Woodworker's Journal fall-2009, страница 40

Fireplace Mantel

A clean and simple design built from riftsawn white oak makes this Mission-style mantel the highlight of the room.

By Bruce Kieffer

his fine piece was built as a commission for a friend of my wife's. The only parameter given to me at the onset was: "We like Mission furniture." Wow, that leaves the field virtually wide open! Some woodworkers might cringe when offered so little guidance, but I don't feel that way. Even now, after nearly 30 years of building custom furniture, I'm very much humbled when a client puts that much faith in my abilities.

As for the design, well, I could have taken a simpler road and not tapered the columns, but I didn't like that look, and the challenges of making them tapered and then fitting them to the wall and brick were too tempting to pass up. I could have saved some time, too, by not making the mantel entirely of solid wood, but I worried that plywood might cheapen its appearance. So, there's where I started, mostly with some (self-imposed) lofty goals. Here's how I achieved them.

Design Challenges

Three design aspects needed addressing: First, the mantel needed to be be a simple design but not too understated. Second,

being made completely of solid wood, the design needed to allow for wood movement. And third, since the mantel was not going to be stained, I had to figure out how to match the wood color and grain so it all blended well together.

In terms of design, I felt a well-crafted, simple style would stand up to the test of time, so I resisted adding superfluous moldings typical on commercially made mantels. I went to my client's home, cleared the area around the fireplace, sat down and stared at the raw wall. Quickly, I realized

The author's design depended on an elegance of shape and proportion rather than superfluous applied moldings.

that there isn't really a whole lot of stuff that makes up a mantel. There's a shelf and something that supports the shelf. That's it! Add Mission styling to that, and I think you can see where I started my design process.

I made rough sketches exploring different shapes and elements. I noted every measurement, including window sizes and locations, as well as the size of the room. These days, before I saw any wood, I first build my projects on a computer using a CAD program. Since I work in 3D, I can see how a finished piece looks before it's built. All the problems are worked out in advance. It's an invaluable tool in any woodworker's arsenal, and there are many CAD programs to choose from these days.

Wood Movement: Managing wood movement requires a certain amount of compromise, but not allowing for it will surely lead to disaster. My main problem was the center arch rail (piece 15). It's 9" wide! I don't care that riftsawn white oak is stable: I live in Minnesota; it's going to expand and contract. To manage the arch rail's movement, I screwed it to the columns so the

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