To start this new year off right, I present to you my new project.
I'm embarking on the creation of a replica of this box attributed to André Charles Boulle. You can follow this project and even come see it in person, as it will be my main subject for marquetry work at various exhibitions and events over the next few years. And yes, I'm talking about several years, because it's an extremely time-consuming project.
But first, I had to find and choose the different woods that make up the marquetry of this box. The base is normally made of Mozambique ebony. But when I went to buy the wood, there weren't any sheets of sufficient quality, so I opted for Presiosa. A wood also used in the 17th century, but much lighter in color. The other woods are: maple, pear, lemon, satinwood, padauk, mahogany, ebony, amaranth, violet wood, rosewood, and boxwood (made in-house).
For the green and blue, I had no choice but to make them myself by staining sycamore maple. The biggest challenge was getting the stain to penetrate all the way through. This is fairly easy with sliced veneer, but considerably more complicated with sawn veneer. So I opted for the steaming method, using a pressure cooker.
So I made three different shades of green: from lightest to darkest, and a blue for the birds.
After defining the dimensions of the box, I decided that mine would be slightly smaller than the original. I used the measurements taken from the original to adapt them to my dimensions.
Next, I cut out and glued each piece of the design onto the different veneers according to the desired color.
You've already seen the rest with the marquetry on the tool cabinet.
The marquetry technique used is that of cutting elements by elements on a marquetry easel.
