Oops

When your designs push the limits of your technical abilities, sometimes problems emerge: pyramids implode, arches fall down, bridges collapse. In the rarified world of hand-made furniture, problems are fortunately less catastrophic. I made a swoopy, wing-like top for part of Catherine's Buffet, and one day Catherine called to say it had started to come apart -- water damage, she thought -- and luckily no one had been injured in the process.

It turned out the construction I had originally used was unstable -- no reflection on the maker -- so I'm building her a new top. I am changing techniques, though: I made a form in the shape of swoopy part, and laid up a stack of purpleheart veneers, each glued to each, on top. Then I stuck the whole thing in a vacuum bag; there it is, in the photo. When it's dry and I've cleaned it up a bit, I'll glue on the fancy face veneers (Karelian birch burl).

It's going to work fine this time. Promise.