Germain’s Shadow Box – Viewer Project
Germain has submitted a beautiful shadow box for our viewing pleasure, let’s check it out:
I finally finished the shadow box I’ve been working on for many weeks. I want to thank Marc for all the inspiration and assistance he provided on this project. This alone was worth my TWW Guild membership. I also owe thanks to my friend, Dewey Torres, who provided encouragement and the use of his drum sander.
This shadow box is somewhat unique in that it includes a rank insignia for a US Air Force Technical Sergeant (E-6). I made it for a Tech Sergeant I work with who is retiring this month. He requested a shadow box and provided an example he found online. Members of the military command where we work asked if I could produce such a shadow box. I was reluctant at first. I had never made a shadow box or a rank insignia. But I wanted to help my coworkers and gave it a shot. I thought the example in the picture they provided was a bit lackluster. I came up with my own design. Apparently, my first shadow box, and my first self-designed project, turned out OK. It was well received when I delivered it.
For those not familiar with military shadow boxes, they are often presented as gifts to officers and enlisted members at retirement ceremonies. Inside the box, medals, rank insignias and special mementos are affixed. A US flag is also included.
This box is made of alder with General Finishes “Warm Cherry” oil stain applied. The Tech Sergeant stripes and flag frame are maple. The finish is four coats of General Finishes Arm-R-Seal satin.
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Nice piece of work.
And I think the choice of finishes was quite appropriate for the military occasion — “General Finishes”, and “Arm-R-Seal.”
I’m always in favor of supporting our military men and women!!
Hoo-ahh!!
lol (“General Finishes” etc.)
I agree, very nice work.
i really like the wood combo….Very nice work!!!
Good and clever point, Jim. I didn’t think about that.
I don’t think the pictures turned out very well. And, unfortunately, I didn’t get any pics with the all the memorabilia inside the box. You’ll have to believe me when I say it was pretty spiffy. The recipient really liked it which is most important.
All I can say is WOW!! Fantastic workmanship. Very well done. Hopefully one day, I’ll be this talented
My wife came into the room to see what was wrong… I was just sitting at the computer screen going “Wow, wow, wow”.
GREAT Job.
Always nice to do anything for the military.
I’ve always wanted one of my own, honestly, since my medals and such are just rattling around the house somewhere. I know, it’s not the same if you make your own, but I’m inspired now! I’ll have to seriously improve (read: learn) my inlay skills to put my CT rating insignia on it, though. Great job, Germaine.
Looks like you did a first class job.
DD
Germain, seriously I try to keep things PG-13 around here and the forums, but that is effing beautiful.
You’ve given me a great idea for my father in law’s next birthday. We’re taking him on vacation to visit Paris Island, he’s a retired Marine, and something like that would just about completely make his day.
Beautiful marquetry, I’d like to hear more about how the challenges in making it and how they were overcome. But I’m also confused by the picture. Does the marquetry cover the entire bottom of the box? Are we looking directly overhead, through the glass at the marquetry? (Shadow boxes I know of are shallow with a clear glass front to display the contents.)
Basically, it’s a rectangular box which is 4″ deep. I machined grooves on the inside and a slot all the way through at the bottom. This allows a piece of glass, or plexiglass in this case, to slide in. Some brass hardware holds in the plexiglass at the bottom.
The rank insignia is a completely separate piece. It attaches to the lower part of the box where I cut reliefs allowing it to fit in. It’s attached with figure eights to allow for wood movement. Most of the rank insignia hangs below the bottom of the box.
Obviously, the biggest challenge was the rank insignia. I downloaded an an Air Force E-6 graphic from the ‘net. I then took the file to my local office store where they printed it at the exact size I needed. I used the printout to make a template from MDF.
Does that help?
Thanks for the positive feedback, everyone. It’s always nice when one’s work is appreciated by others.
While there are many web sites where you can order a shadow box, almost all of them are made from flat-sawn oak. I personally don’t find this pleasing to the eye. Thus, as woodworkers, we can take it up a few notches by simply using a more attractive material. I made a cherry shadow box for the family of a recently deceased WII veteran. The most recent box I made was constructed of African mahogany. It turned out very well.
FYI, the rank insignia on the pictured box isn’t inlay. It’s applied to the alder base for a “3D” affect, which is what the customer wanted. The next step for me is to heed Marc’s guidance for grain matching.
I guess I don’t understand. You said that the TS insignia is not marquetry, so is the red separation between the stripes accomplished with the cherry stain? If so, how on earth did you mask off the maple sufficiently to prevent the stain from bleeding over? This is excellent work and it’s obvious that you spent a considerable amount of time on the shadow box. Great job!!!
JimC
As I understand it, marquetry is is making pictures with inlay. The rank insignia for this shadow box isn’t marquetry or inlay. I simply made a base from alder and stained it. I then glued the maple pieces to the top of the alder base. Thus, the maple pieces actually sit proud of the alder base about 1/16″.
Very nicely done!! I have been sitting here for quite some time now just admiring your project. You should be very proud of supporting the men and women of the active and retired armed forces. It is a pleasure to hear such care and forethought taken for such a noble gift.
Very nice!! A great way to make a shadowbox much more personal.
This looks great! I am getting ready to retire from the Navy and was thinking about making my own shadow box. What an inspiration this is! Thank you Germain!!