cat

A Display Stand for my Little Dolls!

I haven't written a lot of posts since I have been back in school, because the time I have available for extracurricular projects has been significantly diminished. However, that doesn't mean that I am not getting enough opportunities to be creative!

My design studio class this term is focussed on furniture design, and more specifically tables. I am very excited about this because, as you know, I became very interested in building and painting furniture over the summer. I am looking forward to learning how to design a table!

So far, in studio we are having fun learning how to use the tools in the wood shop. To start, we each made the same sort of wooden "club" type thing with tapers on two sides. Next, we were asked to use it to create a piece that will hold something up. I used a router to cut notches in mine in a spiral pattern and added shelves and a base that I cut with a chop saw. It turned into a display stand for knick-knacks like these little dolls! Then I painted it silver, because I think that silver looks good with almost everything and it will give me some flexibility in regard to what I want to display on it in the future.

Here is what the stand looks like.

Here is is with dolls sitting on the shelves.

This is what it looks like from above, with the shelves spiraling down.

There is still so much I want to learn about using the wood shop and making furniture, so it's a good thing it's still early in the term!

-Baby Cat