Finishing touches!

The finish before the finish so to say. I have been sanding and chipping/cleaning up certain areas for the last couple of days. but finally she is off the table and standing up! I can see now that she is standing, that there are still areas that need work. But I was planning on perhaps getting a start on painting her tonight. That is a pretty optimistic goal, but I'll see how far I get. Right now I'm working on her hair and face, Two areas I couldn't really work on while she was on the table. I just thought I would post these pics now before this post becomes really long. Enjoy!

Sanding. What a mess!

It snowed today, which means I'm permanently inside and what a great time to sand things down! After adding a slight linen fold to her dress, It was sanding time! I didn't think it was taking as long as It was, but before I knew it, 4 hours flew by! I still want to work on the face a bit. There is something just not right about it, And I'm sure I'll figure it out...later. For now, It's time to rest up a bit because my back is killing me from being hunched over all that time. Cheryl is not very happy with the big dust bomb I exploded out in the garage. So tomorrow will probably be spent cleaning up that place!

Putting in Drawers is hard!

Ok, to be fair, I did get a late start on the project tonight. The goal was to spice up the sanding table with a little storage and practical additions while making it look better. Here's a "before" picture. I only got this far before I had to take a break in frustration. First it was really late. Second, I ran out of screws, Third, my lumber supply was getting low and I did not want to make any mistakes. After looking at it now, I guess I did accomplish a little more than I first thought. I will work on the drawers late when the glue dries and the slots are ready for measurements. They are going to be a challenge because as you can see....the dust collector takes up a odd amount of space. I think I have a plan though....

Shop furniture: Sanding Table!

So tonight I worked on my designer sanding table. It's not finished, but I got a sizable chunk of it done. As for now, It's late,my room is a disaster, and I'm all out of patients! I want to eventually add some drawers and extra storage space. The slope of the collection bin is nice and extreme, but it might need a little boose with downward suction. I'll be thinking about that later. Now, I just want to see how it works. Tomorrow is going to be a full carving day again. So I'm just happy I got it functionally put together.

New set up for my dust collector!

Friday Night was spent with me fussing with my new plane. It took a bit of tweaking, but I managed to get it to a nice level for me. The wedge kept slipping no matter how hard I drove it in. A little sandpaper on the iron and pin and now it stays put. I was having so much fun with it I made a mess of my shop with a pile of shavings! So tonight, I cleaned up my room and set about rethinking my dust collection system. I saw a nice set up in a wood magazine. ( can't remember which one at the moment) that had the bag hang down. It saves space and I seem to get more suction now. It is also easier to get at the bag to empty the dust. I still want to make a new table for sanding. I can't wait! I also got a jump on the weekend orders by carving up 5 seats. I'll probably paint them tomorrow, unless I feel really motivated tonight. As you might notice, many are repeat designs. It seems woodland stuff is back in after a couple of years of taking a break for a couple of years. Hope you are all having a great weekend!

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