Spring Break Approaching

Dr. Huminski and I did not meet last weekend and we are not able to meet this weekend either. This will give us two weekends to work until my presentation on the 14th of April. The plan is to be finished with the building of the desk. Everything will hopefully be completed except for the staining. Dr. Huminski says the staining is something that does not need to be rushed. We have the desk lid and the cubby inside of the desk left to complete.

Coming Together

The desk has been coming together quickly over the past couple of weeks. What was put together for a dry run the weekend before is now glued together. In addition, the top board and desk top have also been attached. On Sunday, we built the draw and glued it together. We used a rabbit joint to create the draw.
This is what a rabbit joint looks like. We used this method for all four sides of the draw. The draw proved trickery to put together than anticipated. After some time and force though, it came together. At the moment, every piece of the desk is completed except for the desk lid and the cubby inside the desk. I am in the process of designing the cubby right now according to my preference.

Standing Tall

Sunday was a very exciting day for Dr. Huminski and I. The two sides of the desk are complete. The backboard  has been cut and fitted. I cut biscuit joints into the backboard and sides. Then came the dry run. We put all the finished pieces together without glue. We set the clamps on and as the clamps were tightened, the pieces came together beautifully. It was a challenge to find any gaps between the joints. We then lifted the desk and placed it standing on the table. I was surprised by how large the desk looked, towering over me. It was a wonderful sight to see.

Filling in the Middle

I am done with both sides of the desk. They have been glued and clamped together and are now finished. Now, it is time to start filling in the middle. The width of the desk is 30 inches from the inside of each side leg. On Sunday, I worked for three hours on the desk. I cut the backboard to size and adjusted some pieces that had already been made to fit the 30 inch length between the two sides. 

Mrs. Zion came to observe on Sunday as well. She took a lot of pictures so I will begin loading those on my the blog over the next few weeks. It was interesting for me to be able to show what I have been doing for the past five months. By showing her, I was able to see the incredible amount that I have learned in this time and the amount that I have been able to accomplish so far.