Arvada, CO (August 2024) - The inspiration for making this miniature bookcase came when my wife and I began laying out the nursery for our daughter. We knew we would need some place to store her books but space was limited, so this bookcase was designed to fit between a nursing chair and the closet door without blocking the window. I used hard maple for the frame and half-inch Baltic birch plywood for the shelves with a tung oil finish. The joinery consists of cross-lap joints that protrude from the surface an eighth of an inch which gives the bookcase a more fun and elegant look.
Material: This was my first time making furniture with hard maple and it turns out it is hard to work with. To this point, I have mostly been working with soft woods such as pine and poplar, so I suspect this is a characteristic of using hardwood. This meant that small misalignments could not be easily sanded away like I am used to. On a positive note, the maple makes the bookcase feel sturdy and as if it will last a long time.
The shelves are removable and made of half-inch baltic birch. I don't like the rustic look of the exposed edges since it takes away from the more elegant look of the frame. However, I do not dislike it enough to redo them. If I make another bookcase in the same style I will either use solidwood for the shelves or cover the edges.
Joinery: I enjoyed making these joints and think they look great. I particularly like that it gives the piece a unique look and makes it look more fun. I plan to use this style again, but I need to be more careful with lining things up. I could make a cross-cut sled for a dado stack on my table saw to help keep things aligned better. I also need to be more careful about the cuts where two support pieces meet to ensure there are no gaps. The back of the bookcase does not look good due to these gaps. Ultimately, I need to do a better job of checking the assembly before applying glue.
Functionality: The shelf size works well for the books we have now. Some oversized books may not be able to fit, but that is a reasonable tradeoff for the space. The side supports create an offset inner wall which smaller books can fall into. I don't mind this for the aesthetics sake and because larger books can be used on the sides; however, I hadn't considered this feature causing an issue like this and it is something to keep in mind for future designs.
The bottom shelf slightly blocks the air vent. Making the legs any taller would have looked unusual, so I did not want to do that. I could have lowered the bottom shelf, but then books would inevitably block the vent. Also, I wanted the option to store things under the bookcase. So I am happy with the tradeoff.
Coming Soon!