These are some pictures of Shaker oval boxes I have started to make again. I made several of these when I was a teenager. I have started making them again decades later. I love making these Shaker boxes. There are 3 sizes I am focusing on currently. They are the standard size No.1, No.2, No.3 boxes. They range from about 1.5″ to 2.5″ tall boxes. They are 2.5″ x 4.5″ up to 4.5″ x 7″ in size. These make great gifts or for keepsake holders. The three box set nests inside each other like Russian doll sets. I am making most of them out of Walnut with some accents thrown in. The one pictured with reddish wood is Walnut and Padauk.
These boxes are made with no glue. They are held together with copper tacks and small wooden pins. Each box is bent using 210°F steam and set to dry on custom forms. They are left to dry for at least 2 days. Once dry a top and bottom are custom fit. Each box is slightly different in size due to the ‘by hand’ steam bending process and requires a lot of custom work.
