The Art of Shaker Box Making

This is a five-day course.

Before modern kitchen and household storage systems, there were bentwood boxes. Colonials readily adapted local wood to the design and construction of bentwood boxes, and New England whalers fashioned round boxes out of materials at hand. The Shaker communities of the early 1800s elevated box making to a whole new level fashioning oval, painted utilitarian storage containers. Today, the bentwood box is a beautifully fashioned and finished keepsake box ranging in size from small ring boxes to ones that can be used as coffee tables.

The instructor will begin the week with a history of bentwood boxes in America and a demonstration of the various hand tools and shop equipment that will be used during the week.  Over the five day course each participant will complete a set of 5 nesting Shaker style boxes, one small serving tray and a special WoodenBoat School Class Box with a hand-carved whale on the lid.  In addition, students will see examples of Colonial-style boxes and time permitting, build one. Participants that would like to build more technically involved boxes can do so by communicating with the instructor prior to the class.  Some examples are- A Whale Ship era Ditty Box, The Fixed Handle Knitting Carrier, The Swing Handle Sewing Box or A Christmas Tree Ornament.

Box making can be a gateway to boatbuilding. Bending wood is typically a part of wooden boat construction. Bentwood boxes are held together with small tacks and clench-nailed, much like small lapstrake boats. Handles can be attached to boxes with the same rivets and techniques used in small-boat construction. Small hardwood pegs secure the bottoms and tops of bentwood boxes, just as trunnels do in certain wooden boat construction, and boxes can be finished in spar varnishes and paints to give them a nautical feel and look.