The Background story:
6/21/2019. Jonah Garno. Priest. My best friend, the best man in my wedding, someone that was there for me when I needed a friend to listen and chat with the most, is now a Catholic Priest and it is a special day.
Father Garno asked me last year if I would like to make a box to hold his Chalice and I jumped at the opportunity. He is an artist so I knew that it needed to be beautiful, and yet hold an air of elegant simplicity to match his stunning Chalice.
I decided to go with Walnut wood, as it is one of my favorites for it’s beauty and ease to work with. The top and bottom is accented with Ash and provides visual dimension to the project. If I may say, didn’t it turn out well?
Getting started:
I milled the walnut from rough stock down to just over 3/8″ and let it sit to get any last bit of moisture from the wood.
After the stock had settled to around 8% moisture content, I ran it through the drum sander to bring it down to the final dimension of 3/8″.
Assembly:
The joint of choice is Dovetails , and I cut these by hand using the Katz- Moses dovetail jig. I spent weeks practicing…weeks. Every night, I would go out and cut some dovetails. This box was going to be my first project using this skilled method, and I wanted to get it right and make it as perfect as I was capable of.
Here I am adding the chamfered top and you might see, too, the wooden panel on the left. This was made to hold the paton, (A small gold plate used during Mass) into place. It is typically kept wrapped in a linen, so lining this was not essential.
I made wooden prongs to hold the Chalice secure and floating inside the box, which Father Garno is going to flock with a lining of his choice so as not to scratch the ornate stem. Here is a close up, though the shot was taken later in the project:
Hinges, handles, and other hardware:
The brass hardware was all purchased online and accented both woods very nicely. It was a frightening experience , to be honest, cutting out the mortise on the finished box because I didn’t want to screw up the project after coming so far!
When they were all cut and ready, I sealed the box with General Finishes Arm-R-Seal and stepped back to admire the beautiful wood.
And the dovetails.
Now to add the hardware…..
The mortised hinges hold the box open at 100 degrees instead of flopping all the way back.
The Wrap
Father Garno was very pleased with his box and I am very pleased to have it completed and off my mind. I gave it my best effort and, if it’s okay to say, am rather proud of this piece. It’s very special to me and one of my favorites to date!
What project has given you a sense of pride like this? Let me know in the comments below!
