How to Make a Jewelry Box

I wanted to make a Jewelry Box for my Mom and Girlfriend for Christmas. i decided to use a combination of walnut and oak wood and utilize the Universal Laser at FirstBuild to etch a design and their monogram on top of the boxes.

Step 1: Process Rough Lumber

First I jointed my lumber and ran it through the planer so that all the pieces were flat and had 90 degree corners.

Step 2: Cut Down Pieces

Then i used the miter saw and table saw to cut down the wood into smaller pieces.

Step 3: Cut and Glue

I cut the pieces from the last step in half and glued them alternating walnut and oak.

Step 4: Cut the Edges

Then i cut all the sides at 45 degree angles.

Step 5: Cut Inside of the Box for the Lid

I used a dado blade to cut a slit on the inside of all of the side pieces so that i can cut the outside of the box later and that will create a lid for the box.

Step 6: Lay Out the Box for Gluing

I laid the box out before gluing to make sure that everything looked right.

Step 7: Gluing

I used wood glue to put the box together and used tape to hold the box together while it dried. After the box dried i used the dado blade to cut along the outside of the box slightly offset but so it would still hit the touch the cut on the inside so the top would fall off. I drew a diagram to show what I was talking about with the lid.

Step 8: Laser and Finishing

After the glue dried I cut the top off and laser etched the design into the lids. After that i coated the boxes with three coats of gloss polyurethane. I made two boxes one with all walnut on top and oak on bottom and the other had a mix throughout the entire box.