The Spice Cabinet Show

The Spice Cabinet show was the premier episode of According to Plan.  I found the prototype for this project at Beidlemans Furniture store in my home town of Naperville, Illinois.  

My original goal for the show was to produce a sort of "idiot's guide to woodworking" but it ended up more as an idiot demonstrating how not to do woodworking.  Well, that may be a little harsh.  The show actually went pretty well for a first effort.  Highlights include a furniture store tour, lots of construction action, a mishap with a brad nailer (no serious injuries) and a visit from our version of the "Master Woodworker" himself.

Though not quite as technically "polished" as later shows it is still a jam-packed half hour of building fun and mayhem.  Watch it and see if it spurs you on to create your own show on Local Access Cable TV! By the way, the cabinet I keep in my house holds the dog treats. Perfect.

The Red Bench

After completing the Spice Cabinet show, I decided it would be a good idea to do an easier project so that I could focus on improving the presentation of the show. I decided on a red parson's bench. I was insane.

The bench proved to be quite a lot of work but it has ended up as one of my favorite pieces of furniture. Fabricated from red oak, the bench has mortise and tennon construction. The three drawers are great for junk storage. Mine hold lots of old computer games though I guess that was a lot of work just to store a bunch of old computer games. Well, you can sit on it too.

I think the most interesting quality of this bench is the finish. It is a latex paint that was thinned, wiped on, wiped off and finally varnished. I was also pleased with the improved quality of the show itself. That kind of improvement has me hoping for a jump in audience numbers as well, say from 6 to 12 people! Yes!!

The Pinball Game

Every project has what I call "the wall". That place where, no matter how well things have been planned or executed, something goes terribly wrong. This show had a few walls like falling lights, exploding pinball machines, overactive scroll saws and some very sticky spray adhesive.  But in the end the pinball games turned out pretty good.

These games measure 12" by 22-3/4" and are about 1-1/4" thick.  Each game has 10 steel balls that get pushed to the playing field by a spring plunger. There are sheet metal cups and ball guides that can trap the balls on their way to to the bottom. Each sheet metal cup has a point value so it is just a matter of adding the points to get your score (I use a calculator). There are also nails in strategic locations that make getting the balls into the cups.

This is a fun project that can be used to create a personalized gift for that "hard to buy for" person.

The Next Show!

It's getting closer! The next show has started production. I was going to tell you what it is but I think I may be changing my mind and I may switch projects mid-stream, so to speak. I will keep you posted and if I stick with this current idea, I will post photos of the progress.

Stay Tuned!