There are a few finishing touches necessary to complete the desk. Paul has sanded and smoothed everything in preparation for finishing. The front legs are cut to the correct angle, before the three coats of shellac are applied.
The veneer is ready to be glued in place sequentially. Both the apron and the bin edges are veneered, then the veneer is planed flush. Once the bins are fitted, the lids can be cut and hinges set.
Paul uses wood from a single board to create the three lids for the bins as well as the veneer. Before the lids are separated, they are beveled, shaped and rebated. Then the veneers are cut and planed to thickness in preparation.
The triple bin for the top of the desk is next. It has an arched front, a few housings for the dividers and a half-lap dovetail in each corner. Once the dividers are fitted it can be glued up in preparation for the veneering.
Once the apron skirt is glued and screwed in place, the tabletop can be cut to shape and chamfered to give a sleeker appearance. Then, using a combination of screws and turn buttons, the anchor points can be established to fix the tabletop to the leg frame.
The shaping of the back rail is the final step before gluing up the leg frames. The next section to prepare is the desk top. While the glue dries, Paul makes a start to the front apron piece which is curved on the front edge. Once shaped, the side rails can be dovetailed into the ends.
With the initial shaping done, Paul shows how to refine the leg shape, including mitring the intersections and rounding over the profile. The end frame tenons are ready to be mitred and glued, before moving on to cutting the tenons of the cross rails.
There are a couple of mortises to layout, and then the curves can be marked onto the frame in preparation for shaping. With those laid out, Paul makes the initial angled cuts, chops the sideways mortises, then continues the leg shaping. This includes rounding many of the faces.
First, the mortise gauge is set to the chisel and marks out all the mortise holes, registering from the outside face. The mortises and then the tenons are cut, with special attention paid to the angles and crispness of the tenon shoulders as well as a tight fit.
With the wood milled, we’re ready for the first stage of the project, laying out the joinery on a storyboard. Paul goes through the details step-by-step to get all the correct angles and tapers cut. Then the mortises can be laid out onto the legs.