The
furniture built by the Byrdcliffe Arts & Crafts
Colony between 1903 and 1905 is rare, unusual and
expensive. Luckily, it's cheap and easy to build at
home.
Instead of pricey quartersawn white oak, many Byrdcliffe
pieces were built from inexpensive poplar. And
instead of the fussy ammonia fuming process used by
many Arts & Crafts manufacturers to color their
furniture, many Byrdcliffe pieces were left
uncolored to show off the grain. Our project is
inspired by a hanging cabinet that sold at auction
for $3,740.
Scholars are unsure if Byrdcliffe furniture ever actually
made it to the market. The colony was plagued by
logistical problems -- one of their pieces was too
large to be loaded through a freight car door. Our
readers have indicated that they like this
Byrdcliffe cabinet quite a bit. It was one of the
most popular projects from the March 1998 issue
(#101).
Assemble the Cabinet • Cut the pieces to size
according to the Schedule of Materials. Pre-sand
the cabinet parts, then assemble the frame with
biscuits or dowels. Make sure the shelf and divider
are flush to the front of the cabinet. Glue and
clamp until dry.
Make
the Door • Next rip the rails and stiles
for the door, making a 1/4" wide by 5/8" deep
groove in the center of one long edge of all four
pieces to receive the panel. The groove also holds
the tenons in the rails. Then cut 1/4" x 9/16"
tenons on both ends of the door's rails using
a dado stack. Cut a 1/4" x 1/2" rabbet on all four
edges of the panel. Sand the parts, then assemble
the door with the rabbet facing the back of the
door. Glue and clamp.
Add
the Back • Cut a 1/4" x 3/4" rabbet in the
back of the cabinet with a rabbeting bit chucked in
a router. Glue up the poplar for the back. When
dry, nail the back into place. Be sure to allow
some space for the back to expand. If you want to
make the cabinet weigh less, use 1/2" poplar
plywood for the back, but be sure to then cut the
shelf and divider 1/4" wider. (Don’t use less
than 1/2" plywood if you plan to hang the cabinet
by screwing through the back.)
Finish
the Cabinet • Cut mortises for the hinges
and hang the door before finishing. Finish sand the
cabinet. The best way to stain the cabinet green is
by spraying on aniline dye diluted with alcohol. I
used an inexpensive Preval™ Power Unit aerosol
can (it costs about $4 at craft and hardware
stores). After you spray the dye on, wipe it down
immediately with a rag moistened with denatured
alcohol to minimize blotching.
Add the Flower • Cut the iris flower pattern
from 1/4" poplar with a scroll saw or coping saw. Click HERE to download a pdf of the iris pattern. Dye the pieces, then
glue them to the panel with a "super"
glue. Cover the cabinet with two coats of clear
finish. PW
Christopher
Schwarz, PW staff
