After completing my chevalet earlier this year, I've finally had some time to practice using it. I chose a dogwood flower as a practice project. It's taken from a larger picture that I'm planning. However, I wanted to reacquaint myself with the tools and processes first.
It's one thing to take a class -- where all the materials and a resident expert are available. The project is planned for you and someone is there to keep you out of the weeds. It's a different story when you are on your own. You think of all the questions you forgot to ask, or answers you forgot to write down while in class. You realize all the materials (sometimes tools) you don't have.
Such was the case on this project. I made several mistakes along the way, but I learned a lot and now have most of what I'll need to succeed on the next project. The method I followed is called "piece-by-piece" and is how the French were able to create some amazing work, in duplication. Each piece is cut separately and then the full picture is assembled like a puzzle. It's necessary to cut accurately -- splitting the line with the saw blade -- so the pieces fit with no gap (still working on that).
Some of the tasks you do before starting are:
The packet is nailed together at the corners to keep the sheets aligned. Nails are driven through, nipped off and bent with the hammer.
Each element of the pattern is individually cut out and glued to the appropriate color packet. This is why you need multiple copies. More nails are added so the packet holds firmly together as you saw. The packet pictured below is holly and is used for the dogwood flower petals.
In the case of the background packet you have to leave "bridges" that connect with what would otherwise be islands and make the assembly harder to do. These are the parallel blue marks in the photo that are not part of the original image. These sections are left uncut and removed later after the background is glued in place. Note the background packet has a top board and the edges have been taped to further support the work as you cut.
With images glued you can now begin cutting. I chose to use four different veneers for the background packets. This is one of the advantages of the piece-by-piece method. The cutouts clearly show the "bridges" and their importance in keeping the background together.
Some of the pieces can be really small and easy to lose. The solution is a work tray that clamps to the chevalet. It serves as a holding area for the pieces, extra blades, tweezers, etc. Note the penny for scale. One of the rings and the upturned part of a petal broke, but that is not a big problem. These can be put back together during assembly. Oddly, I find rings one of the most challenging cuts. Your eye can so easily spot not-round or not-concentric.
Sand shading is a technique for slightly burning a piece to add depth and shadow to the final picture. A piece is held in hot sand for a time. You have to check frequently until you get a feel for how quickly the sand is working. It also differs by species as some woods char more quickly than others. The sand is in an iron skillet on a hot plate. You can see how one side of these petals have already been shaded.
I attempted to strengthen and darken the rings by soaking them over night in a black, alcohol-based dye. This turned out to not be of much value. I much prefer ebony to dyed veneer when black is the color. However, this being a practice piece, I did not want to use something as expensive as ebony.
Assembly is done face down on an assembly board. This can be any flat board over which craft paper is stretched. I use a special craft paper as recommended by Patrick Edwards. It's comes from Europe and is not available in US stores. It has layers that make it easier to remove later. Being assembled face down means you compensate for any slight differences in veneer thickness as all pieces are even on the front side.
You assemble from the outside in, gluing the square, then ring and background. This is done with hot hide glue. Once the background is in place you can begin adding the rest. For those who are "dissectologists" it really is like putting a puzzle together -- start with the edges and work to the middle. The bridges are cut and removed as you assemble.
After the image is assembled it is weighted until sufficiently dry (usually an hour or so). After this a mastic is pressed into the marquetry to fill any cracks. Mastic is made from 50% hot tap water, 50% hot hide glue and enough fine saw dust to get a mix that is the consistency of cake frosting. You are pressing this in from the back side. Don't be concerned over the mess.
Once the mastic is hard the images are ready to use. Before cutting them off the assembly board sand the back side to remove any extra mastic and to leave a flat, rough surface for gluing. I glued these down to a piece of cherry with each having a strip of walnut between. Again, hide glue is the best choice. Clamp with pressure until it's fully dry.
Now the really exciting part happens as you remove the paper and reveal the true picture. Dampen it thoroughly with a sponge soaked in cold water to soften the paper. This allows you to scrape it away more easily. Keep working until all the paper is removed.
Give the work a day or so to dry out before sanding. I chose to practice my French polishing skills (I need more practice). It was a bit disappointing to see that the pore-filling step turned the blue background a bit dingy. I was also disappointed in the veneer used for the rings. The color did not go all the way through and sanding turned these more gray than black. Good to know for future. My favorite is the one with the cherry background.
Thanks for reading. Please let me know if you have any questions. I am hoping to organize an in-person demo of the chevalet some time soon. I'm still pretty fresh to the process of French marquetry, but really enjoying it so far.
It's one thing to take a class -- where all the materials and a resident expert are available. The project is planned for you and someone is there to keep you out of the weeds. It's a different story when you are on your own. You think of all the questions you forgot to ask, or answers you forgot to write down while in class. You realize all the materials (sometimes tools) you don't have.
Such was the case on this project. I made several mistakes along the way, but I learned a lot and now have most of what I'll need to succeed on the next project. The method I followed is called "piece-by-piece" and is how the French were able to create some amazing work, in duplication. Each piece is cut separately and then the full picture is assembled like a puzzle. It's necessary to cut accurately -- splitting the line with the saw blade -- so the pieces fit with no gap (still working on that).
Some of the tasks you do before starting are:
- Create a tracing of the picture with very fine lines (I used a 0.5 mm mechanical pencil).
- Make several photo copies of the tracing.
- Choose the veneer to use for each piece and make a storyboard labeling the colors on one of the photo copies.
- Add shading to one of the photocopies for use later in sand shading the pieces.
The packet is nailed together at the corners to keep the sheets aligned. Nails are driven through, nipped off and bent with the hammer.
Each element of the pattern is individually cut out and glued to the appropriate color packet. This is why you need multiple copies. More nails are added so the packet holds firmly together as you saw. The packet pictured below is holly and is used for the dogwood flower petals.
In the case of the background packet you have to leave "bridges" that connect with what would otherwise be islands and make the assembly harder to do. These are the parallel blue marks in the photo that are not part of the original image. These sections are left uncut and removed later after the background is glued in place. Note the background packet has a top board and the edges have been taped to further support the work as you cut.
With images glued you can now begin cutting. I chose to use four different veneers for the background packets. This is one of the advantages of the piece-by-piece method. The cutouts clearly show the "bridges" and their importance in keeping the background together.
Some of the pieces can be really small and easy to lose. The solution is a work tray that clamps to the chevalet. It serves as a holding area for the pieces, extra blades, tweezers, etc. Note the penny for scale. One of the rings and the upturned part of a petal broke, but that is not a big problem. These can be put back together during assembly. Oddly, I find rings one of the most challenging cuts. Your eye can so easily spot not-round or not-concentric.
Sand shading is a technique for slightly burning a piece to add depth and shadow to the final picture. A piece is held in hot sand for a time. You have to check frequently until you get a feel for how quickly the sand is working. It also differs by species as some woods char more quickly than others. The sand is in an iron skillet on a hot plate. You can see how one side of these petals have already been shaded.
I attempted to strengthen and darken the rings by soaking them over night in a black, alcohol-based dye. This turned out to not be of much value. I much prefer ebony to dyed veneer when black is the color. However, this being a practice piece, I did not want to use something as expensive as ebony.
Assembly is done face down on an assembly board. This can be any flat board over which craft paper is stretched. I use a special craft paper as recommended by Patrick Edwards. It's comes from Europe and is not available in US stores. It has layers that make it easier to remove later. Being assembled face down means you compensate for any slight differences in veneer thickness as all pieces are even on the front side.
You assemble from the outside in, gluing the square, then ring and background. This is done with hot hide glue. Once the background is in place you can begin adding the rest. For those who are "dissectologists" it really is like putting a puzzle together -- start with the edges and work to the middle. The bridges are cut and removed as you assemble.
After the image is assembled it is weighted until sufficiently dry (usually an hour or so). After this a mastic is pressed into the marquetry to fill any cracks. Mastic is made from 50% hot tap water, 50% hot hide glue and enough fine saw dust to get a mix that is the consistency of cake frosting. You are pressing this in from the back side. Don't be concerned over the mess.
Once the mastic is hard the images are ready to use. Before cutting them off the assembly board sand the back side to remove any extra mastic and to leave a flat, rough surface for gluing. I glued these down to a piece of cherry with each having a strip of walnut between. Again, hide glue is the best choice. Clamp with pressure until it's fully dry.
Now the really exciting part happens as you remove the paper and reveal the true picture. Dampen it thoroughly with a sponge soaked in cold water to soften the paper. This allows you to scrape it away more easily. Keep working until all the paper is removed.
Give the work a day or so to dry out before sanding. I chose to practice my French polishing skills (I need more practice). It was a bit disappointing to see that the pore-filling step turned the blue background a bit dingy. I was also disappointed in the veneer used for the rings. The color did not go all the way through and sanding turned these more gray than black. Good to know for future. My favorite is the one with the cherry background.
Thanks for reading. Please let me know if you have any questions. I am hoping to organize an in-person demo of the chevalet some time soon. I'm still pretty fresh to the process of French marquetry, but really enjoying it so far.
