I made some boxes this week as a way to learn and practice making hand-cut dovetail joints. The first one was the unfinished redwood box on the right. It was followed by the finished redwood and poplar box at the top. Finally, once I began to get the hang of it, I used some special hard maple scrap left over from making my workbench and got the highly figured result on the left.

The idea with the redwood/poplar was to produce a high contrast at the corners.

I am stunned with the beauty of this wood! It was just a left-over scrap lying in the corner of my shop for a year. A few cuts with a dovetail saw and some shaping on a router table and out pops a beautiful little box. I just can't get over the beauty of this wood. And just think, God made this wonderful beauty and hid it inside a tree to be coaxed out by inquisitive craftsmen. Most of this kind of beauty is unseen by human eyes but, you can bet, is genuinely appreciated by God Himself.