Lutherie and Gift-making

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Viola Box

Gift for my Grown Daughter

With Christmas around the corner, it suddenly occurred to me that, as the children were growing up, though I had frequently made things for each of them, I had made some fairly nice handmade gifts for my two sons (handmade hunting knives with hand-tooled scabbards for each, and a viola for one), but I had never made anything comparable for my daughter.

Time was running out, so, while she and my wife were out shopping, I hit it hard in my workspace, and made a bentwood box with a viola theme:

Viola Box Open
Viola-box, open, showing the bent, figured maple sides, and the violin purfling.

 

The scroll is one I had begun for a large viola, but it wasn’t working out right. The top and bottom are CVG Douglas Fir, left over from my closet-making project. Inner blocks are Englemann Spruce, left over from some instrument. Bent portion is probably Big Leaf maple, unused, and sitting in my shop waiting for a project. So is the scroll, for that matter.

 

Viola Box, closed
Viola Box, closed.

 

The stub of a scroll is inletted into the Doug Fir top, and secured with Titebond glue.  No fasteners are used. The workmanship isn’t great, but I got it done in one long day…applied the last coat of varnish early the next morning, and it was dry and ready to wrap for Christmas.

Everyone was happy with it, including me.

I had a nice photo of her with the box, but she forbade me to post it. 🙁

Thanks for looking

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