My Shave Cabinet Project

[drifwood]

Hi,

I got lots of useful input from the "Show me your SR storage" thread. I've come up with an idea I think will work well here at my place, and since it can be adapted for all forms of wet shaving, I'm posting it here.

My idea is to make something resembling an old fashioned medicine cabinet with 3 different types of storage. The lower section is for wet stuff -- brushes and soap, razors that have been wiped down but could benefit from air drying. I want to make a frame and panel door with a panel that's a grill of some kind -- possibly something from the HVAC industry, or maybe split cane as found in chair seats.

In the middle will be a drawer to hold some razors (mine will be straights, but it can be adapted for other styles) in an environment sealed against moisture, with space for a dessicant.

The top will be shallow shelving for storage of creams, AS's colognes.

This is a sketch. The proportions are way off. The general idea is to have something roughly 14- 16" wide and about 30" high. The grill door on the bottom will open like a garage door so there are no doors flopping around when you're in "action mode". I made a mock-up of the bottom portion today (to see how the door would work), and it will be much "shorter" than in the sketch - about 9" in height.

I'm opting for pine, with pine V-board panelling for the cabinet back and the field of the upper door(s).

If the basic configuration works, it could easily be adapted to various styles and wood species to suit one's taste and decor. There is nothing new in the realm of cabinetry, and I encourage you all to take my ideas and adapt and improve upon them.

Lemme know what you think, or ask any questions you may have.

Cheers,
Ian

 

[AndrewGWU]

I don't know a lot about wood work, but it looks like you have put a lot of thought into this.

I look forward to seeing pics once it is complete.

 

[Walker]

Can't wait to see the finished product. I like the idea of the pull out drawer for your SR's

 

[Gerald_G]

any thoughts on security ? I don't know if you ever have kids around, but if I did, I'd want to ensure my blades are out of access for them.

I really like the idea. Mirrored door on top?

Maybe a detail scroll cut panel for the air flow would be cool.

 

[drifwood]

any thoughts on security ? I don't know if you ever have kids around, but if I did, I'd want to ensure my blades are out of access for them.

I'm still working on ideas for the razor storage. There are no kids in my place, so I doubt if I'll install a lock. The drawer could easily be locked though.

I really like the idea. Mirrored door on top?

A mirrored door would make absolute sense, but I already have a large mirror above my bathroom sink, and to add another one seems pointless. The door construction would make it easy to do this, however. I'm going for a folksy look, so I'll be using 1/4" knotty pine tongue and groove for the door panel and cabinet back.

Maybe a detail scroll cut panel for the air flow would be cool.

I agree, and I might have a go at that. I'm going to see what I can find "off the rack" first of all. My other thought was to punch a pattern into a piece of galvanized steel, like on a traditional pie safe.

Thanks for your ideas,
Ian

 

[Carnivore]

Did you think about drilling holes in the sides of the drying area or cutting a large hole and installing the same grill material? I think that would do a lot to encourage air flow, and it would still be quite attractive.

 

[drifwood]

Did you think about drilling holes in the sides of the drying area or cutting a large hole and installing the same grill material? I think that would do a lot to encourage air flow, and it would still be quite attractive.

This is another good idea. A grill on each side would help air flow for sure. I've been thinking of some concealed holes in the top of the lower cabinet. There is a gap which the door slides into when it's open. I can make some holes in the fixed shelf and also in the unseen portion of the cabinet back. This will be a lot easier to show than to explain.

Your idea has the advantage of letting more light into the interior as well, so I will definitely look into it.

I did a small mock-up of just the lower portion yesterday to make sure the pocket door would work (it did!). I might try your idea in this little box to see how it looks.

I'll be making a full-sized layout on some 1/4" hardboard later today. Then I'll start cutting out parts and planing the 3/4" stock down to about 1/2" to give the cabinet a lighter look. That will be my workout for today -- lots of hand planing!

Cheers,
Ian

 

[drifwood]

Hi,

Just so you know I haven't abandoned my project, I thought I should check in.

I missed a couple of evenings, but last night I finalised the layout and did a "story stick" with all the critical dimensions on it. This evening I started cutting out some parts and planing them to final thickness. Here's a picture of one side of the cabinet with my 15" thickness planer (aka jack plane ). It's slow going, but I'll get a fair bit done on the weekend, and then it will start to resemble something.

Cheers,
Ian

 

[AndrewGWU]

Keep us posted.... it is good to see progress

 

[Sluggo]

I like this thread! I look forward to seeing how things progress!

 

[Jim]

Thats a lovely woodworking bench and some fine planes you have in use.
Congratulations on a fine project!

 

[Uncle Erik]

Good idea - I like your design a lot. More than that, however, I think your shop is terrific. I've got a few old planes and other toys kicking around the shop I'm setting up in Arizona. Sooner or later, I'll knock off a nice shaving cabinet, too.

 

[luvmysuper]

Great plan, I really like the small pocket door as opposed to batwing type or something else that would ruin the profile.

Sooner or later, I'll knock off a nice shaving cabinet, too.

I'd like to, but with the cost of wood working tools, I'll have to knock off a bank first!

 

[stubblefree]

Did you make that big mallet I see on this end of the workbench ? Real good...especially the design.And the handle is cool too
What kind of wood is used for the head ?

Vijay

 

[StillShaving]

I like the design, it should work well. The only tweak I would consider is not making the hanging brush slots, but just have a second shelf inside your "wet storage" area. As that should be more flexible in terms of the number and shapes of brushes you end up collecting. But overall a nice cabinet design.

 

[drifwood]

Thanks for the encouragement guys! I'm just about to descend into the "man cave" to get back to planing.

Let's see, there were some specific points raised that I should respond to. Thanks for pointing out the bench, Jim. That was my first major hand tool project. The wood is old growth Douglas Fir from British Columbia (where I lived at the time), and they did a turn as rough 14" X 4" floor joists in some industrial building on the Vancouver waterfront. A kindly soul salvaged a couple of 10 footers and delivered them to me circa 1982. It is one of my most prized possessions.

Stubblefree, the mallet was not made by me. It was made by Emir in England and is still sold today. The head and handle were both made of beech. I bought this when I was building my workbench, and it has never split in close to 30 years of hobby use.

StillShaving, the brush hanging shelf got nixed in the layout stage. It was too fiddly and consumed too much space. My small brush will fit inside in its own wire stand, and the big Omega will sit on its handle for drying.

Thanks for the nice comments about the shop and the tools. Razor acquisition disorder is not my first "illness". In my defence, I did make my living as a cabinetmaker for several years, but nothing can really justify all the hand planes I own now. The particular jack plane you see is a 30's era Stanley Bedrock that was a rusty hulk when I bought it. It's a nice hefty tool to use.

Okay, the second cup of coffee has gone down the hatch -- it's time to make more shavings

Cheers,
Ian

 

[shmeegs]

Good luck to you!