Monday, September 7, 2009

Final touches on the cradle .. OR .. How much Wood could a Rob-chuck chuck?

Well this three-day weekend has been a blur. That blur could be caused by the air being filled with sawdust; I'm not sure. However the cradle in it's entirety is finally completed.

I designed a frame to hold the cradle suspended so we could use the cradle either in the floor or hang it from the frame at night for rocky-rocky time. Plus I wanted a way to store the removable rocker base when it was not in use. And so this is the result and it's my first time really designing a piece of furniture. I'm pretty happy with how it came out.

Here are a few pics of it which I snapped about an hour ago or so. This frame is made from the same wood (pine) as the rest of the cradle. I wanted a design which was graceful but still strong. The arcs and curves in this do pretty well for gracefulness and for strength, well my son can hang from the crossbar. So I think from a functionality standpoint, it was a success.

There are lots of things I'd do differently if I did this again. When I look at this project I see tons of things I could do better. However, this was a great learning experience plus I got to make something that works well in our home and that is functional - always a big plus.

The wife got a little misty when she saw how it came out. She's happy with it. However it could have been a mild contraction - you never know!








2 comments:

Heather said...

Nope, no contraction. Just heartfelt gratitude and appreciation for my husband and father to our kids. You're an amazing woodworker and an amazing man, Robert. The cradle is beautiful! I knew you'd get it done right on time too. I love you.

Cheryl Peters said...

It's beautiful, Rob. And just think how much more beautiful it will be with Isabella in it!

You're such a great daddy!