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Hand Carving Seashell Pattern on Mahogany Drawer Front

Tommy MacDonald demonstrates a few of the techniques he employs to create hand carved furniture details. MacDonald lines up the grain of the mahogany and securely fastens the wood to a worktable. After sketching a pattern onto the work piece (in this case a seashell pattern) he uses an assortment of hand tools to shape, refine, and finish the pattern.

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Chapters from this episode

Furniture School at the North Bennet Street School Now Playing

Furniture School at the North Bennet Street School

Installing the Energy Star Washer and Dryer Now Playing

Installing the Energy Star Washer and Dryer

Moving Appliances Without Damaging Wood Floors Now Playing

Moving Appliances Without Damaging Wood Floors

Bathroom Vanity Installation Now Playing

Bathroom Vanity Installation

Installing Plumbing Loop and Fixtures for Multiple Head Shower Now Playing

Installing Plumbing Loop and Fixtures for Multiple Head Shower

Hand Carving Seashell Pattern on Mahogany Drawer Front Now Playing

Hand Carving Seashell Pattern on Mahogany Drawer Front

Shaker-Style Mural Painting and Early 19th Century Stenciling Now Playing

Shaker-Style Mural Painting and Early 19th Century Stenciling

Clip Transcript For:

Hand Carving Seashell Pattern on Mahogany Drawer Front

computer-generated transcript - may not be 100% accurate

" There's a lot to be learned about fine craftsmanship and cabinet making recently Tom MacDonald showed us how to make this shell carving on the drawer front. The top. Carving out the shell for those little drawer fronts in the secretary. Looks like it could be very very different what you're saying it's now. Not such a difficult at all once you learn them ABC's you know you've got a mock up set up force here and a nice piece of mahogany. And I know it's important that the grain be aligned properly. And what we're looking at is like three different -- the same thing he. Let's start with -- would you would you do first there. I feel lay it all out and stuff you want take your gouge and remove the material. Inside. The blocking. So basically you're just gonna hog out down to there correct. I guess there's a reason why mahogany was so far popular it. Beautiful install soft enough to carve like this. It's really worker friendly and that's why can't. So on this. Leave their own material until he gets closely watched. Okay and how do you make it perfectly flat -- woman -- my now. My about a plane my Stanley seven and half. That is what they had before you know -- around. That's set at right at the right depth. Yeah he did he had just had to keep working it down until it it gets final depth. We move material up. How do you get started carving the shell asked to let go when I come back my gouge and I'll stab cut the profile of my fin. Like that."

" And although all the way around until it. Goes one end to the other. England -- After I stab at it along back and do a thumbnail relief cut and only do we just put the tool maybe. 330 seconds away from the stab cut this portion. Rotating around a little bit and the you know."

" Now which chisel will use to do this. He added gouge down in between. -- And they have you really start to see it's all it takes is. Patience and a lot of skill right. Well more patience than skill."

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