In this project, I design and build a bench incorporating Japanese-style architecture, as well as inlay some bow ties/butterflies along a crack I carve as a decorative feature. Depending on how you argue the semantics of what joinery is, there are 5 or 6 different types of joinery in this project.
Here are some of the tools I used to build this project. (Affiliate Links)
° Tracing Paper https://amzn.to/2Fri8Rp
° Block Plane https://amzn.to/2DK1Npd
° Mallet https://amzn.to/2TmyBcj
° Wood Glue https://amzn.to/2Fqkyjh
° Glue Bot https://amzn.to/2Q49FHU
° Power Carving Disk https://amzn.to/2DKaMXG
° Grinder https://amzn.to/2TkXJ3n
Today I’m going to walk you through how I built this Japanese-inspired bench with a carved crack and hand-inlaid bowties. This project involves several different joinery techniques, and I think you’re really going to enjoy seeing how it all comes together.
Starting with the Bench Top
I kicked things off by cutting the boards for the top to their approximate length. Now, even though my design calls for bowties joining a crack, I decided to go with standard 8/4 cherry instead of a slab. Why? Mainly because it’s much cheaper, and honestly, I don’t always find a slab with a crack in just the right spot to match my vision.
After milling the pieces for the top, I spent a few minutes figuring out which edges to put together. The goal here is to hide the glue line so the grain blends together seamlessly. Once I found a combination I liked, I grabbed some tracing paper so I could see through to the grain and started planning out where I was going to carve the crack.
Creating the Carved Crack
I tried my best to follow the grain so it would look as natural as possible. I did a couple of different variations, tracing different parts of the grain until I settled on one I was happy with. I also paid attention to the direction of the end grain and used that to determine which direction the crack would go vertically through the wood.
Then I used some carbon paper to transfer my drawing to the workpiece. Yes, carbon paper still exists!
I went to work with a power carver on my angle grinder, working to the line on the top and then following that line as I worked my way down to the bottom. After that, I used a soft pad on my random orbit sander to smooth out all the grinding marks.
On the other side, I started at the bottom, removing the bulk of the material and feathering it up to the top until I met my layout line.
Adding the Weathered Look
Once I was happy with the shape, I moved on to a little faux finishing to make the crack stand out and look weathered, like it had been there for a while.
I used a dark brown dye stain and coated the crack. Since it’s water-based, I was able to spritz it with water while I buffed off the excess, which created a nice weathering effect. I sped up the drying time with a heat gun because, you know, time is money.
Once it was dry, I sealed in the brown dye with some shellac. This is important so that when people sit on the bench, they won’t get any brown stain from the crack on their clothes. The shellac was a little too shiny for my taste, so I knocked the sheen down with some 0000 steel wool.
Once I was happy with the look of the crack, I mortised the edges for floating tenons to help with alignment during glue-up.
Inlaying the Bowties
Now it was time for my favorite part—inlaying the bowties. I used some paper to cut out a few different sizes and shapes and started laying them out until I was happy with the look.
Then I used some spray adhesive to attach the chosen ones to some scrap walnut and cut them out at the band saw.
Here’s a pro tip: I attached some double-stick tape to the bottom of each one so I could stick them down to the bench top. This prevents them from moving around while I carefully trace around them with a razor blade. This transfers their exact shape to the workpiece and gives the tip of my chisel a place to register when I chop out the waste.
When I start chopping out the waste, I begin about 1/16″ in from the razor blade line, removing a little material before going right to the line. This prevents the wedge shape of the chisel from compressing the fibers along the razor blade line, which would make the fit of the bowtie look sloppy.
As I worked my way down, I did several gentle test fits and made adjustments as I went. I never want to force it until I’m sure I’ll get a good fit. If the fit isn’t right, I risk not being able to get it back out without damaging something, and I’ll be stuck with a bad fit.
Once I was satisfied with the fit, I glued it up and drove it home, then planed off the excess until it was flush. I did have a small area on the bottom where I compressed the fibers with the chisel, so I used a wet rag and steam to swell the grain back up and tighten the fit.
Building the Legs
Once I had all three bowties inlaid, it was time to move on to milling the legs.
To get the thickness I wanted, I laminated some 8/4 lumber together. I took my time matching the grain before glue-up to help hide the glue line.
Now that the glue was dry, I used the chop saw to square off the ends and moved over to the table saw to cut the bridle joints.
I used my shop-made sled to hold the legs square to the blade. Since I was making the dados almost as deep as the blade would cut, I took a few shallow passes so I wouldn’t overtax the blade and have the workpiece drift out of alignment. I also flipped the piece around and made a second pass so the dado would stay centered on the leg.
Tapering the Legs
The legs get tapered on all four sides, so I took a piece of scrap plywood and made a quick tapering jig for the band saw. It mainly consisted of a sled and a few registration blocks glued to it.
For the opposing side, I saved a cutoff to take up the space where the leg was tapered. I ripped it to a more manageable width and slid it into the jig.
To clean up the band saw marks, I ran each leg over the jointer.
Fitting the Upper Rails
To fit the top rail in the bridle joint, I just kept running the board through the planer, taking a little off with each pass until I had a snug fit.
To cut the curved shape of the upper rails, I made a template and used some double-stick tape to attach the pieces to it. I took the bulk of the material off at the band saw, then routed one end flush. I then raised the router bit to expose the lower guide bearing and routed the other side. By using a bit with bearings on top and bottom, I can always route downhill with the grain, avoiding tearout.
Creating the Lower Stretcher
Moving on to the lower stretcher, I found the center of the leg and marked out for the lower mortise.
I don’t use my mortising attachment very often, but since I’d already tapered the leg, it seemed like the fastest, most accurate way to cut a few mortises. To get the face of the leg square to the chisel, I used one of the offcuts to shim it up.
Then I went to work chopping out the mortises. I used an air hose to help clear the chips as I worked, and the smoke you’re seeing is totally normal when your tools are dull (just kidding—time to sharpen!).
The moisture left the walls of the mortise a little rough, so I just used a mallet and chisel to clean them up.
Cutting the Tenons
To cut the tenons on the stretchers, I used an angle finder to find the angle. Since each leg was cut on the band saw and then cleaned up at the jointer, there was about a half-degree difference between each leg. So I measured and cut each tenon to match its corresponding leg.
I first cut the angle on the stretchers and then adjusted the miter gauge at the table saw to match, cutting a rabbet on both ends.
Since the tenons have a slight angle to them, cutting the top and bottom shoulders at the table saw would have been a huge pain, so I just finished off the joint with a hand saw. I marked out my layout line between the shoulders, scribed with a razor, and used my chisel to make a notch for the sawblade to track in. Then I did the final cleanup with a chisel before test fitting.
Making the Trestle
I was down to the final piece! But before making the trestle, I wanted to get the spacing of the legs right. So I set them up and took a step back to see how they looked. This is what determined the length of the trestle.
To make the trestle, I found a piece with a nice curve in it. I used the curve in the wood as a guide to create the curve in the trestle. I tried to find a balance between the proportions of the piece and the grain in the wood.
For the angle cut on the ends, I just picked an arbitrary angle that looked good to my eye and matched the corresponding arch in the trestle.
I found the center point and drove a nail in it, and then using a thin piece of wood, I bent it around the nail, creating the arch.
To make the top of the arch match the curvature of the bottom, I set my scribe to the thickness I wanted and drew it in, following the lower curve.
Before cutting the curve, I laid out the half-lap joints to connect to the stretchers. I set up a dado blade in the table saw to cut them. This was a two-pass operation, so I just carefully lined up the blade with my layout lines. I did the same operation for the stretchers.
I did a quick test fit and headed to the band saw to cut out the curve.
Final Touches
To smooth the band saw marks off the outside of the curve, I used the disk sander, and then switched to the spindle sander to smooth the inside.
There are always a few little divots or misshapen parts of the curve left over from the spindle sander, so I cleaned them up by hand using a flexible sanding strip.
Then one final test fit before adding the glue and finish, and we’re done!
I’m the owner of Benham Design Concepts, a mixed media art studio where I design and build custom furniture and other works of art using wood, glass, stone, and various metals.
In this blog, I talk about the art I create, my journey, and the things I learn along the way.