Jewelry Box

This is my first major multi-piece carving project complete to date. This is a jewelry box that I carved from my wife. She has always wanted one but never wanted to spend the money of it. So it's a win-win situation for the both of us. I was able to carve this nice gift for her and she finally got her jewelry box.

The box was purchased from www.chippingaway.com. It comes as un-assembled, unfinished plain basswood box. Basswood is the preferred type of wood for carving. Even though it is a hardwood, it cuts easily with out any chipouts or denting.


The pattern is a one taken from a chip carving book. The template was scanned and expanded to fit onto the top of the jewelry box. The sides of the box were designed using photoshop from a variation of the top pattern.


The box's interior was finished with red flocking from Lee Valley. This is my first time using flocking and I love the results. It's easy to use, fast and looks great. I would recommend it to anyone who needs to line a box or put a felt like coating on something.


Just a shot of the box top in progress. The template was transferred onto the top using carbon paper. My chip carving knife of choice is the Moor Small Chip Knife. This knife can be purchased at either www.chippingaway.com or www.leevalley.com. The most important part is to keep the knife very sharp and polished. 10 degree bevel each side, honed using 8000x ceramic stone, and polished using a strop.