Description

The curvy bench is the very first piece of furniture I made; back when I was a young lad in my early twenties. I had just finished a timber frame carpentry workshop and was I eager to put some of my newly aquired skills to use. During the workshop we had harvested some cherry trees on site to practice scribe joinery, a method of joining round (not squared-off) or irregular pieces of wood together. There were some left over pieces of cherry log, so using a small chainsaw, I cut out a few nice slabs that were destined to become the curvy bench later that year. This piece was made entirely out of hand tools; I had no access to a shop and was working out of my parent's basement. The top and legs were hand-shaped using gouges and a spoke shave. And as this was my first piece, mistakes were made! I learned the hard way that it would have been much easier to cut the joinery in the pieces before I shaped them! Oh well, despite this oversight, I think it turned out pretty well. The gentle contours of the the seat are not only pleasing to the eye but also help make it more comfortable to sit on. Knowing what I know now, I would love to try making this piece again... with a few changes of course.