Did you know that seventy percent of what a woodworker does is simply making variations of a wooden box? Most of them anyways. The other thirty percent came when they grew tired of making boxes.

Think about this: isn’t it that a bed is just a big wooden box without a bottom side; a drawer is again, a cube made out of wood without the top part, while a bureau is a big wooden chest with compartments and drawers also made in the shape of a box.

Thus, having described the above in simplistic terms, wouldn’t you say that learning to make the small boxes is the best route to take for the beginning woodworker? I thought so, yes. As someone has it, “great things come from small beginnings.” I bet you agree.

Throughout the millennia, wooden boxes came to be of use for a whole lot of different things. Filipinos in the rustic countryside use big “kabans” to store their personal belongings. A “kaban” is a big wooden chest. I got to use one of these when I was little. As a child with meager things, owning a “kaban” was more like saying that I am already a man possessing things a man should have and acting the part of a grown-up man.

Another popular box is one used to hold pieces of jewelry. These boxes are tiny and fanciful. They come lacquered with felt cloth and are tactile. In short, they are built to wow than to keep secure its contents. If not for its locks, they might as well be pieces of value too. Hence, the skill set used to make one of these is no easy feat for these reasons.

Yet, as a beginning woodworker, let me try to get you started making wood boxes using the quickest method without the fancy joinery. This exercise is timely with the season, as evidenced by the rapid rise in demand.

Quite recently, there have been many orders on Lazada and Shoppee of wooden boxes. The boxes they sell are made for use as novel gift containers instead of the usual gift wraps. They’re also good condiment keepers and fruit containers instead of the customary fruit baskets. And they’re a breeze make.

TOOLS:

First, you need tools and materials. You’d need five tools: steel tape (metrosan), wood saw (gabas), F-clamps, two pieces of a ten-inch sized f-clamps, and a hammer/screwdriver. Set this aside, and then go for the timber.

TIMBER AND FASTENER:

Get your timber from the same store. The same salesperson will help you get to the area (usually at the back of the store) where they have all sizes and choices of timber you’ll ever need for about any project. Insist on the S4S (smooth four sides) cuts. They’re twice, if not triple, in cost as its rough-cut, out-of-the-mill lumber, yet getting the S4S timber saves you the trouble of milling it down to its final cut. And oh, before I forget, buy ¾ inch wood screws or 1-inch finishing nails, whichever is available.

CUT AND PASTE:

Using the above tool, cut your S4S timber to the size I provided in the SketchUp drawing below. Like a jigsaw puzzle, join the pieces together, put glue, and nail (or screw).

Voila! There goes your box. More than the wooden box is the joy that you made something out of nothing – well if you discount the screws and glues as nothing simply by its own.

Challenge yourself, and make some stuff.

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DOUGLAS REY B. BERIDO

drberido@yahoo.com | Kagudoy Road, Basak, Lapu Lapu City, Cebu, The Philippines